Topless for Liberation?
When I think of women’s liberation I think of women fighting back over the centuries of being treated like second-class citizens. I think of women finally uniting after the long years of sexism, misogyny, being looked down upon and being thought of as “the fairer sex.” I think of cheering, of marches, of screaming that we won’t go back to the lives of our ancestors. I do not think about posing for topless pictures and putting them on display for all to see.
Apparently Kate Moss feels a little differently than I do about liberation.
To date, women are not treated with the respect we, as a gender, deserve. Sure, we’ve come a long way, but we sure have a long, long way to go and super models posing topless for pictures to be shown to all of Tokyo and anyone with an internet connection doesn’t really help the integrity of our gender too much.
Designer turned photographer Hedi Slimane claims that Moss’ black and white vintage-style photos, entitled “Kate Liberation” is the ultimate testament to the woman libido. The photos, which even include her holding a cigarette to really capture the mood of the 50’s–where women had even less rights than they do now and were looked down upon by society more so than they are now, are supposed to be seen as the definition of being a free, sexual woman.
Apparently I missed that sense of “freedom,” because all I gathered from the display is that in order to be a free, sexual woman you must give men what they want to see and hope that they accept it because men are the ones who decide if women can be strong-willed and sexual beings. It is saying that you must conform to the social norm of being a sex object for the male population and in that, you will feel a lot better than if you were spouting some female power crap and being told to get back in the kitchen.
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Holly is a feminist activist as well as an advocate for childhood abuse and sexual abuse. She has a big mouth and a blog, Menstrual Poetry. She began taking writing seriously about 7 years ago when she began writing poetry and prose and has since been published several times. She lives in Vandling, PA with her boyfriend and their spoiled cat where she is building her first business, Holly Ord Media, a web design, development, branding and marketing firm. She is also a partner in an upcoming woman-owned and powered business coaching, education and empowerment company for woman entrepreneurs.
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The point of feminism wasn’t to militantly demand that all women burn their bras and break through the glass ceiling, but rather, to give women the choice and opportunity to do whatever they wanted to do. Want to be a porn star, stripper, naked model, stay at home mum, working mum, not a mum? Go right ahead, because the feminist movement allowed you the choice to do whatever the hell you wanted to do.
Kate Moss made the decision to take these photos because she’s comfortable in her body and her sexuality, so to criticise it as being untrue to feminist principles seems awfully shallow.
Topless women fighting for equality sounds kinda counter intuitive, imo… although, i will support topless women in any endeavor.
I think i agree with Amanda here, feminism is about the freedom to do whatever you want to, make whichever choice suits you and your purposes. If you want to go topless (or bottomless) to make a statement, say, you should have the freedom to do so without inciting criticism or ire.
Amanda, Reena - feminism is about freedom from criticism? seriously? (raises eyebrow) For that matter, you think freedom is about freedom from criticism? Please stop & think about this.
Kate Moss is free to pose for these photos. Holly is free to criticise Moss & the photographer for co-opting a word, “liberation”, that historically we associate with very real and important political struggles, to lend a bit of faux-edginess to a fashion shoot. You are free to ignore Holly or disagree with her. But to imply that she’s out of order for being critical?
Ask yourselves, exactly how does Holly being critical infringe on Kate Moss’s freedom? Why on earth should Holly stay silent?
Kate Moss being comfortable about posing naked may feel liberating for Kate Moss, but something is not feminist simply because a woman is doing it. Moreover, she can cannot prevent any male viewers from objectifying her when they look at these pictures, from interpreting her nudity as submissive, as safely unthreatening to their sense of being more important than women, from reinforcing a casual sense of entitlement to view women’s bodies and women’s sexuality as existing for their benefit.
o my goodness. I don’t know how someone can think that being topless is liberating.
I agree with MariaS. “something is not feminist simply because a woman is doing it”.