Fashion x Feminism

Mum, I'm a Feminist's logo

Last month I met up with Jess, who runs feminist blog www.mumimafeminist.co.uk, to discuss something not many people think about when it comes to feminism: fashion.

People have a very set image when it comes to feminists, that they are angry, all stompy all the time, and uncaring of their appearance, and Jess agrees. "There is a massive stereotype," she tells me, "but it's not 'wrong', if you are hairy, shouty and a lesbian - because that's obviously the stereotype - then fine. You go do that, you get yours, be yourself. There's nothing wrong with that." However, there are a lot of people who are put off by this stereotype, which means that not only do a lot of girls not want to identify as feminists, but don't want to associate themselves with the movement all together. "It's been turned into something so negative. Like, 'oh, I don't want to be THAT feminist…' when, actually, there's nothing wrong with being that feminist, it's just the media want you to think it's a terrible thing and not be involved, because it's a threat to them."

We begin to talk about how feminism has changed the way she sees herself and how that reflects on the way she dresses. 

"When I was younger, I spent a lot of my time comparing myself to my friends. I've always preferred alternative music - rock music, metal - whereas my friends at school liked the Top 40 and things like that, so they all dressed to reflect it. I've always dressed how I wanted to, but when we went on nights out, I didn't really have my own fashion sense. I sort of did somewhere in the middle with disastrous results, it was horrible!" she laughs, "I didn't have the confidence to be entirely who I was." She recalls how it improved since she started at university, but feminism has made her more confident in what she wants to wear. "Now I'll pick something and be like, 'I like this, and yeah, so-and-so from down the road may not like it, but I don't really care what they think, as long as I look nice.'"

I ask her where some of her favourite places to shop. "This is very stereotypical answer, but I do like Topshop. I don't ever buy loads, but I'll go in there now and then and I'll buy one statement piece that adds to everything else in my wardrobe. ASOS, because they sell an absolute wide range of stuff and I can always find something for me. I get stretchy pencil skirts from H&M and Primark is always amazing for vest tops and little bits and bobs. I also shop in the vintage stores around Sheffield when I can, but they are quite expensive. I like them because I can find nice slouchy pieces and I can team them with other things. So, I shop in loads of different places, depending on my budget."

Jess & I channelling Rosie the Riveter

"I think I've got more body confidence. I do get upset and think I weigh more than I'd like to, and I still have really bad days, but who doesn't? But since becoming a feminist, I have more good days and better good days. Being fat is not, by a long stretch, the worst thing you can be, is it? It's not a negative thing, it's an adjective. I'm getting on with my life - I'm going out, I'm doing the blog, I'm doing my degree, I'm working. And I think, for God's sake, who cares if I have that extra slice of pizza? So I'll dress myself now, not thinking, 'Oh I wanna hide myself,' but instead think, 'Yeah, I am curvy, and I'll wear a crop top if I want to wear a crop top!' That's how I feel, you know? So that's nice, that's empowering."

It seems that feminism has had a very positive effect on how Jess, not only in how she approaches her feminism and other general issues, but how sees herself, and that's great to see. Being confident in ourselves and our bodies is one of the most important things we can achieve, and Jess seems to have it covered. And whereas appearance is not the most important concern in feminism, it is good to see a feminist who takes pride in it, and is not afraid to do so. "We don't want to BE men, we want to express ourselves however we want. We don't want to emulate masculinity, that's not how we want to be. Like, some people do want to be masculine, some people enjoy being androgynous, but I don't. I like wearing girly clothes and lipstick, I also like wearing my boyfriend's clothes and boys clothes. I like doing that. And if anyone said to me, 'Your lipstick makes you less of a feminist,' I'd just be like - get out," she laughs, "because it doesn't at all."

Here are some of Jess' favourite outfits:

"I absolutely LOVE this black ASOS dress because it plays to my curves. The shoes are a new addition - I love them because they're a bit trashy but fantastic at the same time and I like that. I usually wear this out on the town or to special occasions with friends."

"This is an outfit I would have never dared wear a couple of years ago but now I can't get enough of wearing it! Just shows you what a bit of confidence can do. The crop top is another ASOS gem and the shorts are upcycled Levis from a vintage store in Sheffield."

"This t-shirt is my boyfriend's but I'm pretty sure I wear it ten times more than he does these days. We actually swap and share our t-shirts a lot which is quite nice. The shorts are my go-to faves for many an occasion; I had a pair before but they tore across the bum (whoops) which I had to give up and find a suitable replacement. I'd love to wear this at a festival this year so here's hoping we get the nice weather for it!"

"I love wearing these jeans with a black top - it's really simple and easy (which a lot of my wardrobe is all about!) I add a baggy shirt on the days I'm feeling self-conscious about my arms or to give it a little something extra. The top's a H&M basic, the jeans are from Primark a good few years ago and my shirt's another secondhand purchase (men's section of course!)"

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Naked Ambition...

It's no word of a lie when I say that I love Lana Del Rey. We saw it when I sang her praises in a review for Born To Die, and when I defended her questionable performance on Saturday Night Live. So when I found out that she was being featured in this year's GQ Men of the Year, I was over the moon.

She looks absolutely fierce on the cover, wearing nothing but jewels and red lips, and the rest of the shoot doesn't disappoint either, showing Del Rey at her best in her signature sophisticated Old Hollywood style. And at first, the nudity didn't bother me. I don't have a problem with anyone wanting to pose naked, it's their prerogative.

But upon further research on this issue, reading certain posts on Tumblr and following it up with articles on the internet, I sensed that something wasn't right. Let's take a look at all of the other winners of Men of the Year: comedian James Corden, rapper Tinie Tempah, pop-star Robbie Williams, and actor John Slatterly. With the addition of Lana, three Brits and two Americans, nothing strange there. But then you take a look at their covers...

Spot the odd one out...

Suited man, suited man, suited man, suited man... and naked woman.

Now, ignoring the New Statesman's argument that her cover looks suspiciously similar to a 70's porn poster, there are a lot of questions to be raised about why on Earth LDR, who happens to be the only female, is the only one to bare all. I'm not suggesting that they tied her down and forced her to shoot naked, if she didn't want to do it she could have just refused. But why didn't the Creative Directors at GQ suggest that their other cover stars strip down too?

I'll tell you why, because GQ is a magazine for men made by men. It's the James Bond of men's magazines, suave and sophisticated, focusing on men's fashion and lifestyle, and not forgetting to sex up those ladies. The sexism is so casual that one of the shots in Lana's spread even shows a faceless man clutching at her breast like it's no big deal.

Easy there, fella, we're not groping produce at the supermarket here. Or are we?

What scares me most is that sexism has become so internalized. We are so used to seeing naked women in the media that we don't even bat an eyelid to it. I'm ashamed to say it, but I wouldn't have thought twice about it if I didn't find out about all the other covered-up male cover stars. Naked women have become the norm, and no one seems to care about this because no one seems to think that sexism and feminism is a 'thing' anymore.

Like I said early on in this post, I have no problem with anyone, male or female, wanting to pose naked for a photo shoot. I do, however, have a problem with the ideology that the more naked a woman is, the sexier she becomes, whereas men are sexy whether they're all bare or covered up - and more often than not we see them covered up. Women may have come a long way when it comes to equality in the past century, but most of those successes have been tangible - the right to vote, contraception, sexual health, equal pay (which FYI, still not equal)... but I think the real battle is changing people's mindsets of women being largely objectified and start treating them as true equals to men.

'Legitimate' Rape and the Republican

Republican Todd Akin

It's election year in the United States, and with November looming closer and closer, needless to say it's been... interesting. With the televised debates and conventions, we've been hearing all sorts of different arguments and opinions from both the Democrats and the Republicans. What's been revving many people's engines - and not in a good way - are some of the opinions the Republicans have voiced about rape, always a sensitive (see: controversial) subject. Here are the top five quotes, taken from AVG Notes, from various Republican candidates, past and present:

1. Todd Akin: "If it’s a legitimate rape, the female body has ways of shutting that whole thing down" - mid 2012 Senate Campaign

2. Clayton Williams: “If it’s inevitable, just relax and enjoy it” - mid 1990 Gubernatorial race in Texas

3. Chuck Winder: “I would hope that when a woman goes in to a physician with a rape issue, that physician will indeed ask her about perhaps her marriage, was this pregnancy caused by normal relations in a marriage or was it truly caused by a rape. I assume that’s part of the counseling that goes on.” - March 2012

4. Ken Buck: “A jury could very well conclude that this is a case of buyer’s remorse … It appears to me … you invited him over… the appearance is of consent.” - October 2010

5. Rick Santorum: “I think the right approach is to accept this horribly created - in the sense of rape - but nevertheless a gift in a very broken way, the gift of human life, and accept what God has given to you… rape victims should make the best of a bad situation.” - January, 2012

Let's see what we learnt from that shall we? Babies are a 'gift' despite their conception, forced or otherwise; women are essentially 'asking for it'; rape within marriage is okay; if it's gonna happen, it's gonna happen; apparently there are distinctions between different types of rape ranging from 'legitimate' to 'forcible' (thanks Paul Ryan)... and oh yes, all of these statements are made by men.

First of all, can I ask, assuming there's such a thing as 'legitimate' rape, can someone please provided me a definition of illegitimate rape? Because I'm really interested on what that may be. Also, can someone please provide me with proof of Akin's qualifications in biological sciences? Because since he's such an expert on the female body, I would really be interested in finding out how it can distinguish between consented intercourse and rape, and just how the body can reject conception in the case of rape.

Here's the thing, men, especially white, upper-class, Republican men, know nothing about women because they don't believe we should have the same rights as they do. Though some of them supposedly agree that rape is wrong, they still don't believe that a woman has the right to an abortion if she falls pregnant from rape, because "human life is a gift." Even without rape being involved, nothing is done to help women when they fall pregnant. Republicans say, "No, you can't abort the baby you don't want/aren't ready for, because life is sacred. But don't think we'll be helping you with any of the childcare expenses when you do have the baby you aren't financially prepared for. Instead, we'll criticize you for not working because your job won't give you maternity leave and you need to look after the baby you didn't want." And you know what baffles me the most? The fact that there are women out there who have voted, and will vote again, for these men. How can any self-respecting woman stand by and listen to these ignorant and chauvinistic views, restricting our rights that we fought so hard for, and still agree with them?

As Obama so rightly put it, "We shouldn't have a bunch of politicians, the majority of whom are men, making healthcare decisions on behalf of women." Just like we shouldn't have these politicians make certain types of rape 'okay'. It saddens me that we live in a world where we don't teach our sons not to rape, but instead tell our daughters not to go out late at night, or not to wear the clothes she wants to wear because she'll be "asking for it". I don't claim to be an expert on politics, and I am not an American citizen, but any party behind a "No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act" loses my vote.

The Female Chauvinists? Anti-Feminism in Women's Magazines

With my first year of university almost over (yikes!), I still have one final essay to write for one of my modules: Communicating Sex and Gender. Out of the many choices of essay titles, I chose the question that explores the representation of women in magazines such as Glamour and Cosmopolitan.

My research consists of looking up academic texts on semiotics (the study of signs and their meaning), books on media representation, and of course, flipping through glossy magazines and taking in their contents. As I looked through the various magazines I have acquired over the years (which consist mainly of Glamour, with the occasional issue of Cosmo), I realised that despite their Girl Power mantras and their fearless female attitude, these magazines aren't very feminist at all. 

In Cosmo's recent 40th anniversary issue (featuring Holly Willoughby on the cover), columnist Suzanne Moore wrote an article titled "Why Cosmo Rocks!" and explained that when Cosmo first hit the newsstands in the early '70s, it was, at the time, seen as this radical and outrageous thing because its main USP was female pleasure. It was one of the first magazines to insist the right of women to talk openly about and enjoy sex, be in control of their own bodies, and to 'find joy' in clothes and beauty. It was a very sexually liberating time for women everywhere. However, fourty years later, this 'sexually liberating' thinking still seems to be on the top of the list for most of these magazines. Fashion and beauty ranks pretty highly on their list of priorities too. Very rarely do we see articles on female politicians (NOT including small segments on newly elected world leaders' wives), sportswomen, women in science or women who campaign for women's rights all around the world. Instead, the pages are filled with beauty ads, fashion tips, stick-thin models and celebrities and endless articles about how to drop a dress size and how to give him the best sex he's ever had.

With all the influence and impact these kind of magazines have on women, especially their younger readers, they have so much power to do so much good. Instead, they impose messages like, "you have to look like this, act like this, dress like this..." and rather than encouraging us embrace our bodies, they make us want to change and manipulate it, and making us feel like failures when we cannot do so. Whenever they do touch on serious subjects such as Equal Pay Acts, it always gets overshadowed by the abundance of beauty and fashion and relationship columns they provide us with each month. It's like saying, "Yeah, we're not happy, but there's nothing we can do about it. So let's just make a bit of noise, then sit down and look pretty." Not to mention how predominantly straight-orientated these magazines are. So many articles in women's magazines deal exclusively with heterosexual relationships and treat lesbian encounters as 'experimental' and 'crazy' and, in general, don't take same-sex relationships seriously. In this day and age, where campaigning for LGBT rights have come so far (but still have further to go), what kind of message is this sending to future generations?

When I was fourteen, I read an article in Glamour written by Claudia Winkleman in which she shared with us her 'tips' on how to land a husband. It basically was telling women to do everything in their power to change themselves and lie to their partners in order to get that ring on their finger. It included things like doing the washing up dressed in your best lingerie and pretending to like football whenever he was around - and once you're married to revert back to your usual self because "you've got him now." Unfortunately I no longer own that particular issue in order to reference from it in more detail (I imagine I threw it out in a fit of feminist anger), but it made an impression on me because I realised that some women will do anything to please men, just to get themselves a husband.

What's recently struck a chord with me is the aforementioned 40th anniversary issue of Cosmo, and their competition to find curvy girls to represent a new size campaign with Evans, a plus-size clothing store, and to sign a contract with model agency Excel Models 1. Though Evans is a plus-sized clothing shop, storing UK sizes 14-32, the five girls they picked as the winners were all on the smaller end of the 'plus-size' spectrum, all wearing dress sizes 14-16. First of all, I find it ridiculous that a size 14 is even considered a plus size, especially factoring in that the average British woman is a UK size 14-16. I don't think it's a cause of celebration that these girls got contracts, because then we are implying that a size 14/16 is fat, which it is not by any means. Surely, if they wanted to properly represent 'curvy' and 'plus-sized' women, they would have searched for body-confident women who wore sizes 20 and up?

But I don't know, maybe I'm expecting too much from these kind of magazines. Maybe if we want to read about powerful women in politics we should do a Google search or read the Guardian or watch the news instead (however, all of these mediums still undermine women a lot). Maybe women's weekly and monthly magazines should stick to what they're good at: telling us which shoes go with which handbags, what shade of lipstick best suits our skin tone and how to have a healthy sex life. Most women go to glossy magazines for light reading and pretty pictures of celebrities. But I still think people underestimate the power of these magazines, and that those two hundred-odd pages really have an impact on how women think of themselves and each other. If they don't change what they put within their pages and how they communicate it to us, then we're just going to carry on silently living in a man's world. But at least our hair will be perfect, right...?

Edit: I ended up getting a first in that essay :)