Just When You Thought You Were Out…
In the past few months, I’ve witness almost all the possible buzz you can dig up about Allison Stokke, and I’m rather exhausted by the whole thing. I’d like to move on as soon as possible with reality, which is that she’ll be a damned awesome athlete. The only thing that would make me revive this subject is some unbelievably reactionary crazy talk concerning this story’s sociological implications.
But thanks to the blogosphere, such people are easily found. Meet Jamillah Karim, Islamic feminist. Yes, you read that right. This column just makes you go “whaaaa?” a lot, and you can see the madness coming from the moment you see the title.
Where does a young male blogger get the idea that women are primarily around for the pleasure of men, to be demeaned and treated as live meat?
In our society, he is taught it daily in a massive and pervasive media campaign that both demeans women and deadens men’s sensitivity to them. From advertising to commercial music to the commercialized Internet, the disrespect of women, their bodies and their humanity — in short, the commodification of half the human race — is where the money is.
Oh damn. I guess it’s better to have disgruntled, pleasure-starved men panting around women like dogs rather than giving their bodies and brains the pleasure they desire out of harm’s way. But it’s probably just our fault for being males to think that we should respond positively or pleasurably to physically attractive females. We’re human, and isn’t that the biggest crime of all?
More logical fallacies after the jump.
It is far from benign. It is an overpowering invitation to violence, and it targets highly impressionable, not yet mature young men who are trying to come to grips with their emerging sexuality.
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And what messages do young men get — if not that women are primarily there to fulfill their sexual fantasies and that men are expected to possess and dominate them? That women are commodities to be utilized?Why should we as a society allow the most powerful tools of public education — the media, the Internet — to be dominated by the proponents of this violence against women? Why do we not demand that these tools of public education promote mutual respect among people, women as well as men?
This is a thought that would be interesting if there was any evidence to back it up. I have grown up with these people you call “not yet mature young men”, Ms. Jamillah. The closest I’ve seen many of them come to violence (especially the single ones who are more likely to frequent such images) is when they throw their X-Box controller into the wall when they lose in Madden Bowl. I’m not sure what the stats are for women’s violence over the past ten years (when the Internet has bloomed and accessibility to visual stimulation has skyrocketed), but I do know when two women get assaulted in Berkeley, it’s a tragedy, not a statistic. So either women are really adept with their pepper spray, or (surprise!) there isn’t much violence going on.
And sorry, I must’ve missed something. When did sexual connotation become violence? Don’t we all have fantasies that will never bear fruition? Just because some of us gawk doesn’t mean we act. We think she is beautiful, and she will be the highlight of the month, until we find another figure to look upon and move on. The attention might be unwelcome at first, but just ignore it and eventually you’ll be left alone. For the most part.
Draw into it though, and you invite the firestorm. Shouldn’t the parents of Stokke stop making such a big deal of this and drawing more attention to the matter? If she wants this to stop, why appear on ESPN Radio to enhance her image in the media? Sounds like Stokke’s way ahead of our favorite Islamic feminist columnist in figuring out the market.
Look, I’m tired of the Stokke stories. She’s pretty and talented, but she’s not exactly Elizabeth Dindial. But blaming males for this attention is ridiculous. It’s hardwired into us to seek out the most attractive mates. How can we suppress our most natural urges?
Please give your feedback in the comments. And if you have ideas for snuppressing our brains outside of frontal lobotomy, by all means share.
(And I seriously hope this is the last time I have to bring Stokke’s name up until I can get an interview.)
Media’s misogyny demeans all of society [Atlanta Journal Constitution]
Allison Stokke Stokes Absurd Array of Media Reaction [Sports by Brooks]
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