(More Than) Grrrl Power! Girls Studies at UCF

This is going to be raggedy, so bear with me. In considering girls and feminism, the questions that are commonly emphasized are “Do girls need feminism? Are they a part of it?” Implicit in these questions is the more problematic, self-conscious fret: “Do girls need us anymore?” If feminism is irrelevant to girls, that is, at least in part, because it is being framed as a fixed entity, something “established feminists” own. The “problem” with girls and feminism comes as a result of the presentation of feminism as something one must adopt rather than define. Saying “Here, claim my feminism,” integrate my history, my struggle, into your identity, mirrors the social construction of girls as consumers rather than producers. If we are approaching feminism as something concrete, unchangeable, a pair of pants one must put on rather than fabric that someone can sew into whatever they want, we are still treating girls as a target group of consumers. The idea that w...

“A Virtual Room of One’s Own” was pretty interesting, it had never occurred to me that almost all activities associated with girls were in the home. As a girl I did play outside a lot but I spent a lot of time in the home, baking, reading, talking on the phone, going online, watching TV, painting my nails, ect. I would agree that personal homepages do reflect a girls room. I volunteered for Perverted Justice which is an anti-pedophile association, and a lot of what I did involved myspace and creating a “girl’s” myspace. We of course kept all person and specific information out and pedophiles were still attracted to their web sites. Looking at real young girl’s web pages was almost scary, it was obvious of their age, they sometimes listed their school or the mall they liked to hang out in. It was pretty representative to the reading, bright colors, pictures of their favorite pop stars, animals, neo pets, and comments like the guestbook function. My little sister that I am mentorin...

I felt that so much of Trevor’s advice from “Girls in Ghana Get Computerized” on teaching computer literacy was relevant to the American digital disposition. While we in America are on the “advanced” end of the technological spectrum, many people have never touched a computer. It is imperative to tackle issues regarding the space of girls on computers and their relations with the World Wide Web, but I think it is even more important to learn from those who have a less complicated relationship with technology. I really loved Trevor’s approach to introducing technology. He allowed it to be expansive to the girls in the way they wanted it to expand. He wanted them to explore on their own terms and discover their own relationships with the computer, whether that meant working with one for career purposes or simply singing fun songs into a recording program. This kind of simplicity is something I think Americans can benefit from, but can maybe, sadly, never return to. ...

"We are not arguing that capitalism and clothing can't be political. Who makes your clothes and under what conditions is highly political. But when there is a critique of girlie-feminists and their clothes, the point is rarely the plight of sweatshop laborers." So it stinks for Baumgardner and Richards that people tell them what they should and shouldn't wear. That certainly doesn't line up with the feminist principle of 'do what you want as long as you're not fucking other people over.' But to put the "plight of sweatshop laborers" off as a side note....? My question is why are they so focused on the women who are telling them what not to wear for the sake of being too girlie (whoever they are, they sound like lame self-absorbed feminists) rather than focusing on working with the feminists who are making their clothes? I recently read a book about women in Nicaragua, some who identify as feminists and some who don't, who are resisting s...

When I think back to when I was young, I think of myself as being very self absorbed. I didn’t think about the world or society or oppression or the grand scheme of things. I thought about myself. I was too busy worrying about what I would wear the next day and drama at the lunch table. I was simply struggling to fit in and struggling to grow up. I wasn’t worrying about changing the world. In fact, I didn’t even know the world needed changing. I blame my obsession with myself on society and sexism. As feminists I think that one of the things we strive to do is make life easier for girls. We want all females to live easier lives not affected by a sexist society. If we alleviated the pressure put on women and girls to be beautiful, thin, and popular, girls would have time to think about other things besides which brand of clothing is most in style. I think that is the point of Girls Studies. In an academic setting we can try to understand and analyze the problems that girls face in ...

"When being "young" is discursively linked with inexperience, the critiques issued by those identified as "young" become constructed as naive, disrespectful, and historically uninformed." ( Eisenhaur p. 82). I have heard so many times coming either from jobs, school programs, and my parents that I'm simply too young and don't have enough "experience" yet. I think that to use this as an excuse so to not include people is the biggest cop out feminism can take. The way feminism is structured today in most feminist discourse is by using the "wave" system. First, second, and third to be exact. This structure is completely damning to what feminism is trying to accomplish in my opinion. We have alienated ourselves from each other so much that it's no wonder grrrlz are weary of becoming involved in the movement. This so-called experience that we all need to have is a ridiculous concept. Because this of course leads to the merry...

So I got this idea that feminism to young girls is a lot like listening to our parents music, in a way. When you're young (for me anyways) you grow up listening to your parents music, hearing about their times, their experiences, the concerts and even though the music and time means a lot to them,you can't really/fully relate to it. The beats and the message are not speaking to you, growing up in a new age. The things they attended sound cool, but you don't know that much about that time and what they were searching for. And since you didn't live it first hand you can feel inadequate. That is when you start listening to the total opposite of your parents, they cannot understand it but you love it because it speaks to you, its current, they don't get it and that makes it solely you. Eventually you learn more about your parents and their experiences and once you get to a certain point you can appreciate their music and what it stood for and see how a lot of your own ...

I love being girlie. I also love being a Feminist. But what I love the most, is that I can be both. I truly enjoyed Jennifer and Amy's essay in All About The Girl, because it really does go into how we as the Third Wave should not feel inadequate for liking pink, high heels, makeup, and Barbie. We can fully enjoy all of these things that are "girlie" and still be the powerful women that we are. That is what the First and Second Wave paved for us, choice. The choice to wear and do whatever we want. If we want to play sports than we can, if we want to sit around and knit, than we can. I love how Third Wave embraces this thought whole heartedly. I definitely feel like we as the Third Wave have it SO much easier than the previous women before us, because they had to fit a certain persona, and had to reject the girlie in order to be a good Feminist and to fight patriarchy. Now we understand and see how the media influences us, but if we enjoy wearing makeup, then we do it for...

Yo, so here we go, do girls need feminism? I'm going to talk about the U.S. I think it's obvious that girls get pushed around, judged by their looks, sexually assaulted, taught to fear men, taught to fear authorities, used for the pocket change they have to spend at Hollister and Hannah Montana conerts...The debate over whether girls "have it all" or not is ridiculous: white girls with money don't have the same power in our society that white men, women, or boys do. And a person who says to working class girl of color that *if she works really hard*, she can be Donald Trump with all his power, deserves serious dismissal. And of course here in the U.S. we're sold a storyline our whole lives that boys and girls are equal, just different. So when we notice that we have a lot more pressure to look right and act right, instead of having the tools to get together as girls do something about the way we're treated, we consider it just a normal part of being a gir...

In essay after essay, the question being asked seems to be "Are today's girls beyond feminism?" or "Is feminism relevant to them?" Apparently we must re-think feminism within the context of girlhood. I don't really get it. How is feminism not already relevant? Girls may or may not claim the word. Still, how many women claim the word? Are women today "doing" a new breed of feminism, minus the ideology, beyond the ideology? Following advances of the first and second waves, are women just out there, living their lives, with no more need for feminism? This has been a topic of much debate, with many women answering an emphatic "Yes!" That women feel strong and empowered enough to reject the "F-word" is a sign of progress. I would also argue that the media and other powers that be don't want women to have access to feminist thought. Are women poor, helpless, living in the dark? Of course not. That said, I still strongl...

When I was younger and I thought about feminism, I associated it (of course) with angry women who stopped shaving and hated men. I didn't really see this as negative, though. I thought they were just tired of having to clean up after every one and wanted actual jobs. But I also thought that this was a movement only associated with the '70s - one that was long gone. I'm grateful that I had a fairly neutral perception of feminism because otherwise I might not have been as receptive when I took Intro. to Women's Studies last summer. After experiencing my "click," I came to realize that I had always been a feminist without realizing it. I truly think this is the case with most younger girls, especially because childhood/early adolescence is when a girl's self-esteem is the highest. The problem here is the feminist label. So what do we do about it? I remember previously discussing (I think in Third Wave) instituting Women's Studies classes at an elementary/...

I want to start my post off by first discussing the “Your Life As A Girl” article, by Curtis Sittenfeld. I felt such a connection to this story, almost as if I wrote it. So many times while reading it I just wanted to start crying. I seriously can’t tell you how many times I have had my mother tell me, “Amanda, if keep being mean to boys they won’t like you.” Seriously, mom, seriously! She would always tell me that I intimidate boys and I should be nicer to them. Almost everything in this article I have felt or have been told… “Aren’t you being a bit vicious? You’re intimidating them. The boys in your class will never think you’re beautiful. Boys can save you. Wait till college where dozens of guys will treat you nicely.” This is without my favorite article I have ever read and want everyone I know to read it. I think girls should really get in touch with feminism at a young age as it could help with the struggles they may face doing adolescent. Even though I’m only 20, I think young...

I feel that the relationship between girls and feminism is, in one word; confused. Even in programs created on the foundation of feminism, such as YWLP, the “f-word” is one that is strictly forbidden.” While the girls think they know nothing about this land-mine of a word, they are taught methods of autonomy, competence, and connection among women, which unbeknownst to them, are the principles of feminism. They excel, blossom, and become independent under these lessons, all the while still feeling negativism or puzzlement in regards to the mythical ideal which is feminism. Although it is frustrating to know that a 12 year old who has just become more active in the community, more independent, and more confident in her own capabilities all due to feminism is still harboring pessimism towards the very thing providing her a newfound strength and belief, it is important to remember that a title isn’t everything. I understand why we can not present feminism as a term on a silver platter, b...

I was trying to find the right title and for a moment I actually thought I originally thought of girl studies to describe feminism including young girls. I think the first thing I thought of was that would girls feel included in feminism? Would the issues really involve them now or just their future? Then it also occurred to me that young feminism might still look like the Spice Girls, with pink or some glitter and I really don't know if that's ok with every feminist. In our previous readings I felt the book came off as rather elitist, that spice girls weren't good enough to be feminist because they were mostly pretty white girls. So I'm kind of stuck in the relationship of girls and feminism. I mean all women were girls, we speak about issues affecting girls so I see how feminism relates to girls but I'm not sure I see how girls relate to feminism if that makes sense. I kind of see a one way relationship going on. So I guess the question is, how do we include girls...

What troubles me most with the Third Wave is that it is still continuing its effort to define ‘girl’ and ‘woman’ as touched upon throughout this week’s article in All About the Girl. Although girls today can be seen praised for holding a baseball bat with polished fingernails, the focus is heavily placed upon the fact that she has combined these two ‘differing’ elements rather than upon her performance as an athlete. I understand that labels can help find one’s identity, but why must we find a name before an action? I say put all of the children’s toys together-advertise men wearing make up above Mary Kay’s row of lipsticks-address each other as person instead of ‘girl’, ‘boy’, ‘man’, ‘woman’. Let the youth decide what they are attracted to without calling it ‘girlie’, because as soon as this label is attached to their person, a sense of obligation to maintain it will follow. I know this might sound utopian and confusing. I’m still working out the kinks with this abstrac...

It seems like if you use the word feminist to describe yourself today, you are going to get an earful of mixed opinions. All too often people relate the word with a negative meaning and picture a group of women from the 1950’s and 60’s. This is not saying this group of women had a negative impact; it is just that viewpoints among women and girls today are different than that time period. Women from the second wave obviously made huge strides for women, and Harris made a good point by saying “these girls of yesteryear were protected rather than challenged, and restricted rather than encouraged (p.60).” This is a good comparison of the differences between girls today and girls from decades ago. So if the women and times have changed so much, can’t the idea of feminism? Younger feminists today do not necessarily like to be called by such a title, even though they stand for a lot of the same ideas. Women from the third wave are building on the progress of the past and making it easie...

In the past, I have been severely annoyed by the reluctance of friends, educators, clubs, and even activists for women's rights, to call themselves feminists. On the first day of my Sexual Behavior class, Dr. Fischer explained that he describes himself has an "egalitarianist," rather than a feminist, because he beleives that feminism is "anti-men." In addition, when it comes to young girls, most cannot relate to the term "feminism" at all. In my opinion, this is mostly because of lack of education on the subject and a culturally perceived stereotype of the "butch, man-hating, bra burning" feminist. In other words, a "feminist" is thought of as a one dimensional, negative character. Similarly, on page 197 of Young Femininity , the author explains that girls are reluctant to use the term "feminist" because it is seen as non inclusive. Though there clearly is a need for a collective, unified women's movement in which...

As Amy Richards and Jennifer Baumgardner state in Feminism and Femininity: "We see third wave not as a specific set of assumptions or theories, but as an evolution of feminism building on previous generations" (63), I believe that this is the way girls are brought up; girls come from a variety of backgrounds and then grow for against their families and the cultural standards that raise them. This made me think more about “Girl Power” and its relationship with feminism and girls. On pages 71 and 72 of All about the Girl, Jessica Taft talks about this type of “contained expression of strength” which is seen as more ideally “girlie” and capable, but still “make(s) no indication that this alternative is a project for social or political change”. I felt that this was the perfect description of how Girl Power exists in our culture today. It is sold on Wal-mart shelves and bought up by consumers who still function under the rules of Girls rule and Boys drool, which still forces ch...

My parents had three girls, and it just so happened that we were completely uninterested in baby dolls; rather, stuffed animals were our thing. In preschool, for our class Christmas-present swap, I got a cardboard jewelry box with white & light pink stripes and light pink roses and a light pink ribbon to open the top. It might not have been the sole pink thing I owned at the time, but it was definitely the pinkest. I don't know how long after getting it home the redecoration occurred, but for the years after that I remember the box being stamped with two brightly colored but dark-inked stamps on either side of the cover. It wasn't that I wanted to destroy the pink, I just wanted to add my own touch. It was elementary school that I learned of girl's bathrooms being layered in chalky pink paint and unappealing pink tiles and boy's in a much more aesthetically pleasing and overall cooler color of blue. "MY favorite color is blue!" I would think to mysel...

Previous waves of feminists inspire me, they don’t just inspire me they inspired my whole world. They allowed me and future generations to grow in a space unlike theirs. As much as I admire them I do think it’s only natural for the course of feminism to change with the ever changing society. I think it’s true when Baumgardner and Ricahrds say we don’t spend enough time talking about feminism and "what it can be." The idea of Girl tells me I'm allowed to be a feminist in any way I want. I don’t have to reject girl things to embrace a feminist identity. I can wear pink, or paint my nails, or wear a dress, or decorate my room in glitter without conforming to traditional girl norm. The beauty of the girl (which I see in direct relation with third wave) is she has the choice to do these things. If a girl wants to grow up and own a bakery that’s okay. If she wants to grow up and play a sport that’s okay too. "When were feeling girlie, it's because we feel ind...

Many women and girls do not think the label or movement of feminism is necessary any more. This is a result of our age, we grew up already having the right previous generations had to fight for. Those girls and women that see the need and are interested in greater freedom and equality for women, are scared to define themselves as “feminists” because of the negative connotation the word holds, even if they are doing “feminist works”. Speaking as someone who was called an idiot, dike, and bitch for declaring myself a feminist to others, I agree with the commentators that argue “Too much concern with labels interferes with our perception of the feminist work young women are actually engaging in.” (Young Feminity, 197) We need to somehow find a way to flip the word “feminist” so that it is seen in a positive light and non-threatening, or we need to adopt new words like “womanist” that are not so well-known and defined. “Feminine things weren’t the problem; being forced to adopt them was. W...

I've noticed that when I think of Girls Studies, I tend to acknowledge that I know very little about girlhood outside of my wmc 'white middle class' experience, and that I want to and need to learn about what girlhood is like for everyone who isn't part of my tiny subsection of girls. Really though, even though I acknowledge that I'm in a hyper privileged minority, my real tendency is to define everything in Girls Studies according to my experience. Having a space to reflect on and analyze my experience of girlhood is almost too tempting. My memories and stories of growing up and how my culture and family and friends and institutions influenced me, and how I influenced them, is a realm inside my head that I can explore and share for long chunks of time because it's personal...and who doesn't want to hear how I got to be the fab person I am? ; ). So first I noticed that I tend to define Girls Studies along my experience of girlhood, and perhaps moreso tha...

When I was younger, I remember thinking that feminism was a nice way of saying lesbian, or a way of labeling a girl as “different.”   One thing is for sure, it was a degrading term that my mother would become suspiciously aware of if it ever found its way into our Southern Baptist home.   In high school, my best friend was a lesbian and my mother seriously warned me against hanging out with her or inviting her over for fear that I would “catch” her sexual orientation.   A self-proclaimed “hippie” during the 1960’s, I would have thought that my mom would recognize this kind of oppression.   I wasn’t allowed to have my friend over, but that didn’t stop me from maintaining our friendship.   It was then that I learned that feminism was a state of mind, of activism, and that it had nothing to do with who you were attracted to.   Working with Young Women’s Leaders Program , I have come to learn that feminism can be learned as a girl without ever placing the attitudes of feminism as “fe...

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Girl studies is probably the most important part of women's studies there is, at least to women. We all were girls, we all went through that lost period in our lives where we felt alone, confused and didn't realize how young we were. When I think about what things could have been done in my family, and school, and community to make this transition better for me the first thing that comes to my mind is attention! I felt like no one paid attention to me, no one gave me the knowledge I needed, nobody came along answering the questions I had but didn't know how to ask, and nobody told me how to deal with being a girl at my age. I think girl studies is very important and I'm really glad its come to UCF. Women's issues become important at a very young age and girls can benefit from learnong more about women and topics like body issues and gender roles. The article "Your life as a girl" really hit me into remembering that time during my life and at the time it d...

When I first heard that Girl’s Studies was being offered at UCF, I honestly believed that it was a class created specifically for our University. I assumed that we would be studying an array of issues currently affecting young girls – the influence of pop culture and mass media, body image, sexual autonomy, familial and friendly relationships, etc. – but I had no idea that Girl’s Studies was an established field of scientific and scholarly research until cracking open the books for this week’s reading. Upon finishing “Young Femininity,” I began to realize that the Girl’s Studies movement is very similar to that of the feminist Women’s movement. There have been eras, or waves, of study within the Girl’s movement that differ in the ways research has been conducted, and in the proposed methods with which to tackle and define the issues girls face on an everyday basis. According to “Young Femininity,” for example, the early Girl’s Studies researchers focused on girlhood as “simply a physic...

When I first thought about what is girl studies I thought predominantly about body image and the media, but from the reading I’ve come to realize that girlhood encompasses a lot more issues than I thought. Not only does it tackle popular culture and societal influences, but also consumerism, globalization, and how social institutions shape young womyn, among a number of ever changing topics that vary as much as the girls involved with them. The amazing and sometimes difficult aspect of girls studies is its variety, “Even in the same historical time-frame and social context, experiences and meanings of girlhood will shift because gender and age also intersect with race, class, sexuality, ethnicity, nationality, and ability” (Young Femininity 1). Girls from across the globe are going to encounter different situations but I feel there will be those same stories everyone can relate to like, the tale of your first period, a lost love, or family issues. I too deal with body issues but my e...