"Owning One's Body"

I think many girls get flack about their bodies. Reading the section about black women's fight for their bodies reminded me of some of my own experiences. Black girls really do have a stereotyped body. The most stereotyped part is the black girl's butt. I've had plenty of encounters with this stereotype. Because I'm black, I'm supposed to have a plump butt. It's just the way it's supposed to be. No question about it. So when people see that my butt is actually quite flat, it gets pointed out, especially by males. My "lack of ass" has been brought to my attention countless number of times. Why can't my body just be mine and not part of a stereotype? I think females in many races encounter this problem. I'm tired of having my body invalidated because it doesn't fit what someone thinks a black girl's body should look like.

The author of Manifesta also talks about the stereotype of the "strong black woman". I actually think this is one of the more positive images associated with black women. With all the negative stereotypes such as "the mad black woman", I am somewhat glad that at least one of these images of black women is positive. However, I do recognize that stereotypes are seriously problematic.

There is a great deal of talk about magazines in Manifesta. I never really depended on magazines as a "lifeline". I hardly ever read teen magazines like Teen Vogue or Seventeen. The magazines that I did devour were fashion mags like Vogue and WWD. These do encourage a negative body image, but I do not think that I consumed the same amount of "girliness" that can be present in Seventeen for instance.

In the magazine Bitch, the journalist writes, "This magazine is about thinking critically about every message the mass media sends..." This is SO important. Everyone needs to think critically about the messages being sent to us in the media. I try to do this, and when I find something that I think is wrong, I'm thought of as making a big deal out of nothing if I point it out. Thinking critically about media messages is not about critiquing the person that is sending the message. It is about being aware of the messages that one is consuming and knowing what those messages really mean. If one is aware of the message and the flaws in the message, maybe one can lessen the damage that some harmful media messages cause.