Mtv Protest

We have four main grievances that we wish to address in this protest:

1. The idolization of celebrities, which casts expectations on American young women to be "perfect" (i.e. thin, vapid, heterosexual (and completely dependent on men!), wealthy, prematurely sexually experienced, etc. etc.). This emphasis on "perfection" has sparked eating disorders at epidemic proportions (and thought processes that made everyone think Mary-Kate Olsen looked fabulous this past JuneÐ'--until she checked herself into an eating disorders clinic, and then people decided that bony ribs weren't as cool as Gucci), body image issues that consume a majority of American women, and paralyzing self-esteem problems. While seven year olds grasp that they aren't supposed to look like Barbie, seventeen year olds aren't picking up on the fact that these MTV "demigods" are groomed for hours everyday before flashing a fingertip on camera or in a magazine, and are oftentimes plastered in makeup and hairspray, operated on by the most elite plastic surgeons in the country, and touched up by digital technicians armed with airbrushesÐ'--this is where it becomes time to raise consciousness levels.

2. The exploitation of women of color in music videos, through the actual lyrics of the songs, and the way the women are objectified in the music videos. In the latest rap, R&B, and hip-hop music videos, women of color are not portrayed as womenÐ'--they are portrayed as body parts. Glimpses of legs, derrieres, breasts, and beautiful bodies dance across the television screen, not in a graceful way, but in an exploitative, dehumanizing way, as the singers refer to these women in the most derogatory of terms. The word to refer to a female does start with a "w," but it shouldn't rhyme with "snore." The way in which women are portrayed in these music videos is not only a regression of women's rights, but also an advancement for racismÐ'--and must be stopped. While we are not protesting MTV for creating these music videos (because they didn'tÐ'--this is work of music video directors and the actual artists), we can protest MTV for airing these videos, as that is how they reach the populace.

3. The installment of a somewhat reborn element of machismo in American culture; expecting men to be hyper-masculine and domineering (machismo- a