What Modern Movies Say About Our Society

Early on in the new millennium, a series of “teenage dirtbag” movies came out: Euro Trip, Not Another Teen Movie, and the notorious American Pie. Since then, a few movies with the immature but totally attractive approach to comedy have come out. Movies like The Hangover, Knocked Up, and Superbad. The latest movie of this kind is 21 and Over, one that I made the mistake of seeing yesterday.

My problem is this: I love a good comedy, but find myself torn between appropriate comedy, and inappropriate comedy. And not in the “oh no there is a penis on-screen” kind of humour; in this day and age that is a given. But how far is too far with sexual and racial jokes? This is a question I found myself negotiating answers to as the poor plot unfolded on screen.

Within the first few minutes, I realized that this movie was really only “ha ha funny”, as in none of the comic relief causes us to laugh naturally. Instead each giggle was a result of feeling like we were being prompted by the signs they have on live talk shows.

Another thing that became clear was how sexually objectifying and patriarchal this movie was, even within the first few minutes. There were constant references being made to the nubile sister of Casey (played by Skylar Astin), with blunt references to what Miller (played by Miles Teller) intended to do with her. There was even a brief discussion of sexual intercourse between Casey and his sister. Incest much?

Believe it or not, things only went downhill from here. After spending time at a bar, the two guys, along with their drunk “yellow” friend, Jeff Chang (played by Justin Chon) who was constantly being reminded he was Asian, snuck into a girl’s sorority. Looking to track down a girl they had met there, they sneak into the “Latina Sorority” by accident. Here, there were a string of jokes about “crazy Mexicans” with “fat asses”. And naturally came the part where the two boys found themselves in a room with two blindfolded girls ready to be spanked, which Miller thoroughly enjoyed. The girls were forced to make out and fondle each other on the spot.

After escaping the “crazy Latina bitches”, they found themselves at another sorority. When they were greeted by a young Caucasian girl, Miller actually said “Thank God you’re white”. At this point, I had had enough. I grew to feel guilty for watching this movie, and laughing at the parts I felt prompted to, especially as a non-white female, but ultimately as a person with morals, ethics, and taste.

After watching this movie, I thought about what it might mean that these kinds of films are still being produced and watched. While it is comforting to know that the movie was only rated 5.4 stars out of a possible 10 on imdb, I feel that those were 5.4 stars more than the film deserved.

It would be very naïve of me to say that we should boycott these movies entirely; naïve and ineffective to say the least. Instead, perhaps the solution is to watch these movies. Maybe we should all just have a big movie night in which we revisit the movies that have been fundamental aspects of our developing years. I mean, what teenager or mid-twenties person hasn’t seen American Pie?

That is precisely the issue. We have seen these movies over and over and over again. We laugh at the jokes because they are so recurring that it must mean they are funny, even if something inside us tells us that there is something wrong with the message. We’ve been blinded by a series of different things that impede us from considering our morals and heck, our feelings, into what is funny and what is not.

The bigger issue here is not that these movies are watched and supported and continue to be made. The issue is that these films are largely where we get our ideas about women, our ideas about patriarchy, and our ideas about ourselves from. For us to think that we are impermeable, when in fact, the age group these movies have as their intended audience is perhaps the group of most impressionable people, is wrong.

If you’re asking what this has to do with International Women’s Week, I'd like to remind you of what I said in Monday’s blog entry. I stated that the ultimate objective of this entire week is to raise awareness. It’s to bring attention to the changes necessary for helping society arrive at a fairer place. While as individuals, changing the world is quite the difficult task, collectively, it becomes easier. This happens through awareness.

Recognizing that this kind of sexualization and objectification of women has no place in our society is crucial in having it removed. And really, there is no place for it in our changing society. 

Recent studies show that the amount of women enrolled in universities is at an all-time high, and is even higher than the enrolment of men. And despite not earning as much as men, women are well on their way there to breaking through the glass ceiling (google this word if you are unfamiliar with it). And another first time in history is that if Kate and Will have a baby girl; she will be the next inheritor, as opposed to their usual system of handing it off to the next male. This is HUGE.

I hope that not only this week, but from here on out, you heighten your ability to align your beliefs, morals, actions, feelings and words. It is my wish that you find a harmony within yourself that allows you to watch these movies and use them to outline precisely what is wrong with this world. Our entertainment is so highly reflective of trends and indicative of how people of different genders, different sexualities, and different races are to be treated and regarded in our society. And from what I have collected, there is a dire and urgent change that needs to be made.

As the great Mahatma Gandhi said, “Be the change you wish to see in the world.” 

We've Got to do Better

When I share with people that I was bullied growing up as a kid, they didn’t understand why. They would say things like, “You’re too pretty to get bullied” or “They were just jealous”. While the first statement does good for the ego despite being quite irrelevant, the second is a phrase I believe myself, and other victims of bullying, male or female, hear too much to actually believe this is a real explanation.

The misconception that all victims of bullying are ugly, wear glasses, are “nerdy” or promiscuous is bullshit. And don’t pardon my French. The culture of bullying and mentally traumatizing innocent young girls and boys has to stop.

When we hear tragedies ranging from the time of Reena Virk, up until the recent suicide of Amanda Todd, it illustrates that bullying is still an issue that pushes people to the brink of death. Despite not being familiar with the story of Reena Virk when it was first talked about in a journalism lecture, I did my research and found out what I could.

In 1997, the partially clothed and brutally beaten dead body of Reena Virk was found under a bridge in Saanich, British Columbia. The girl, of Indian descent, was bullied by her peers who she desperately sought acceptance from and was teased relentlessly. They said she was “too hairy”, and “too dark”, and they felt that was enough reason to swarm her one day and beat her to death.

Then last year, more than ten years after the brutal death of Reena Virk, came the suicide of Amanda Todd. The grade ten student who, like Reena, was from British Columbia, had been tormented after a topless image of her circulated the internet. Despite moving homes, switching schools, and receiving counselling, the teen began cutting herself as a means of dealing with the inescapable bullying. She was teased in school for a learning disability, and beaten up by a group of girls who punched and kicked her relentlessly into the ground. After this incident, she attempted suicide by drinking bleach.

In September of 2012, Amanda uploaded a video of herself on YouTube with flashcards detailing how truly alone she felt, and how desperate she was for someone, anyone, to be there for her. Despite posting the video, the bullying continued. On October 10, 2012, the teen was found dead in her home, and the cause of death is reported to have been suicide by hanging.

So where do we go from here? How do we eradicate these types of cases from our society? Perhaps the better question to ask is what they’re doing here in the first place.

Reena Virk’s case illustrated both a racial and gender-specific issue. This was not just a case of “catty girls” looking to duke it out over some guy like in the movies. This was a group of sick, manipulative, and ridiculously powerful girls who looked to bring torment to Reena, for no reason at all, other than the fact she was different from them.

The case of Amanda Todd illustrated the role of social media on people’s lives and emotions; and that sticks and stones don’t hurt nearly as much as words do. Why do you think it is common for people to cut themselves like she did when they find themselves in the face of such adversity? The physical pain is no competition for the emotional deterioration this kind of bullying brings.

International Women’s Week, like everyday, is an opportunity to honour the innocent victims of crimes like these. It is an opportunity for us all to stand up and be the voices for these unspoken and unheard victims. The sad thing is, Todd and Virk are far from being the only ones. There are the tragic stories of Jessica Laney, Felicia Garcia, Marianne Shanks…

And the list goes on, and on, and on, and on.

When someone shares with you that they have been bullied, save the “You’re too pretty,” or “They were just jealous” for another time. Ask them instead if they are okay. Ask them if they have seen someone, and let them know that you’re there. The few times these gestures were made to me I laughed it off, not recognizing that I was a lucky one, and that there are boys and girls dying, literally, for this kind of support.

Let the stories of these young and beautiful girls be a cautionary tale to you. Keep an eye out for signs of bullying, signs of depression, and always be on the lookout for people who you feel may be a danger to themselves. And never, ever underestimate the effect that simply being there for someone can have.

After all, this would have been the one thing that would’ve prevented Reena’s death according to her mother, who said “If she just had one friend, one true friend there that night, Reena would have lived. I would not have had to bury my daughter.”

What You Should Be Doing This International Women's Week

Happy International Women’s Week! Didn't get the memo? Don’t worry; you’re not the only one. In fact, a large portion of the population is entirely unaware that there is an International Women’s Day yearly on March 8th. Given the lack of awareness of month-long holidays like Black History month, and week-long holidays like this one, it makes me wonder if there is any point in observing them.

Perhaps the reason for all the doubt is because I personally believe that every day should be a celebration of both my African heritage and my womanhood. But that just sounds like a well-rehearsed and predictable statement. Nonetheless, I believe it is important to observe the festivities and pay homage to the women and men that have pushed The Women’s Movement forward and also to acknowledge that globally, there is still much work to be done.

102 years ago, the first commemoration of International Women’s Day took place in four countries: Switzerland, Germany, Austria and Denmark. The day was March 19^th, and it attracted a whopping one million women AND men’s participation in public events commemorating women.

I can’t say that I’ve seen such wide-scale participation of either Black History month or International Women’s week in my lifetime, leading me to ponder whether or not these types of holidays are outdated.

Maybe “outdated” is a little harsh, but a lot less harsh than my idea of using “irrelevant”. Truthfully, it seems that  after moving on from elementary school and high school, we become out of the loop with certain celebrations, simply because we aren’t being instructed to produce a piece of art that will be hung in the auditorium to be seen by all during the assembly, or to memorize “In Flanders Fields” every November. Heck, we wouldn’t even remember half the significant days that exist if they weren’t on our calendar, or didn’t call for some extra creativity on Google’s homepage from time to time.

So how can we make sure that these celebrations, undeniably worth being observed, are properly celebrated? More importantly, how do we change the notion of them being outdated?

Firstly, we have to recognize the lack of freedom that still exists. The recent gang and bus rapes taking place in India and Pakistan, and a long list, too long, of other countries are testament enough. Despite the image of freedom plastered all over the western world, we are forgetting about our counterparts in other countries and must use this week as a platform to reach out to them, and definitely to call attention to the injustices that happen frequently to these poor and innocent victims whose rapists are often freed, or subjected to minimal punishment.

We should also keep an eye out for the events that take place internationally; believe it or not the list is very extensive. Community centers, women’s centers and universities, especially, often have guest speakers and lecturers that come in to have discussions or panel events. Attending these functions allow you not only to learn a thing or two and hear inspirational stories, but to interact with women and men that are part of a larger cultural movement; one that will arrive society at a more equal place; so we hope.

Also, it is important to take individual action. For me, writing a five-day blog with specialized topics including abuse, girl-on-girl violence, sexual ambiguity, and how women have changed the world is my contribution. Surely it won’t reach the masses, but this is me reaching out to my community to draw attention to the severely underrated and under-celebrated event. Spending time doing some research about different people involved in The Women’s Movement, looking up different laws that exist around reproductive rights and sexual self-government, and how those laws have changed and evolved over time adds to our general knowledge about these holidays-which to me, is kind of the point.

Lastly, we can participate by accepting the mere fact that the objective of these holidays, like Black History Month and International Women’s Week (and day), are simply to bring awareness. And since there is such a heightened need for awareness about these things precisely, they will not grow to be outdated and most certainly not irrelevant anytime in the near future.

So get out there, reach out to your community, and most importantly; try and learn a thing or two. Also, stay tuned for the next four blogs coming up that are guaranteed to ignite a fiery conversation.

A Happy International Women’s Week to you, men and women alike, and may you be inspired by something because of it.