The Anti-Barbie (2010). Model: Dani Norberg. Styling: charles i. letbetter
I find it sadly interesting that today, the day after International Women’s Day where we celebrate women and all their wonderful contributions to the world, is Barbie Day. Barbie, that representation of all that is superficial, misogynistic, plastic, and objectifying in the historical view of women and the severe lack of reality in how society defines women. I am in favor of this particular celebration not existing.
We actually did a project a few summers ago where we took Barbie dolls and treated them like models. Ultimately, we turned them into zombies and at least one little girl was disappointed to discover she couldn’t actually get the zombie Barbie in a store.
I decided to go a different direction today though and celebrate the anti-Barbie; women who are independent and fierce, perhaps embracing an alternative lifestyle, not afraid to do things differently, to step outside the norm. These are women who wear their ink and body modifications proudly, not caring what anyone else thinks about the matter; women who define life by their own standards, set their own rules, and hold to their own sense of morality.
For too long we have limited women’s role models to those who are the elite, those who go on to college, run Fortune 500 companies, break through barriers at the top to give women more opportunity, and I’m not knocking those women in any way, shape or form; what they have done is nothing short of miraculous. But I also find strong role models in women who hold down two or three jobs to make sure their children are fed, clothed, and sheltered. I find strong role models in women who operate backhoes, drive trucks, and design stage lights. I find strong role models in women who join the military and fight to be allowed on the front lines. I find strong role models in women who struggle in the face of unending adversity and still somehow manage to hold their families together.
I don’t personally know any women who are anything at all like Barbie, and I don’t think I want to though I know they exist. Being superficial and plastic, hanging on to an ideal that was never anywhere close to reality, has no place in this or any other progressive society.
So here’s to all the anti-Barbies, the real women who aren’t afraid to be different. We love you. We thank you. We embrace you.
[one_half_last]We’re a bit tied up at the moment but we’ll be back online very soon![/one_half_last]
Ouch! That hurt! Our web server crashed and took everything with it, including backups! We’re slowly in the process of attempting to rebuild everything, but with the transition comes some difficult decisions. We can’t duplicate what we had prior to the crash. This is taking more time than we like.
Let There Be No Secrets
Let There Be No Secrets. Model: Lisa. H/MUA: Sasha Starz.
Note: Choosing a picture for today was difficult because it is a topic for which I am not aware of having an image that applies directly. To my knowledge, the model in this picture, a young mother of two, is not affected by our topic and in no way do we mean to imply that she is. Let’s be very clear on that fact before we start.
[one_half padding=”2px 4px 0 2px”]I chose this picture because of its ambiguity. She’s looking out a window as though she’s hiding from someone or something. Maybe she has a secret. Maybe that secret needs to be shared. What could that secret be? How might you respond if you knew? Today’s society is as judgemental and vicious as any. Social media bullies are everywhere, ready to pounce on the first hint of vulnerability they find, whether accurate, justified or pure fiction. She’s a very attractive young woman. How horrible a secret could she or anyone else, possibly hold?
You might be surprised. All around us women hold a potentially deadly secret, afraid to tell friends, family, and sometimes even doctors for fear of being stigmatized, ostracized, and left to face a difficult challenge alone.
The secret? Across the United States, about 217, ooo women, 80% of whom are childbearing age (15-44), are HIV/Aids positive. 1 in 4 people living with HIV/Aids are women.
We tend to ignore the issue of this disease any more; it rarely makes the news and even more rarely does it come up in conversation. We live in a day when the threat of HIV/Aids is considerably lower in the United States than it was even ten years ago. We would be wrong, though, to ignore the matter completely.
Today is National Women and Girls HIV/Aids Awareness Day and in doing our normal research as we do on any special “awareness” day I was rather shocked by the statistics. Like many of you, I’ve long considered HIV/Aids to be almost a back-burner issue. Even when a friend got a false positive test back a couple of years ago and went through a couple of weeks worth of emotional torment, I still didn’t consider the disease a major health issue. Seeing these numbers was a bit alarming.
For example, we tend to think of young, sexually active people as being the ones most at risk. Yet, in 2010, the last year for which there are reliable numbers, people my own age, 55 and older, account for twenty percent of the 1.1 million people in the United States living with HIV/Aids. Twenty percent!
HIV/Aids is most prevalent across the Southern states. The rate of infection in Indiana is relatively low, 5.2-9.9 per 100,000. Across the states of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, North and South Carolina, and Florida, the rate is 20.9 – 177.9 per 100,000, over FIVE TIMES higher![/one_half]
[one_half_last padding=”2px 2px 0 4px”]Most sadly, even when the know their status, 1 in 4 women postpone medical care because they are afraid; afraid of family reactions, afraid of partner abuse, afraid of religious ostracisation, afraid of being left alone. They hold their status a secret instead of getting help.
Let there be no secrets.
HIV/AIDS can happen to anyone and those diagnosed over the age of 55 are more likely to be diagnosed at a later stage of the disease. The only way to know for sure whether you are infected is to be tested. Under the Affordable Care Act, HIV testing and counseling may be available to you at no cost.
HIV/AIDS infections among women and girls dropped 7.7 % from 2008 to 2011 and continues to decline. Yet, because the disease is so vilified and those with the disease are socially shunned, we cannot afford to keep any secrets.
There is a lot of help available. Start with the Office on Women’s Health of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Healthcare.gov can provide information on the availability of free testing in your area (blame your governor if it is not available for you). A larger, though probably still not complete, list of helpful resources can be found by clicking here.
Stop keeping this secret. Let the word out. Let women know there is help and there are people who will support them. Get tested with your partner(s).  Do it today.
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