Bra Burning, It's All Been A Lie

A lot of people associate Feminism with the image of crazy, radical girls in the 60's setting their bras on fire to protest gender discrimination. 

Soooo
Funny story.
That never actually happened.

Finally Feminism 101 had a post in response to a question about how the whole bra buring this is a a false memory harbored by a lot of people, and how it was never actually a thing that happened.

"The stereotype of the “bra-burning feminist” is one that remains today as a sort of feminist bogeyman to scare women (and men) away from the movement by pointing out how “ridiculous” and “radical” feminists are. The rub is, feminists never burned their bras as a political statement."(finallyfeminism101.wordpress.com)

Picture from blogforbettersewing.com

The false image is estimated to come from one of the very first protests. During a picketing of a Miss America beauty pageant, the group of women "crowned a live sheep, and dumped girdles, cosmetics, high-heeled shoes, and bras into a “freedom trash can”" (Snopes.com) A print article flippantly referenced "bra-burning" when discussing the event and the phrase stuck, identifying all feminists as bra-burning radicals.

Apparently the women wanted to burn the bras, along with other "instruments of female torture" but the police department wouldn't let them. However, Carol Hanisch who had a part in organizing the protest takes a more amused stance on the memory saying, 

"We had intended to burn it, but the police department, since we were on the boardwalk, wouldn't let us do the burning. I often say that if they had called us 'girdle burners,' every woman in America would have run to join us." (Jezebel.com)

It's funny to think that a revolution that has inspired so many women has a myth that is consistent perpetuated and has been for quite a long time. The writer of the post on Finally Feminism makes a good point though.

"It’s important to remember that, even though the particular claim is a myth, the act that it symbolized — a rejection of patriarchal beauty standards and the trappings that go with them — is absolutely a feminist cause and not trivial at all."

To think, only a few dozen years ago, women had to protest to be allowed to wear pants. PANTS. And we had "freedom trash cans". It was truly a different time.

Interestingly enough to me, most feminist arguments I've heard lately are more about the right to wear skirts, mostly in reference to rape cases where judges designate blame to the victim for how she was dressed. In the picture on the left you can see a sign from a protest that's garnered a lot of attention.

We live in a strange world, and I find it a little weird that we still have to protest stuff like this. That we would designate blame to a victim of rape because of their clothes is like telling a victim of a hit and run accident it's their fault because they were walking.

Thank god for the American legal system. Oh, and good old gender discrimination.

(oYo)

Booblogger

Implants, The Pros And Cons

So, you all know how I'm like, pretty much against breast enhancement right?
If you don't know that, feel free to refer to the post about how Shannon Osbourne and Danielle Lloyd implants exploded, for no reason. Or how that British lady just wanted to play paintball, and hers exploded. Or the lady on that weird survivor show who was mud wrestling and hers exploded.

Get it? Implants explode.
Guess what natural boobs don't do on a normal basis?
EXPLODE.

Now, I can see the argument for getting a breast augmentation, but I am still not terribly supportive of the procedure. Plus, less exploding, so that's a plus.

And a study (http://newslite.tv) done by Heat Magazine of 2,000 men, including Russell Brand, showed that 89% of men prefer natural to plastic. In case you're bad with numbers, this is a pie chart to show you.

Boob jobs

Pros:

1. You have "perfect breasts"

2. Gravity no longer applies to you

3. You can go bra less because of #2 

4. It can make you feel better about yourself

5. There was that one time that implants saved a lady from dying when her husband stabbed her

Cons:

1. Only 11% of men prefer fake to real

2. They could explode, making you lose a lot of blood

3. Expensive

4. You can wear a push up bra

5. You're going to be like the mother in Mean Girls. 

For those of you who haven't seen Mean Girls, there will be no summation of what that means. You're dead to me.
Also, it's on Netflix, so you have no excuse.

There are reasons to get implants. In fact, one of the very first breast augmentations(http://www.nybreastreconstruction.com), done by Dr. Vincenz Czerny in 1895 was to help even out a patients breasts after a tumor was removed. When women have mastectomy's due to breast cancer, reconstructive breast surgery, another form of augmentation, is often times used to help them feel more normal after the removal, and a woman who had actually just undergone a reconstructive surgery is what got me into bras in the first place.

And you won't find me railing against mascara or makeup, and though you all know how I feel about push up bras, I'm not going to try and get those banned. If you do it because it will make you feel better about who you are, then more power to you. But do your research. Find safe techniques, find a doctor you trust, and remember the the pros and cons.

Phillip Schofield from the "This Morning" show with Chelsea Charms

What I'm trying to say is I get it.
Maybe I don't approve of it, but I get it.
And if you're looking for a less permanent augmentation, why not try Snooki's "two bra boob job"? I can promise that pretty much any two bras you find will be cheaper then getting your breasts done.
Or try the Bangkok breast slapping technique. Remember, you need a professional for this one.
But try to keep it natural.
Once you get into Chelsea Charms territory, it's probably time to stop.



(oYo)
Booblogger