My attention was brought to something very disturbing the other day. The Eastern Michigan University hockey team has new posters for the 2009-2010 season. Rather than displaying pictures of the team or coaches, they depict our female classmates in nothing more than hockey jerseys and heels.
I am shocked a school that boasts of diversity, multi-culturalism and equal opportunity for all students would allow its sports team to depict pictures of females in provocative and sexually explicit situations.
To think the EMU hockey team does not have one female player (not to my knowledge anyway) but finds it acceptable to exploit women in a vain hope to raise ticket sales.
Women have been exploited and objectified since virtually the beginning of humankind. We have fought and struggled to gain equality and to bring a new definition of our defined gender roles. Our foremothers held protests and bra burnings on their college campuses to gain the equality they were desperate to have.
Today, our female students are posing seductively and using their sexuality to gain attention. What happened in the feminist movement that resulted in today’s women still using their sexuality to get ahead?
We are basically stating women do not need to use their minds and intellect to solve problems, such as low-ticket sales. All women need to do is throw on a jersey and a pair of heels and people will be lined out the door to buy tickets.
I am shocked there is not more of an uproar about this. I know these girls are covered and are in no way indecent as far as coverage. But just because all their “naughty parts” are covered, doesn’t mean the blatant use of sex isn’t still being portrayed.
The old adage “sex sells,” only sells because we buy into it. If we want to see the change in the world we have to stand up and say that we want change and we aren’t buying it anymore.
I know writing this won’t change the gender roles that are ingrained into our society. Rather it is my first step in making a change. I refuse to buy into the idea that women are sexual objects designed for men’s fancy.
It is time to embrace our sexuality as opposed to exploiting it. It is time to finally say we have had enough and won’t be judged on outer beauty anymore.
But mostly it is time to stop complaining about the unequal gender roles and actually change them, so this is my first step to finally making things equal across the board, is there anyone who will stand with me?
