By no means am I a “bra-burning” feminist, but I do support girl power and cheer on fellow women when they succeed. However, pay inequality exists (Adamy & Overberg, 2016) and women are often held to impossible standards regarding beauty and what is considered appropriate behavior. These standards are typically impossible for the average (yet awesome!) woman to achieve, and we each respond to this inequality differently.
Warning: This post contains language that some may deem inappropriate. Please read at your own risk.
Some men and women are angry and protest, others join political organizations to try to make a difference, many just move on, while others resort to humor to cope with inequality or other perceived injustices. Personally, I respond far better to humor than anger. There is a lot of anger right now following this week’s presidential election results, and it’s just too much to bear. Humans are emotional beings, and sometimes we need someone to make us laugh (Coughter, 2012). It doesn’t mean that these issues are funny and should be dismissed with laughter. The message here is that sometimes humor is simply more effective to get the point across. Whether your message is for brand advertising or to spread awareness regarding a particular cause, the important thing is to break through all of the social media clutter (Vaynerchuk, 2013). Delivering the message in a novel way (in this case, using sarcasm and humor) increases the chance that the information will be shared virtually (Greenwald, 2014).
For example, take the below video on “Pinksourcing,” in which Kristen Bell openly mocks gender and racial pay disparities. It’s funny, but it also makes you mad. The video has been shared all over Facebook, and has close to one million views on YouTube and over 4000 comments. Warning: There is a little inappropriate language.
Another example of the use of humor to raise awareness regarding another not so funny topic is the video for the “Transparen-she,” which is an “invisibility cloak” type product used to cover women. This parody depicts various situations in which women are judged regarding their clothing at work, during travel, etc. The “Transparen-she” is intended to make a woman’s body invisible so we are no longer deemed distracting or unattractive. I love this video, but it also really hits a bit too close to home. The clever execution works, though. Warning: There is a lot of inappropriate language in this one.
My final example is a bit more light-hearted, and is a series of photographs created by a comedian reenacting photos taken by celebrities and other “beautiful people.” Men also receive redemption here, as she includes the Biebs and Lenny Kravitz in her mix of Kardashian and Beyonce photos. The message is the same regardless: normal people don’t look like this, and it’s ridiculous to try to compare ourselves to them. The full link is worth reviewing, but be forewarned that it contains photos of scantily clad people and sexual innuendo: http://elitedaily.com/envision/celeb-photos-comedian-recreates/1470343/. Below are a few family friendly examples:
Special Announcement: This blog post is not intended in any way to be male-bashing. I am thankfully surrounded by supportive and wonderful male friends and family, and am well aware that jerks come in all genders, shapes, and sizes.
Now back to our regularly scheduled programming! What do you think? How do the above examples make you feel? Are they an effective way to send a message?
References
Adamy, J. and Overberg, P. (2016). Women in elite jobs face stubborn pay gap. Wall Street Journal. Retrieved from http://www.wsj.com/articles/women-in-elite-jobs-face-stubborn-pay-gap-1463502938
Coughter, P. (2012). The art of the pitch. New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan.
Greenwald, M. (2014). Secrets of 7 of the most effective ad campaigns. Forbes. Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/sites/michellegreenwald/2014/07/10/secrets-of-7-of-the-most-effective-ad-campaigns/#58387ac51220
Pound, K. (2016). This comedian’s recreations of celeb photos are better than the originals. Elite Daily. Retrieved from http://elitedaily.com/envision/celeb-photos-comedian-recreates/1470343/
The Huffington Post. (2016). Pinksourcing with Kristen Bell. Available from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k_m5AlsQqcs
Vaynerchuk, G. (2013). Jab, jab, jab, right hook: How to tell your story in a noisy social world. New York, NY: Harper Collins.
Vox (Plank, Peterson, & Mokalla). (2016). Transparen-she. Available from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6gkZZeddQU
6 Responses to I am Woman, Hear me Laugh (to Keep from Crying)