What happened for me when I watched this video is that I was left with a lot of questions. Like the rest of you, I can't say that this video addresses this subject in the way I felt it should.
Is this so bothersome to me because I wish that this weren't how people see women, but they do? Can I honestly tell myself that strangers don't just view me as parts? Is the issue that all the women in this video are all within the same narrow margins of what may be considered sexy? That they all appear to be young, and thin, and light skinned? How can women win if being pretty and successful is essentially adding fuel to the fire, but getting ahead without being good-looking seems to be such an uphill battle? Do some women dress frumpily to combat this type of thing? Is that a good idea, or a bad one? Does this video essentially say that you have to earn the right not to be objectified? Do women who date other women feel these same pressures as much, or maybe more, or less? Why might that be? Is the problem that Norma Kamali herself has been a part of an industry that objectifies women for so long, that she no longer realizes why this might be the wrong way to address the topic? Is it because Norma Kamali is also thin, fashionable, successful, and pretty, that she thinks this works? Do I myself objectify women, when I read magazines with these types of images, or when I complement someone on her figure or her hair? For that matter, am I objectifying men when I lean over to my friend at a bar, and point out the cute guy in the tight jeans? If so, is that somehow ok because I'm a woman and it represents a reversal in roles? Isn't it natural for us to objectify people, at least when they're strangers? Aren't we designed to make snap judgments?
I could probably go on forever, but what I loved about this video is that it did draw my attention to this issue again. It led me to ask myself questions, and to try to find answers. Sorry for the very long post, but as I said, this one was really thought-provoking for me.
