International Women's Day

When I first heard of International Women's Day, I was a kind of annoyed. I mean, women get one day? Out of 365?

But I guess the real point of days like this is to commemorate women who have shaped the world against all odds--in big ways and in small ways. In many countries, Women's Day celebrated like Mother's Day; a day to give thanks to the female family members and teachers in one's life.

So with that in mind, here are some of the woman who have made me who I am. I can't track them all down, and I can't thank them enough, but I can't imagine being the person I am today without them.

Ms. Geier, my fourth grade teacher.
Shifra and Hazel, my Hebrew teachers.
Ms. Cunningham, my eighth grade English teacher.
Ms. Horowitz, my tenth grade science teacher.
Melissa and Ilene.
Jane.
Kris.
Ahuva.
Julia, my writing teacher at camp.
Rebecca, my writing teacher.
My three grandmothers, Mira, Gloria, and Ann.
My mom.

Perhaps fittingly, given that the International Women's Day theme of 2011 includes "Equal access to education," most of the women on this list are teachers. I'm so grateful, not only to be a woman in a country with free and equal education, but to have the opportunity to learn from these amazing people. Who happen to be female. 

Happy Women's Day, everyone! Who are you grateful for?

Fiction Vs. Reality

Every day on my way to school, I'm struck by the contrast between these two subway advertisements.

The first one, unfortunately, I've been seeing everywhere, and it always makes me want to hit something. The text, if you can't make it out, reads "Less lawyer. More appeal." The image speaks for itself: the same slender young woman used to sell anything and everything, with curves, heels, long legs, and a sultry if vacuous expression. The briefcase at her feet is just another accessory--almost an afterthought.

To a teenage girl who'll be applying to college soon, who's considering a career in law, the message is clear: forget about that J.D. How you look in a little black dress will always, always be more important.

This ad is for the USA television drama Fairly Legal.

The second ad features a smiling woman in boxing gloves leaning against the ropes of a ring. This woman is also young, also attractive and feminine, but she looks happier--and more real. The image hasn't been photoshopped. Her face, not her legs, is the focal point. The text beneath her reads, "I am not your average girl; Keisher 'Fire' McLeod, boxer." A contender, not a ring girl.

The ad is for 4 New York, a WNBC news channel.

How can two advertisements, placed literally side by side, present two totally opposite portrayals of women? One woman is a fictional character; the other, a native Brooklynite. One woman is posed and photoshopped; the other, maybe a bit sweaty, but proudly in her element. One promotes an outdated stereotype of what a woman can be--the other tears it down.

There are over 4 million women in New York City. There are single women, married women, divorced women, lesbian moms, Jewish grandmothers, Starbucks baristas, students, teachers, aspiring actresses, women of practically every race, religion, and ethnicity. When I think about it, it's not the sexualized image of the Fairly Legal ad that most provokes me. It's that this image--so false, predictable, and limiting--is promoted over and over as if it's the only way women are. Or the only way they should be. The truth is that women are too diverse to fit into any one box. Advertisers should start pandering to that demographic.

This is a case of media fiction lagging way behind reality.


(You can see Mrs. McLeod-Wells' boxer bio here, by the way. She's pretty awesome.)