I watched the Superbowl Halftime show twice.
Once with my family, the second time with my wife.
And then this morning, social media erupted in craziness. I wasn't quite expecting that...I guess I am still naive. Comments ranged from Condemnation to support, scandalous to championing minorities, strip show to skillful art. And perhaps the most pointed comment from one social media post: where was the body shaming of Adam Levine when he took off his shirt last year?
But here's my issue: people critique J-Lo and Shakira for denigrating women, setting back the women movement, and other such challenges for dressing and dancing in the manner they did. They talk about it as a betrayal of the women's movement that they were provocative.
This is a deep misunderstanding of the drive for equality for women. It's about having the power to choose. Women Equality is about women exercising power over their own bodies, their own careers, and their own decisions amongst other things. It's about choice. I am going to assume that J-Lo and Shakira had control over the halftime show that carried their name.
Therefore, their choice...
...to sing the songs they did,
...to wear what they wore
...to celebrate their cultures (with dance moves, language, clothing and accessories)
...to promote unity and history
...to include family
...to display themselves
Is a celebration, not a denigration, of the fight for equality.
Assuming they made the choices, that is the point. THEY MADE THE CHOICES.
Whether you liked the choices or not, whether you conclude bad taste or excellent show is your choice to make. But to say their choice denied women the right to choose is mistaken.
Personally, I liked their halftime show, but didn't especially like the overly sexual messaging. But I celebrate their choice. I have been a fan of Shakira for years and even had her "Hips Don't Lie" as my ring tone (imagine that ringing in the middle of a church staff meeting)! I thought it was a good half time show and loved that for the first time ever two females of another ethnicity were the headliners.
And by the way, during the game, as celebrated by another commercial, Katie Sowers became the first women to hold a coaching position in the Superbowl. That's a lot of firsts and worth celebrating.
Equality for women!
Yes...we need it...and now, not later!
And Jesus fought for this same choice: he spoke to women and asked their opinion (giving them choice), he revealed himself to a women first (giving them a choice to share it with the others), they were part of his group of wider disciples, supported his ministry and enjoyed his friendship. Jesus celebrated the right for women to choose. We should too.
Really eloquently written Dorian, and I agree! The halftime show was an example of women being involved in the creative process and making big judgement calls for a production that has been handled exclusively by men for many years and that's something to celebrate. It's absurd to exclude 50% of the population in the decision making process of a society and it's time we stop that :-)
ReplyDeleteThank you. Not sure who it is as your comment was left unknown, but I appreciate the support
Delete