What's In Your Pants?

Back in the day, you looked in your pants, and what you saw was what you were.

Today, the discord between gender and biological sex has never been more apparent. 

There are whole movements based on the idea that the gender that you connect to may not be mirrored by your genitalia. 

There are many issues that have to be discussed on this subject, not least why gender dysphoria, gender fluidity, and gender neutrality have become more and more prevalent in recent years.

It is undeniable that at least some of those people who feel that their sex and gender do not match are jumping on the gender bandwagon, and that at some point in their lives, they will inevitably fall off. 

I know that what I'm about to say sounds incredibly harsh and intolerant, but I'll go ahead anyway; gender identity disorders are mental issues and, especially in children and young people, should not be celebrated. 

There have been quite a few studies which support the idea that gender is somewhat dependant on surrounding, but is, in fact, mostly biological. This means that although most people with gender identity disorders are the real deal, it is undeniable that at least some of those people who feel that their sex and gender do not match are jumping on the gender bandwagon - and that at some point in their lives, they will inevitably fall off. 

With celebrities like Miley Cyrus coming out as gender fluid, it is no surprise that there are people who believe that it makes them more intriguing, a more interesting person to be around, if they have this super-interesting facet of themselves to share with people.

None if this is to say that these people are anywhere near a majority, and it actually lessens the stories of those for whom these conditions are real when there are people who are just using it as a fad.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that there's a difference between wanting to challenge gender stereotypes, and not collating your gender with your sex. 

You can do one without the other, and it doesn't make you any less cool.

When Your Burrito Turns Sour

So you're enjoying what happens to be one of the best burritos of your life, when you're approached by a friend. You tell them that you love this Mexican place, that you should come here more often. You're friend looks a little awkward and says: 'Uh, well, don't you think that you're appropriating Mexican culture?'
Now, you're thinking, 'how can a burrito be appropriation?', and I'd have to agree. To say that dressing up as an Native American on Halloween, or that tweeting puns based on hip-hop lyrics is cultural appropriation is a little over the top. 

 It seems that we've gone from incredible insensitivity to obnoxious over-sensitivity on the subject of appropriation.

The definition of cultural appropriation according to the all-knowing Wikipedia is:

The adoption of elements of one culture by members of a different cultural group, especially if the adoption is of an oppressed people's cultural elements by members of the dominant culture.

Ok, I don't know about you, but when I eat a burrito, the last thing on my mind is how much it's going to further oppress the Latino waiter who just served me. In fact, I'm appreciating him all the more. See, this is where you need to think about what you mean - context is important.

There is a vast difference between cultural appropriation and cultural appreciation. In the case of my delicious burrito, I fully appreciate the culture behind my meal, I am not using it as a symbol of my cultural superiority. 

Last year, there was outrage at Miley Cyrus for twerking. Apparently, it is appropriating black culture to twerk, as seemingly there are people out there so insecure in themselves that the sight of Miley's swaying booty threatens their blackness. So, what these people are saying is that any time the Macarena is performed at a child's birthday party, the music should be turned off and they should all be given a time out for oppressing and appropriating Spanish culture. 

Now, there are some significant cases where appropriation is still happening - blues and rock music are major ones. While R&B music is acknowledged to be have black roots, Elvis is considered the 'King of Rock', when rock music is actually a combination of African-American music, such as Jazz, Blues, Swing, and Gospel. This is skimmed over as at the time of creation (1940s-50s), every effort was made to stop any credit from going to black people. 

When you use language, styles, art, or food from another culture, the key is context. 

When white people have dreadlocks/cornrows or non-Indians wear henna, it is completely out of context to say that this is appropriation. The majority of these people are appreciating the culture, they enjoy how henna looks, they feel more attractive when they have locs.

Flinging around accusations of appropriation is inappropriate and really just diminishes any true credibility that you may have had when there is real appropriation happening. 

We Need To Talk About Racism

The discussion of race and colour has become ever present during the past year due to the shootings in Ferguson and the institutional racism across police forces in America. 

Racism is never acceptable, and should be stopped before it even has a chance to grow.

HOWEVER: Not everything to do with race or colour is racist.

I recently read a ludicrous article which stated that it is never ok for a white person to cosplay as a person of colour (POC). Personally, this is racist itself - saying that an act which is not racist is off limits to one race is racist. If white people want to accurately portray a character of colour, this is NOT blackface or racism towards whichever race they choose to portray.

For example,  Colton Hanes, star of Arrow, Teen Wolf, and much more, has been vilified on social media for dressing up as Kanye West and Ghandi (as if it is somehow racist to represent a black person as black) . Now, bearing in mind that Hanes is white, and that it was Halloween, what does this tell us? It shows that the world, especially the so-called 'online community', has become ultra PC, so much so, that it has become impossible to dress up as a fictional character with a different skin colour to you.

Another popular opinion which I hear repeated quite often is that it is not possible to be racist against white people. I also heard a speech by a black professor in America who says the same. For someone so interested in, and invested in racism, this is a remarkably arrogant and ignorant thing to say.

Racism is defined as baseless prejudice against a race or ethnic group. So much that I see on the internet is 'anti-white'; that white girls are basic, posts using 'white people be like...'. Take a moment to imagine the hashtag 'black people be like'. I wince even imagining the backlash from minorities. It never fails to amaze me how dense people can be when it comes to race, as if having less melanin and the shape of your eyes somehow means that you are immune to racism. It is also wrong to say that being white = being privileged, as if money comes out of the womb with you, and the shade of your skin determines how much. This is not to say that overall white people in the West are better off than minorities, but it is a gross generalisation to say that being white means that you have money.

Also, being white does not mean that you cannot be a minority - Most, if not all, of the victims of the French Kosher supermarket (the same shootings as Charlie Hebdo) shootings were whiteas well as Jewish, a definite minority.

We need to stop talking about white people as though they are responsible for every single terrible thing that has ever happened, and making fun of them for things that everyone does (how is liking Starbucks and Instagram a specifically white thing?)

You're not funny, you're racist, now stop.

Could The Real Feminists Please Stand Up

Feminism. 

Everyone seems to have a different idea of what this is, and what it means to them. 
Today, it is has become so that feminists are infantalised and ridiculed, especially by other women; These are the 'Women Against Feminism'. The hashtag 'I Don't Need Feminism Because' was used by thousands of women to explain why feminism is outdated and useless. 

'I don't need feminism because I respect ALL humans, not just one gender'
'I don't need feminism because I do not need a "leg-up" to succeed'
'I don't need feminism because I am an adult who is capable of taking responsibility for myself and my actions'
'I don't need feminism because society DOES NOT objectify me, feminists are the ones that tell me that'

At a first glance these statements sound pretty reasonable - who doesn't agree with equality? Once you think about feminism actually is, you realise that these people are absurd; firstly, the feminist movement was created to bring equality to women, to empower them.

If you think on it even further, you'll see how insanely self-centred these posts are. Just because you don't feel that feminism is relevant in your life, why make it seem as though it is not necessary in anyone's life? There are many women who feel that society does objectify them, that when they are wolf-whistled, they feel uncomfortable. This is what feminism attempts to correct. There are many people out there, both women and men, who do objectify women, who do attempt to enforce a glass-ceiling in the work place, who do indeed feel that a woman's purpose is to serve. I was recently out with friends, and we were seated next to a large group of thirty-somethings. During a lull in our conversation, one man at the next table could be clearly heard saying: 'I'm glad that my wife is less intelligent than me. It means that she can stay at home and take care of my children'. Now, I am all for women choosing to be stay at home mums. However, this is where feminism comes in - if a man feels that it is socially acceptable to say such things about his wife in public, it doesn't make a single bit of difference whether you feel empowered. There are people in the world who are beaten down every day because they do not feel as though they have any worth.

This is not to say that there aren't those feminists out there who take things a tad too far. Militancy in any form or situation is never good. Here, though, when the subject in question is divisive (although it really is a very simple issue), it does not paint the movement in a positive light. Militant feminism is about bringing down men instead of raising women up, and in the end, neither party are better for it. 

Call it what you want (feminism, equalism, whatever) if you believe that women should be equal to men (not the same as) on every level;

 you are a feminist. 

No One Cares...

So you've finally embraced the person you always felt you were, and you couldn't be happier. Really and truly I couldn't be more pleased for you and your newfound sense of self. This is because would you do in your life has no effect on me or how I feel about myself. You are you and I am me, and neither of us can change that. 

For those of you that don't understand what this means, I'll clarify: Please stop attacking people for having a different viewpoint to you. 

This is a statement that can be applied to pretty much anything.

If someone doesn't agree with transgenderism, or with homosexuality, or with your religion, or with something that defines you or is important to you, take the opportunity not to shove it down their throat. Please.

However rude or uncultured you think that person is, it is not going to help your cause in any way when you try to convert them to your way of thinking.  If you are someone who does this. Please. Stop.

In the same way that you don't agree with them, they don't agree with you. 

So, next time you feel the need to flip a table because someone used the wrong pronoun (intentionally or not), remember that not everything is about you and that your feelings and opinions are not the only ones that matter. 

Fat Lot Of Good You Are

*I'm speaking about obesity, not being a little overweight*

Nowadays, it seems like we've all caught the anti-body shaming bug. Which was really great until the whole idea swung to the other extreme. We celebrate and encourage obesity in an effort to be inclusive and supportive of all body types. What we don't imagine, however, is that we are doing more harm than good. 

In no way am I saying that you should hate the way you look, because that type of thinking is self-destructive and dangerous. What I am saying, though, is that there is a vast difference between being ok the way you look right now whilst aiming to change it, and not wanting to change because society has now told you that fat = beautiful. For the purposes of this blog, I'll call this tolerance vs. acceptance.

This YSL advert was banned by the ASA as the model is 'unhealthily underweight'

Recently, Yves Saint Laurent were banned from publishing an advert where the model involved was severely underweight. On the other extreme, the internet blew up over Tess Holliday, a 'plus-sized' model who encourages self-acceptance. These two models are worlds apart in what they look like, but unfortunately, are oh so similar in what they represent. The ASA (Advertising Standards Agency) called it 'irresponsible' for YSL to show this advert as it enforces the idea that the thinner you are, the better you are, and that this is the ideal body. Here, it is not the model's fault, she was chosen by a larger corporation.
Why, then, is it not considered irresponsible for models etc. such as Tess Holliday to instil in young people that being obese or overweight is acceptable?

Holliday is a size 22 (UK 26). It is inconceivable to me that she has been allowed to become a symbol of beauty - instead she is encouraging death. A bold statement I know, and many will point out that being too thin is just as dangerous as being too fat but in today's day and age, society is much more aware of the risks of being underweight. What isn't as widely known is that obesity carries with it serious health risks; strokes, cancer, and heart disease are all strongly linked to obesity, along with weakened joints and limited mobility. 

In my unpopular opinion, I would rather that young, obese girls feel just a little uncomfortable about their bodies and become healthier, than feel supremely confident in themselves and remain dangerously unhealthy for life, or at least until they have a health scare and wish they had made some changes earlier.

TL;DR : People like Tess Holliday are slowly killing themselves, and society, with too much self-love. 

A Drop Of Ink May Make A Million Think

Words can break bones. We know this even as children, when we go home crying because someone teased you for wearing glasses, or they didn't like your backpack. Then, as we get older, we're upset when someone calls us ugly, or asks us out as a cruel joke. 

As we mature, so too do our sensitivities. All over the internet, people take up arms against body shaming, the dismissal of mental health issues, and ostracising others for things that make them them. But.

Most of us, myself included, tend not to think about the specific words that we use unless it is directly offensive (fag, nigger, dyke, chink...) 

What we don't pay attention to, however, are those terms which are not ours to use. When we say that we're 'depressed' because our favourite character died, we're saying that depression is fleeting and superficial, that it can be cured by ice cream and Netflix. 

When we say that we have 'such OCD' about something, we undermine the truth of the condition, its debilitating effects, they way it stops its victims from living their lives. 

When we say that someone 'had a fit' over something, we don't stop to think about people with epilepsy and the limitations placed on them because of it. Imagine not being able to drive a car in case you have a seizure at the wheel. Or being asked out and freaking out your date when you fall to the floor, writhing.

These are just a few example of our carelessness with our language. I know that there are many people out there who would say that this is pretentious and petty, but it is not enough to rally against those who insult others, even if they don't mean to (Tumblr I'm looking at you). Before pointing a finger at other people, we should first take a look at ourselves, and check if we could better ourselves in the same way.