Bitches Be Bitchin

I grew up in a world where women stayed home and took care of the house and kids and the men went to a 9-5 job Monday through Friday. I grew up in a catholic, very republican household where the women in the bible did as they were told and we were supposed to do the same. Oh how my views have changed. I grew up with my view of the world being very skewed and not allowed to question anything outside of these ideas that were spoon fed to me kindergarten through 12^th grade.

Before I attended CU, I would not have considered myself a feminist. It had such a negative connotation and image that went along with it. This term and all that went with it, made it hard for me to want to be outside my norm, even though being a feminist didn’t include a short haircut and Birkenstocks. These were the only thoughts I had when I would think about a feminist. As a catholic school child, I wasn’t exposed to different the views of the world, even though I have always supported diversity in all ways possible.

Freshman year, I was enrolled in Sex, Gender and Society; to say the least, this class changed my life. There were many important learning moments in my first sociology class, ones that would change the way I viewed the world. The one that stood out the most was the definition of a feminist. I learned that it was a definition designated to women by men who felt that they needed a title to put down and ridicule women who want equality across the spectrum of gender in all aspects of society.

Men in our society have created the definitions for terms that shame women for many things. There are words used to degrade women based on their sexuality and words used to shame women who are not comfortable with their sexuality. Not only do they create vocabulary to shame women for not being exactly what they want them to be, but also they create the terms for anyone who is outside of the norm.

Whoever said, “its a man’s world” wasn’t kidding. Throughout history, men have had a prominent source of power in our society. They continually make decision they believe are best for others around them and their community. There is a constant intolerance for women every time they try to speak their mind. Women are laughed at and mocked when they come of as threatening to men in all different types of situations.

In the workplace, men are seen as powerful if they are stern and aggressive towards their co-workers. In the case of women, their powerful positions are envied and if they posses any of the qualities that men have in the workplace, they are considered bitchy and unfair. When men use this term to define a powerful woman, they take any authority they may have and completely disregard their influence on the workplace. In the case of money in the workplace, it is known that women only make 77 cents to every dollar a man makes. This is not only unfair, but it is completely outrageous. It is a one-sided system that favors men and ignores any advances for women in the workplace.

In the readings from this week, the idea of a planet delegated to women who are noncompliant makes me think about our society today. In other countries, women are pretty low on the totem pole. They are ignored, punished for being noncompliant, and not allowed to have jobs or an education. This is too similar to the way the men treat the women in Bitch Planet. The women in the comic are a representation of the way women are seen today. I feel as if women are put into this box and are not allowed to come out of it unless we are told otherwise. Our society sets us up and expects these perfect beings that do everything just right and its bullshit. I think about my mom and the way she acts around my step dad and the way she acts when he is not around. There is a certain shift in attitude. This is not uncommon among girls and women trying to impress men. In the back of our heads there is this little voice saying, don’t say or do that he’ll think you’re unladylike.

In Bitch Planet, the men control the women. They are watching everything the women are doing inside and outside of the planet. We get the stories of a few of the women who are on this alternate planet and we start to understand why they have been placed here. Penny is sent to a room, filled with screens and cameras directed at her, with male bodyguards watching her every move. I love the fact that these men ask her to imagine her best self, hoping that it would be an altered version of herself, yet only to see that she likes the way she is. They are very confused as to why she would want to look this way, when there is a “better” self she could aim for.

This is just another example of the power and control men have over women. Magazines contain hundreds of images of women who are thin, beautiful, and carefree. Want to know who put those images in these magazines? Men. Not only are women sexualized in magazines, they are sexualized across all medias. Men once again have the power to say who and what women should be.

The idea behind Bitch Planet, allows for this new world where women break through these barriers men have created for us. This empowerment of women and the connection of the issues the women in the comics are facing and issues women have in real life allow for the discussion of change. The stories at the back of the comics create a way for women to develop relationships with the characters and the stories they have throughout the comic.

Our world needs more women to be in charge. We can’t leave it up to the men to do all of the work. Feminism is a major key when it comes to changing our society and the ways we view women overall. Women need to take a stand and fight for the things we deserve as members of society and the human race. Bitches be bitchin for equal rights.