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From the Legs-it affair in the UK to the ‘James Brown wig’ in the US. It doesn’t mean that men don’t take women seriously. We’re just very dull… And perhaps a bit less sensitive.
Legs-it
Yesterday, Britain went crazy. The
Daily Mail reduced a top-level meeting between British Prime Minister Theresa May and Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon to a contest of ‘who has the nicest legs?’. Outrage across the nation. Feminists on the barricades.
Today, I saw on CNN how Bill O’Reilly of Fox News came under fire. He said he couldn’t concentrate on a speech by congresswoman Maxine Waters (a black woman) because he was distracted by her ‘James Brown wig’.
We’ve done it again. Although ‘we’. Bill is indeed not the most politically correct figure. However, the article in the Daily Mail was written by a woman for a magazine that has more female readers than male readers. And let’s be honest, ladies. That whole
who-wears-it-better thing, that’s really your thing. Not ours. I’ve never seen two comparative photos of Vin Diesel and The Rock in the same dress. Rightfully, Hannah Fearn for
Independent wonders why women find this so fascinating [1].
The main questions that come up in response are:
- Why is appearance more important than substance? Why did the editorial staff find it more interesting to judge who skipped leg training than to follow how likely it is that Scotland will secede from the rest of Britain?
- Why does this happen mostly to women?
To start with the latter point; I don’t think this is exclusive to women. The most ridiculed hairstyle of the past year was Trump’s. Everything about Trump has been ridiculed. His orange face, his small hands, his grating voice. However, men are much duller than women, both in terms of clothing and hairstyle. Clothing is a more difficult target for male politicians if you want to judge someone on their appearance. After all, a suit is quite boring and uniform. So with Trump, the length of his tie is ridiculed and in the Netherlands, we get excited when Jesse Klaver takes off his tie and unbuttons a button. Not exactly matters related to substance. No one thinks of sexism in those cases either.
“Totally incomparable,” according to my sixteen-year-old daughter. “Men haven’t always been disadvantaged like women and have never felt the need to prove themselves extra. It’s really crappy when you’re not taken seriously as a prime minister with such an article”.
“Okay, so you can judge men on their appearance, but not women? Positive discrimination you mean?” I say.
“Men weren’t discriminated against in the past and never felt the need to prove themselves extra.”
That’s not entirely true, I recognize something in the feeling that you have to prove yourself extra compared to someone else. On the one hand, you can be more sensitive to certain comments. On the other hand, you know that you’re only equal when you’re bullied and receive comments about your appearance, just like someone else.
One doesn’t exclude the other
Moreover, there’s no one saying there must be a negative correlation between inner and outer beauty to be taken seriously as a female politician, businesswoman, or just as a woman. One doesn’t exclude the other. No one assumes a correlation between a low body fat percentage, careful makeup, good clothing, and a low IQ.
That someone compliments you on your appearance doesn’t detract from your intellectual capacities. At least, that’s how men have never experienced it, I think. I wouldn’t be afraid of being seen as a dumb musclehead if someone makes a comment about my biceps while I’m explaining Einstein’s general theory of relativity at the table. Just do a front double bicep and continue discussing curvatures in spacetime.
I would only have more respect if Theresa and Nicola uploaded a video to YouTube in which they deadlift in tight yoga pants, bulging quads with a warm-up weight that exceeds your max. Then proceed to discuss the fate of Scotland and the kingdom. Like a boss.
But I’m a man, what do I know?
- http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/daily-mail-brexit-legs-it-theresa-may-nicola-sturgeon-female-readershop-women-feminism-a7654326.html
