It’s funny, this whole fixation with women’s bodies. Well, maybe not so much funny as it is annoying and unfair.
Women’s bodies are the topic of discussion all around the world, for different reasons. In one place, we may be considered trapped in our bodies because of a law that forbids us to show skin. In other places, we are considered trapped because of a need for perfection. There’s talk about abortion, cosmetic surgery, clitoridectomy, rape, violence, pornography, trafficking and everything in between. How we should dress to hide our bodies. How we should dress to make the most of our bodies. How to lose weight. How to tan correctly.
No matter where you turn, women’s bodies are always a hot subject.
And you know what. I am sick of it. Sick to my stomach, in fact.
I have an example that I would like to share with you, about why this annoys me (you know, aside from all the reasons I already stated). I am a pole dancer. I love dance and I love acrobatics. I am also a burlesque enthusiast. And I am someone who has a “normal” job (I hate that word, normal). If you follow me outside of this blog, for instance on YouTube, well then you know that I sometimes post videos of myself pole dancing. I’ve never seen a problem with this and I still don’t, but here’s the twist. The other day, I was mixing pole dance and burlesque (and having a blast) and I recorded some short videos that I thought I’d edit and post on YouTube. Why not, you know? It’s still pole dancing and I still don’t wear any less clothes for burlesque than I do for pole dance. But I was asked to think twice about posting this video, because it might damage my professional life.
This angered me. (Even though I just want to make it clear that the person who told me this was not of this opinion, but wanted to “warn” me that everyone else might be).
I’m not showing my boobs in this video. It’s not stripping, it’s burlesque. And yeah OK, I take off a jacket, a dress and a pair of boots in the video, while pole dancing, but that’s the challenge. That is my way of burlesquing. And I’m not supposed to show it because it might damage my career? Because a future employer might find it and be outraged?
I don’t get it. I can’t have a brain AND a body? It’s like those two can’t exist together. At least not out loud. If you’re dressed, you can be smart, but if you take your clothes off, suddenly your body is all that you are. As if every other aspect of your personality is erased by the revealing of your skin and you are reduced to being an object.
And also – what I do outside of my job is nobody’s god damn business. UNLESS it is illegal. But last time I checked, burlesque was a romantic hobby and a fun way to be creative on stage.
I’m not shy and I like to move, so what is the big deal?
I still haven’t decided what to do with the video, if I should post it or not. I’ll get back to you on that. In the meantime, I welcome any serious discussion on the topic.
