Back in the late 90s, I remember having many a notebook or t-shirt emblazoned with the phrase “girl power!” While today I am less inclined to wear shirts with exclamatory text on them, the message is still important.
Always’s #LikeAGirl ad challenges stereotypes about girls and athletics by examining how pre-teen girls view their gender differently than men and older girls. When asked to pantomime running or fighting “like a girl” does, the younger girls fiercely pumped their fists or sprinted as fast as they could. The men and older girls, on the other hand, flopped around weakly and sillily–putting very little effort into actually performing the suggested activity. One woman even clutched her head while running and exclaimed, “Oh! My hair!”
The director asked a girl of about 7, “What does it mean to run like a girl?” The girl promptly replied, “It means to run as fast as I can.”
A slightly older girl remarked that the phrase ‘like a girl’ “sounds like you’re trying to humiliate someone.”
One participant sent an important message: “If you’re still scoring, and you’re still getting to the ball in time, and you’re still being first, you’re doing it right. It doesn’t matter what they say…that is not something that I should be ashamed of.”
Women and girls like Jen Welter, the first female non-kicker to play professional football, are showing that they have impressive athletic abilities and should be applauded for them.
The fact of the matter is, if we are doing something “like a girl,” the only thing that makes it “like a girl” is the fact that a girl is doing it. The phrase has no explicit comment on the quality of what’s being done.
By telling a young girl that she “throws like a girl” for instance, telling her that is not in itself bad, but the way in which you express it is going to affect her confidence. Anybody who has been forced to apologize for something against his or her will knows that the tone of your voice affects the entire message of what you’re saying. Using “like a girl” negatively makes a young girl who’s already in a vulnerable phase of life doubt herself and her abilities.
This is not a hardcore Feminist issue. This is not merely a woman’s issue. This is something that both men and women are partaking in and we need everyone to join forces in order for this to change.
Always’s campaign website: http://www.always.com/en-us/likeagirl.aspx