Just now, I happened upon yet another self-identified feminist blogger ranting about how pole dancing isn’t feminist, and she has “criticisms” of it, and being generally dismissive of it.
Well, if you’re listening…
FUCK OFF. You and your “criticisms” are not welcome here, that’s for sure!
You know what pole dancing has done for ME?
I’m stronger - yes, physically stronger - than I’ve ever been in my life. I no longer feel like the weakling that anyone can take advantage of. My arms, legs, and abs are toned, and my entire body feels STRONG. Along with that, I feel emotionally and mentally strong, and I feel confident in a way I never did before. (All these things are tied together; I can’t separate them out into individual bits.)
Guess what? It’s no frilly tee-hee sparklepony game to climb a 14-foot pole, hang backwards from it holding on with just your thighs, go upside down and hold on with one leg… need I go on?
/rant off. Back to happy! :D
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8 Responses to "And another thing"
oh christ, who now?
All that matters is that you enjoy pole dancing. Anyone else having a problem with it needs to back off. I’ve seen your pictures here and there and all I can think about it the energy and stamina the dancing has developed. I wish I had the nerve to do it.
amber: right on.
It’s so bizarre to me that some people won’t leave this alone. Like any obsession, there’s usually more interesting analysis to be made about the obsesser than the obsessed-upon.
Also, and I think you’ve made this point before, even if it’s not (proactively) feminist, who cares? The important thing is that it not be anti-feminist. Not everything a feminist does is proactively feminist. Drinking coffee, getting dressed, going for a run — none of that directly advances feminist principles. Why must poledancing be held to this standard? Well, we all know why, and that reveals exactly what these SCF’s hangups are.
PS — great pics! Some cool moves, and you look really strong, toned and limber.
I actually think Amber poledancing is proactively feminist.
She is:
- taking control of her body
- embracing her self image
- embracing her sexuality
- increasing her physical strength
- building her self confidence
(I could go on.)
All of which she is doing in a supportive environment. If those aren’t feminist acts, I’m not so sure what is.
What boggles my mind is people’s inability or refusal to grasp that by changing the context or intent of something, you can change its meaning. The gay community does this really well and I wish more feminists would catch on. e.g. By rehabilitating the word “queer” and using the pink triangle as a symbol of gay pride these have both lost their formerly exploitative and oppressive meanings. Context and intent make all the difference.
Hello, choir. Please listen as I preach. :-)
And because the term just cracks me up every time I see it…sparkle pony
JT, my point wasn’t that it isn’t proactively feminist in all cases. I happen to think that in Amber’s case, it is, as well. But that it doesn’t need to be held to that standard. I actually think it makes things harder for feminists if we have to defend every activity by this standard. Because that then suggests that if we have fun doing something that doesn’t necessarily increase fitness or strength, it’s not as OK. I don’t think ones feminism should be measured that way.
Heh, that makes me think of an Onion article I saw a while back… “Women Now Empowered By Everything A Woman Does.”
That is hysterical.
And kind of on point. I do think we can define some of our personal activities as personally empowering. But I agree that at a certain point, it lends itself to some of the examples in the article. I don’t think women’s activities need to be looked at that simplistically. It’s not either truly feministically empowerfulltastic or horribly oppressively patriarchal. Sometimes we can do things that are fun and make us feel good and may even make us fitter/stronger. Why does everything have to fit a YES/NO feminist category?
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