Time For Some Red Carpet Feminism

Did you catch the Golden Globes?  I watched with lively friends, and of course we had choice comments for some of the showbiz attire.

But being well-mannered gentlepeople, none of us opted to post or tweet or carrier-pigeon our hilarious put-downs.  If there’s anything the world doesn’t need is more “fashion commentators” insulting famous women.

It’s become a very lowbrow sport that often reeks of misogyny.

Writer Judy Berman really hit the nail on the head in Bitch Magazine (“The Feminist Response to Pop Culture”) with a short article, “Web Spite.”  Published in 2006, it’s still very relevant.  ( I can’t find it online, but luckily I saved the print version in my “Interesting Articles” file!)

Berman focuses on the plethora of websites that mercilessly “reduce female stars’ worth to their physical appearance and fashion choices.”


Her summary:  “Offering rigid daily scrutiny of celebrities’ fashion choices—as well as their weight, acne, or bad weaves—can be good, schadenfreudelicious fun, but in the end it only serves to reinforce what fashion magazines have been telling us for decades: A country full of size-2 women in little black dresses is preferable to a world where ladies of all sizes can feel comfortable wearing whatever they damn well like.”

Hear that, fashion bullies?  Back off!  And if you really wanna see a tacky outfit, look in the mirror!  Oh, burn!


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