snail wrote:
Also the poster way above me saying there are lots of ugly women out there .. mate, are you meaning to say that all in pink? I hope so!
I agree with everything you said, but that person was either joking, trolling, or living on another planet.
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I voted that podium girls are a sad relic. To me podium girls are paraded out like a prize for the winner. Win the race and the tour hostesses will pin a jersey on you and give you a kiss on the cheek. I don't like the message this sends, and I don't like what this says about our society. I consider the message it sends to a little girl about her place in society. Equally as important, I consider what it says to little boys about gender roles.
To address a few common points in the thread:
I have read that it is the parent's responsibility to instill values in their children, not the TDF. I fully agree that it is the parents' responsibility to instill values in their children, but how many children grow up without two parents, and even those that do have two parents, how many are actually responsible? I reject the notion that society and culture do not play a role in instilling values in both children and adults.
I have read these decisions should be left up to women. I do not subscribe to the notions that women's rights are exclusively women's issues, LGBT rights are exclusive LGBT issues, and civil rights are exclusively minorities' issues. I think these are society's issues and everyone shares responsibility in them.
I have read that tour hostesses would be more acceptable if we had podium men as well. To me this view considers tour hostesses in a vacuum. The difference between a man being objectified and displayed in a subservient role and a women doing the same thing is that women have had to overcome generations of gender stereotypes to break free from that role in society. While I don't necessarily agree with either, they are different in my eyes.
I have read that it is "her" choice to express her sexuality and there is nothing wrong with beautiful people expressing that beauty. I agree fully that it is an individual's choice and there is nothing wrong with expressing your sexuality or beauty. Where I think there is an issue that our society places value on using pretty women as prizes and in subservient roles.
I have read that as long as women think that it is ok, it must be ok. My counter to that is that I have seen female news anchors argue that women are not fit to serve as president of the United States due to gender differences.
Gender equality is trending in the right direction. The number of women CEO's of fortune 500 companies is at an all time high of 32/500, which while pathetic is an improvement. What I am almost certain of is that by the time the next generation of CEO's, corporate board members, elected officials, etc. take over, women will represent a much higher portion than they do today.
As I step down from my soapbox, I realize that there are credible arguments to be made for both sides of this issue. I do not view Podium Girls as a huge barrier to gender equality. I simply think it is a representation of a frame of thinking that is a remnant of inequities that we as a society, both men and women, have fought so hard to overcome.