Miss Representation

I was never really a documentary fan. I usually am more of a chick flick and action movie watcher. The other day my friend, Anouk, mentioned that she has been watching a lot of documentaries. This is when I first learned about Miss Representation. Described as a movie on how the media wrongfully depicts women, I was intrigued and ordered it on iTunes. What a better time to watch this than during one of my flights to Philly.

I was impressed with the “cast” – Lucy Liu, Nancy Pelosi, Gina Davis, and many other women whose names may not be known as famously on TV but their accomplishments and roles are stellar. I hadn’t really thought of the media as such an opponent to the female role in the world. Listening to the young ladies and gentlemen that were interviewed, started the awakening process.

I am, in no way, a “feminist”, but this documentary tickled some of my unknown feminist tendencies. It is so true that women in the media are portrayed as sex symbols…whether it be in music videos, movies, and even prime time TV. Think about it…

This documentary opened my eyes to how the young ladies of today are over-exposed to the perfect model-like waif women portrayed in the magazines, clothing catalogs, and the like. I know, growing up, I wanted to look just like Cindy Crawford (am I dating myself?). I had the “thin thing” going, but it attracted ridicule more than awe. I had a super-fast metabolism (that did slow down as the doctors said, once I had children LOL). I remember back in elementary school when a fellow schoolmate asked me if I was Ethiopian because I was so thin. How sad is it that I still remember that after how many years? What about the time the boys would call me “Veina” instead of my true name – all because my veins are visible beneath my thin skin. To this day, I have (annoying and rude) people ask me if something happened to my eye. Seriously???

Miss Representation Trailer

Please watch this documentary. It opened my eyes to what was happening to me as a little girl, and what is going on 10x as worse – today. I have begun a pact with myself – any changes I make to my personal self are because I want to…not because of any other outside influence. Some changes I have made in the most recent past (not naming…LOL) have made me more confident and feel better about myself from the inside (out).

If you’d like to get involved, please go to www.missrepresentation.org! I did….you should too!