You know what genuinely surprised me last week? I was surprised that Emma Watson’s speech on feminism and gender equality at the United Nations became such a huge deal. The video (and text) went viral and it seemed like everybody had an opinion about it. While I thought Emma’s speech was very good, I really didn’t think it was groundbreaking in the least. I mean, she didn’t throw down any feminist gauntlets or anything like that. She just eloquently described feminism and how it affects her life. Anyway, Taylor Swift has only recently self-identified as feminist and she too has some thoughts on Emma’s speech. Swifty gave an interview to the French-Canadian talk show Tout Le Monde En Parle (you can see the video here). Some assorted quotes:
Swifty on watching Emma’s speech: “I wish I was 12 years old and I’d been able to watch a video of my favorite actress explaining in such an intellectual, beautiful, poignant way the definition of feminism because I would have understood it and then earlier on in my life I would have proudly claimed that I was a feminist because I would’ve understood what the word means.”
Gender equality: “The one thing I do believe as a feminist is that in order for us to have gender equality we have to stop making it a girl fight and we have to stop being so interested in seeing girls trying to tear each other down – it has to be more about cheering each other on as women.”
On how many girls don’t understand what feminism means: “So many girls out there say ‘I’m not a feminist’ because they think it means something angry or disgruntled or complaining. They picture like rioting and picketing, it is not that at all, it just simply means that you believe that women and men should have equal rights and opportunities… To say you’re not a feminist means that you think men should have more rights and opportunities than women.”
Her view on sexism in the media: “I think when it comes to females in the media you’ll see something that kind of upsets me which is that females are pinned up against each other more so than men. You know you never see ‘vote for who has the better butt – this actor or this actor.’ It’s always this female singer and this female singer.”
Female artists expressing their sexuality: “I think that no other female artist should be able to tell me to wear less clothes and I’m not going to tell any other female artist to wear more clothes. As long as it’s their idea, and they’re expressing their sexuality or they’re expressing their strength or it makes them feel like a woman to perform a certain way or dress a certain way… as long as it’s coming from them and they’re living their life on their own terms, I cheer them on.
Our little Swifty is growing up, y’all. Her explanation of how she views gender equality and sexism are much, much better. Taylor used to be one of those girls who thought “feminist” equaled “man-hating.” Then Lena Dunham (of all people) converted Swifty to feminism, but Swifty still couldn’t explain it properly. She’s made significant improvements very quickly. Good for her!
Photos courtesy of WENN, Fame/Flynet.
I don’t care if it’s a trend, but I think it’s nice that women with young girls as their fanbase (like Emma, Taylor and Beyonce) are proudly and openly declaring themselves feminist. I loved Taylor’s description of the 12 year old girl. We as girls are taught that feminist are evil. We are given all these straw feminist in media which repel us. And although Emma’s speech was a simplified “feminism for dummies ” It came across the core idea of feminism. Equality. Not a versus game.
Mte. I’ll take Taylor over Shailene or that Bass girl any day.
Ugh – YES. I can’t stand either of those two.
Me too.
I agree Farah and Dani2!
Not a challenging standard there. Woodley’s an airhead who lets the air put herself; that Bass girl just seems sad.
Dammit, I’m starting to like her.
Still don’t like her but if she continues to give thoughtful, insightful interviews like this and show more maturity then I just might change my mind.
I was with her until her speech about the girl fights, because lolololololol. Says the woman who scribbled “I H8 Katy Perry” all over her Jonathan Taylor Thomas trapper keeper for Rolling Stone.
do as I say, not as I do
Yeah, that’s the first thing that came to mind for me too lol, I’m surprised she forgot about that.
Ya wasn’t it last week when she was talking trash about “someone”? Whatever who cares I like her hair in top pic
This exactly. How will it affect her publicity if she’s not in the news for fighting with KP over a dude neither of them is with anymore?
I don’t think being a feminist means that you won’t have disagreements with other women or that you must get along with other women. Some women are jerks, just as some men are. If she thinks Katy Perry is a jerk and says it publicly that doesn’t make Swift any less of a feminist.
@Abott I was going to try to stay serious and focused because this is an important topic, but instead I fell off my chair laughing.
“There’s a special place in hell for woman who don’t support other woman” HA!
Still one of the funniest things ever. I loved Amy and Tina’s response.
I have no problem being shallow, but I’m all for voting best butt or bod on male actors. I would like to see a male version of Maxim – Cosmo doesn’t count, it’s always tartlets with nothing of substance to say. I want to see hot men shirtless and posing ridiculously while talking about puppies.
Wasn’t taylor one of those girls she’s shading here??? She picked fights with Katy Perry and that actress who’s name escapes me
Gay men’s mags might be your answer.
As Chris said, gay men mags. They make Maxim and Playboy look classy.
I can’t take Taylor Swift seriously as a feminist because of her behavior with males. She’s too clingy and whiny. Of course feminists can be upset with a breakup but Taylor goes out with a guy for a couple of months (half of the time not seeing each other because of touring/filming) and acts like it’s the end of the World.
She’s a kid, lighten up…………..
She’s going to be 25, why do people always defend her with that logic? I’m a year older and I haven’t been able to use that excuse since I graduated college.
While I appreciate her finally understanding the definition of feminism, I feel like its coming a little too late. Especially after fighting with Katy Perry through the media. I just can’t get over the difference in education between Taylor and Emma. This is why kids shouldn’t be able to drop out of school to become famous.
That’s why it is so dangerous for young kids to idolise celebrities. Most of them are uneducated people who are constantly told by people around them that they are the best thing since sliced bread. Not a good combination. But I will take it. At least she accepted that she was ignorant about feminism. That is something other starlets wouldn’t do.
Yeah I grew so much between 25 and 30..I just can’t hate on her for this. It seems like she’s a work in progress.
To be fair I don’t think too many of her songs these days are really about her exes… It’s kind of just a game she plays with the media. She loves the “guessing game” around her songs. Her public image and the marketing around her is truly impressive.
I’m just going to put it out there that we don’t know the intricacies of her relationships. We know what the media is reporting – but she doesn’t come right out and tell us all of the details. Sure – she lists things in songs – but how often does everyone see Taylor with a guy and assume she’s going to buy a house next door to him at this point?
I’m going to cut her some slack.
Allie: I’m not sure how you can say that her understanding of feminism is coming too late. “Sorry – it’s too late for you to expand your views and get behind something we all need”. And speaking of Emma – she’s not some genius either. She is eloquent, thankfully – but this is the same girl that went on about how she was so dehydrated because she wasn’t allowed plastic water bottles on set. PLASTIC. Because you know, that’s the only material that can hold water.
@Erinn, I think its a little too late to be saying that girls should be supporting other girls, when just LAST WEEK, she is starting media wars with Katy Perry. If she decides to embrace feminism, instead of just using pretty words, then sure I’ll welcome it.
Let’s not be extreme. I said Emma is more educated/intelligent than Taylor, because let’s face it, she is. Did I say she was a genius? That she has never said/done anything stupid before? Nope, don’t remember saying that.
@ Allie-Here’s Swift’s quote:
“She basically tried to sabotage an entire arena tour. She tried to hire a bunch of people out from under me. And I’m surprisingly non-confrontational – you would not believe how much I hate conflict. So now I have to avoid her. It’s awkward, and I don’t like it.”
So if she had said that about a man and not a woman, would she still have feminist cred in your eyes?
It’s never too late.
@theoriginalkitten
Not sure if you’re trying to imply that I believe feminism means you can’t criticize other females, which is not what I meant. Just trying to point out her hypocrisy when she states that we shouldn’t be interested in tearing down other females, but totally does when its convenient for her (like in her songs or trying to start a media frenzy over her issue with Katy Perry).
I get that its progress but I’m weary.
Taylor’s issue with Perry wasn’t a typical “girl” thing…it was about business. If Katy really had those dancers on hold, they would be on retainer. Dancers etc. get paid for down time regularly if the employer is concerned they will get another job and not be available when you want them.
Feminism doesn’t mean agreeing with all women all the time because of their gender.
I think that when you live in an insulated world, your relationships, success and fillers probably do become epic. I cannot fault her for taking inspiration from her experiences, even if they were less maturely conveyed in the press. It would have been better for her image if she had said ” when I was in a relationship, at the end of a relationship or in the aftermath of a breakup, I had inspiration from a thought or a feeling about the experience. It became a song.” instead of allowing ‘this song is about this romance’ to propagate, but she is *young* (sheltered, living amongst others who have a rare privilege and are also insulated and less experienced with lives tribulations) and managed. I hope she is able to ground herself and represent a sensible business woman with great talent and opportunity as she matures. But I imagine little things will always be dramatic for her because big deal life hardships likely aren’t happening anytime soon.
I’m also glad that she is sounding more thoughtful about feminism, she’s got a huge sphere of influence. I wonder if the Katy Perry thing came up organically and she answered before she thought of the implications, or if it was premeditated. I don’t really trust the media.
Blatant hypocrisy. Effff offff. If her “conversion” was for real then what’s up with the Katy Perry cat fight? Oh that’s right. She’s all do as I say, not as I do these days.
And Dunham can eff off too. She thought she was going to get away with paying the artists on her book tour with “exposure” until people called her out. She’s paying them now but if she hadn’t gotten caught she wouldn’t be. A wonderful pair of modern feminist artists. /sarcasm.
At a certain point, YOU become responsible for your own growth. A 24 year old shouldn’t need someone else to define a term for them. They should look it up for themselves. I’m sure she’s more wired to the www than anyone here, so no excuses, IMO. Great that she’s finally getting there, but damn, what took so long?
I think that’s the part that rattles me. She acts like she was forced into the dark about it when she actively chose to create her own definition all the while ignoring that there are countless resources to learn about women and feminism. Nothing made sense until Lena Dunham came along? If she wants to wrap this up with a pretty bow, she shouldn’t sit there and pretend it was never presented to her a certain way- she should own that she was too self involved to give a sh*t and do more. Read more. Tell your fans where they can do and learn more. She’s always looking for asspats. Enough.
Aren’t 70% of her songs Virgin/Whore dichotomies? I mean, she has made her fame and fortune writing songs that pit one woman against another and s**t shaming the other woman? All the songs of hers that I have heard are about boys – getting the boys attention, dating the boy, getting the popular boy to notice you when he is dating a cheerleader, getting your heart broken by the boy, trying to get over the boy, falling back in the love with the boy, etc etc etc. How can you claim to the a feminist if your world revolves about getting and keep the attention of a guy and if you don’t have one, you are crying / broken / alone? In what world is a man a prize that women fight over? And now she is all making these comments? Sorry, not buying it Swifty. What she says in one interview (or even a handful of interviews) at a time that is simply about pushing an album, perfume and upcoming tour doesn’t erase all the songs she wrote and comments she had made in the press before this one interview.
Ohhhh okay… so does feminism mean you cant be emotionally attached to men or be upset when a relationship ends? A revelation to me!
@ Birdy: This. +1000000
Nearly all of popular culture is centered around romantic relationships…and it isn’t just girl/boy. It is girl/girl, boy/boy as well. Is it only anti-feminist when a female pines for a male?
While there is a song or two that I will agree with you promotes the whore/Madonna dichotomy, I think the vast majority of her music does not. She has grown, I will allow her that.
She wrote one song like that, which was about Camilla Belle bearding/being bearded with Joe Jonas when Taylor was kinda dating him. She has apologized for writing that.
The thing with Katy Perry is a business thing, not a personal thing.
To make it more interesting and entertaining, feminism should just be one big cat fight like the kind my sisters and I engaged in when we were taylors age and drunk at family gatherings. Also she is being cruel to animals by promoting ths pu..cat as she is…cats don’t like to travel, but perhaps Taylor is sending the message that hers does?
Wow, classy.
Unless the taxidermist has great skill, this is def not a hand bag.
Yes, she said some dumb things in the past on this topic but it’s clear that some events have made her at least pick up damn book and educate herself which is positive progress. You don’t have to be an academic to know the basics of feminism and women like her and Watson can give you the Cliffs notes to make feminism less negative for young women.
I think everybody learns from somebody else, you never wake up and just decide to read about a certain subject. Something or someone always makes you think first before you take action on your own. It’s normal.
Some criticisms: girls don’t have to cheer each other on all the time. Women are still human beings. And like all human beings we have personalities that determine our actions. Some good…and some not so good. We should treat women as individuals, not grouping them as untouchable deities who should never be criticised. That’s not what feminism is about. Swift should also realise that equal rights don’t fall out of thin air. We do have to fight for them in that sense. Maybe not throw ourselves under a horse like in the past but change doesn’t happen with wishful thinking and values either. It’s action not inaction. Demanding not hoping. Also, there is nothing wrong with not being happy with inequality and injustice. Why not get upset? People are fighting over the most stupid things these days, people are angry for no real reason yet anger in feminism is unseemly. Why? John Mayer can shame his exes and he’s still ok but Swift and Cyrus sing about their experiences with men and they’re pathetic, desperate etc…Bet that makes her angry 🙂
All in all she made an effort but some of her actions towards other female popstars are not in line with what she says. I think she’ll be fine though, it is a tough business she’s in and she knows she can alienate herself if she comes on too strong with feminism. Cat fighting with Perry would still be more acceptable than daring to admit she’s a feminist.
Yeah, I mostly agree with Taylor but the whole feminists aren’t angry or disgruntled thing put me off. Like no, many feminists are angry. We are disgruntled and we’re complaining about our constant mistreatment. There seems to be a new trend in feminism where women are trying to reassure the mainstream audience that we’re not loud or abrasive. That showing these traits makes us unreasonable or illogical and displaying them means we shouldn’t be taken seriously. I think that idea needs to change far more than the notion that we’re “man-hating” (which, let’s face it, is mostly “women are saying things men don’t want to hear” and not much else).
Still, I guess this is progress for Swifty …so… yay?
YES, there’s this whole new feminism that’s very ‘let’s get our voices heard; yes, I identify as feminist;equality YAS……….but quietly while looking sweet, bubbly and cute otherwise it’ll upset the non-feminists/man-haters’.
which, let’s face it, is mostly “women are saying things men don’t want to hear
Preach. AKA ‘nagging’
I hope I am not out of line….
But I agree with what you are saying and as a white woman, it makes me think about what African americans must go through in regards to the “angry black person” stereotype. Although the over all issues are very different (racism vs. sexism), I feel like there is common ground in not wanting to fulfill a stereotype. There are things to legitimately get angry about, but as soon as we do, many people stop listening.
Well, she seems to have a pretty good understanding of feminism. Now, if someone could explain the concept of free speech in that you can say/do anything you want and that does not exempt you from criticism and people exercising their right to free speech, that would be awesome.
I think Taylor brings up an important point here that consistently bothers me. She says she wishes there was someone to explain to her at 12 years old what feminism was. I wish that too, for myself, and for all women. Whenever I hear about actresses and young women rejecting or misrepresenting feminism I wonder if they have been taught anything about it. I never was. At 38 years old I only recently have begun to learn anything about feminism. We don’t teach it in our history classes, we don’t speak to young children about it. It’s no wonder that so many people misunderstand it when we do nothing to educate people about it.
History classes in the US are largely about white men. Very little deviates from that narrative, except for flag sewing and peanut growing and tiny footnotes on a page.
There’s a joke about this. When people moan about the existence of Women’s Studies but not Men’s studies, the answer is ‘because it’s called history’. And that’s very true. Sad and true.
Good points, Zoul and Kiddo.
Did you hear about the changes to history curriculum they are proposing in Colorado? “Focusing on the positive” and down playing or not mentioning the “ugly” parts of American history.
How can future generations learn from mistakes if they never hear about those mistakes?
Tiffany 🙂 I caught only a bleep on that.
They are trying to pass similar revisions to AP US History that were passed in Texas, where they remove lessons about rebellion. Students and teachers protested the change and shut down their schools.
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/2-colorado-high-schools-close-amid-history-curriculum-changes/
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/26/-sp-colorado-ap-history-curriculum-protest-patriotism-schools-students
“The spark which ignited the tinderbox was a proposal written by one of the conservative majority on the school board, Julie Williams. In it, she calls for a review of the Advanced Placement history curriculum using the following set of criteria:
“Materials should promote citizenship, patriotism, essentials and benefits of the free enterprise system, respect for authority and respect for individual rights. Materials should not encourage or condone civil disorder, social strife or disregard of the law.”
http://www.vice.com/read/colorado-students-are-fighting-a-patriotic-white-washing-of-us-history-929
“Following the initial uproar on Tuesday, the board member responsible for the history proposal, Julie Williams, released a statement asserting that she “must not have explained [herself] clearly.” She went on to criticize current AP US History textbooks, claiming they “have an emphasis on race, gender, class, ethnicity, grievance, and America-bashing, while simultaneously omitting the most basic structural and philosophical elements considered essential to the understanding of American History for generations.”
In Australia I learnt extensively about feminism in history (suffragettes for example) but I also went to an all girls school that was big on frmale empowerment so there’s a bias.
This is a great point. Especially at that age, so much of the focus begins to be about boys, body image, friends, etc, rather than on school or other interests. If girls, and boys, could be taught about equality earlier, maybe we’d see a faster shift towards it in society.
Swift might not be the ideal role model in this aspect, but it does sound like she’s growing up a bit (finally) and good for her for speaking up about it.
Thank god Emma Watson’s speech was so clear even dumb starlets understood it, and most of them changed idea (at least that’s what I hope).
People like you…what you just wrote…is the biggest detriment to feminism I can think of. “Dumb starlet” huh? As opposed to talented, hard working, successful singer and businesswoman? Are you a GOP speechwriter, too?
+1000000.
He could be a Bill Clinton supporter
“dumb starlet” has amassed a great fortune based on her own product, employs thousands of people, and is making super great decisions regarding investments and business. She will continue to grow and mature, perhaps not at a pace that a non famous 25 year old would, but she is intelligent. She also was smart enough to begin her career as a songwriter, which is much more lucrative than as a recording artist. She hasn’t publicly engaged in a romantic relationship in some time, which demonstrates that she is willing to mature. Many, many of the 18-24 year olds I went to university with were very engaged in relationships, discussed them, cried over them, moved on, reflected on them. Her experiences have not been exceptional, they’ve just been very very public.
Wow…now that statement is what feminists fight against…the stereotypes of women being unable to comprehend. Perhaps you could educate yourself.
This interview was so scripted for PR purposes. Taylor does not walk the talk.
Since we are a global community,I personally wish women would get a little more radical in terms of how women are being treated in supposed civilized societies like Saudi Arabia,Dubai,Qatar and Iran. All women in the world should unite and trash these countries for their abuse towards women and gays!
We should help push for equality by ‘trashing’ middle eastern countries? What will that do?
So you approve on how women are treated in these countries? People certainly have no problems in trashing the USA.
I have zero respect for these countries based on how they treat women and gays and I wouldn’t waste one penny in tourist dollars to these places!
I guess you could call me a radical!
@steph
Where did she say she approves of how women are treated?
The US has trashed a lot of countries. Nothing good came out of it. Don’t you think that’s enough?
Lin,
The USA has also helped several countries. I guess I am a little sensitive with regards to reports I am hearing from the Middle East and How Islamic Extremism is growing,especially in Turkey. I feel like the media is ignoring the situation and the UN is supporting the Islamic aggression by doing essentially nothing and not voicing a strong stand. I really wish feminists and gay rights organizations from around the world would focus on this troubling development in the MiddleEast.
How was she trashing them? She was stating a fact. Women in those countries ARE marginalized.
I’m getting really annoyed by people who take any sort of criticism as “trash talk”. Sometimes facts are facts.
It is a bit more complicated than that. Yes, maybe if USA “finished” ISIS (although they never really finish), there would be a momentarily peace( I am using it very loosely) but another one will resurface in a few years. Maybe even more violent one. In the end if these countries does not “reform” themselves, USA can only complicate it more. I just wish Turkey (incidentaly where I am right now!) won’t get dragged into it. It would be such a shame.
maybeiamcrazy…..so you approve of Erdogan and the direction he is taking Turkey? I am sorry but people need to be consistent with regards to human rights issues and I feel that people should be troubled on how the Middle Eastern cultures get a free pass on how they treat women and gays due to their religion. They can stone and whip women and gays all under the name of Sharia. If a woman is raped,she is imprisoned. Why aren’t the human right’s activists and feminists calling for boycotts of these countries? How are these countries even allowed to participate in the UN?
Wait, where are you living that Middle Eastern cultures get a free pass on women’s rights? It’s been a talking point and criticism for years. But ME human rights issues are completely different than American, and the problem is that most people only have a superficial understanding of what’s really going down there. I’d rather uninformed celebrities give opinions on their own culture than presuming information about others. Many of their problems are linked to much larger issues of civil upheaval and frankly, it’s incredibly reductive to read off a list hotbed issues rather than examining the complexity of the problem’s origin.
As for the suggestion that they should be pushed out of the U.N., I don’t know how you think that will fix their problems other than generating even more resentment toward the interference of Western nations and isolating those affected by the human rights. It’s not like Western nations have much of a leg to stand on there, since our economic and military pervasiveness toward that region is pretty undeniable.
@Steph Of course I do not approve of ME countries treatment of women and gays or Erdogan(actually he is one of the most interesting people to follow in politics these days IMO). The thing is people in western countries or USA cannot bring their modern ideas to ME and get over it. We have to consider their (some right, some wrong) resentment to said countries. It is heartbreaking to watch but when Qatar’s own women decide to fight for their rights, when they will stand a chance to have it and maybe then the help will do more than complicating things.
For a very loose example, take South Africa, many countries protested and isolated SA but things didn’t change until a black S. African man fought for it. The modern white saviour does not exist in real world. They can only help when someone who is directly affected stands up for her/his rights.
I know Celebitchy is not a place to have political arguments but hopefully this comment will make through.
She seems to be able to repeat the basic concept of feminism, but in my opinion she still doesn’t understand it. What’s standing in the way of equal rights isn’t that enough women aren’t cheering each other on just because they’re women. Where did she get that from?
Oh, how the narrative changes. But not so much, right? she still has this wrong idea that women should never criticise anyone with a vagina and anyone who dares is evil. No, Tay Tay if you mess up you be sure you will be up for criticism even if you are a woman. Equality doesn’t give you a pass for bad behaviour.
On the other hand, over and over in these comments I have read all you so-called feminists not just criticising Taylor Swift but being condescending, viscous, mean-spirited and nasty. If I were a young woman reading these comments, and I was questioning what feminism is and is not, I would not want to align myself with women who revel in criticising and tearing down someone like Taylor Swift without acknowledging that she is also a very successful and talented young women who obviously works hard and learns and educates herself. I applaud Ms. Swift’s efforts to be a better person and pass that on to her young fans…she has a lot more going for her than people who can only anonymously bitch about her.
Hey Ann? chill. I don’t care so much for Swifty either way. Some of her songs are catchy and I really don’t mind the way she dresses or her stepford wife kind of vibe as it bothers other people but I will call her out when she is being inconsistent or hypocritical. She can’t take a joke and still thinks no other woman should criticise her so I will speak my mind about it. If you disagree why don’t you try to debate that instead of personally atacking feminists with wide and wrong generalizations? I do think is great she doesn’t need to take her clothes off in order to be as successful as she is but girl -as you do- need to chill out and take jokes and criticism in stride.
“all you so-called feminists”…
Right, Ann. Because being a feminist means NEVER criticizing other women. Ever. Regardless. However, you seem to have no trouble criticizing others.
And wait – isn’t Anne the same person who made a “dumb starlet” comment or was that a different Anne?
“condescending, viscous, mean-spirited and nasty.”
And why is our viscosity being called into question?
@kiddo, IKR? that phrase bothers me the most.
I think that says it all. The comment was a vehicle in which to criticize feminists, cloaked in the appearance of defending Swift.
I don’t really have a problem with Swift. She’s silly with her daily catwalks (literally and figuratively) on the streets, I’m not a fan of her type of music, but at least she writes it and is fairly harmless. However, the argument the commenter seems to be making is that success and money preclude any critiques or jokes, because that means someone is superior, I guess.
I guess that was exactly the intention since I didn’t say anything particularly offending about Swift, yet Ann sputers about how evil we all feminist for being mean to Swifty. Oh well…
I saw exactly one comment that resorted to name calling in this thread. I guess the term vicious may have different meanings. Who knows?
‘Twas trolling.
Hey SupersizedextrastrengthandimprovedKitten.
How are you?
Annie Lennox should have called Swift out instead.
Well, she seems to be getting the concept a bit more. I attribute this to the influence of Olivia Benson. Let’s face it-Scottish females have always been badasses and Olivia is Tay-Tay’s Gloria Steinem.
Eh, I’m not a member of the “let’s all love each other!” school of feminism. If I don’t like a woman’s work or ethics I don’t see why I should support her. Though I do get her point about the media always pairing women to fight each other.
Taylor’s growing up slower than your average person, but she’s making improvements. And she’s still harmless. Even if I don’t agree with her particular view of feminism, it’s better than denying you’re one and perpetuating the bra-burning men-loathing stereotype.
Kumbay-nay.
I think there’s a difference between acknowledging that some women can be assholes and be aware of how clashes between women are framed in patriarchal culture. It’s one thing if you don’t associate with a woman because you genuinely don’t get along. It’s another thing entirely if you’re joining the boys in ganging up on her because of it.
Hypocrite is a hypocrite is a hypocrite.
Maybe it’s progress. She set up a low bar of understanding (repeating?) the concept and she will likely need to at least maintain this speaking point in the future, and maybe over time as she gains maturity and perspective, it will be internalized?
And now she’s getting sued by her limo company. Lol.
Y’know, I’m really no die-hard Swift fan, and I really don’t agree with the whole concept of “NOBODY should EVER criticise women, because they are lovely gems in a sea of horrid men” but I don’t really think that we should be this hard on her. Granted, she seems to be growing up slower than most girls nowadays and sure, she still has some things to work on, but this is loads better than “I’m not a feminist, because I love men/think we should all be equal.”
I’m also glad Emma’s speech had that amount of impact. It was the basics of feminism served to us by a petite beautiful white girl, who the media is way more inclined to listen to, and the response was amazing. It wasn’t supposed to be grounbreaking, it was supposed to be pretty basic, because some people really did still think that feminism is man hating.
I’m neutral on Swifty, she’s harmless. But I am glad she’s making progress.
If Lena Dunham is where she getting her feminist info from then ugh, she’ll probably have the same type of privileged feminism Lena exhibits in which the only issues she’ll care about are the ones that directly affect her. Will she even learn about intersectionality?
And it is a bit rich that she’s talking about no girl fights when she deliberately talked to Rolling Stone about a petty beef she had with another female singer.
Anyway in other Taylor news, she’s being sued by a car chaffeur company for breach of contract.
http://www.tmz.com/2014/09/29/taylor-swift-sued-limo-chauffeur-demands/
Okay. I can get more on board with this Swift. She’s obviously either done the research herself and had somebody discuss the issue with her so that she was framing it properly. I realize we tend to play down this behavior a lot, but I’m not so much older than her that I don’t remember how hard it was to admit out loud, “I was wrong” at that age. So, ah, kudos Swifty. Still annoying (and a tad hypocritical) but less damaging.
I genuinely care about what Taylor Swift thinks about feminism…said no one ever.
“…we have to stop being so interested in seeing girls trying to tear each other down – it has to be more about cheering each other on as women.”
Even though she just talked about how mean katy perry was to her regarding her backup dancers? Hypocrite
PopTartlets not being catty to one another on twitter or in interviews, no shade? How boring. Then all we are left with are some good to average pop songs and the Poptarts, in all their pretentious glory, blathering on and on in interviews about their “art.”
I love Swifty so much.
Almost as much as Meredith and Olivia Benson.
What she really means is “I want other women to stop tearing ME down.” She’s just doing what’s right for her career, but it doesn’t make her a feminist. Nonetheless, it’s big of her to promote feminism. She’s a huge celebrity and her opinion influences people. But let’s not pretend she didn’t base her whole career off some pretty nauseating male/corporate-driven standards for cute, anorexic, pop starlets. To me, that’s the feminist anti-Christ.