Kids and the sexual messages of Fifty Shades of Grey cannot mix. Adrianne Simeone shuts down the combination here.
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First off, I’m disgusted because I can’t even watch the news without the commercial and this image being blown up across my TV in front of my young kids. I’m not watching late night sitcoms, I’m watching the MORNING NEWS to find out about the weather to know how to dress my kids for the playground. Just like Ana in this clip, it seems American at Large is covering it’s eyes and opening wide to the destruction that is the glorification of sex as a tool for power and self gratification. My kids and I — we have a right to not be exposed to these images first thing in the morning. But maybe that’s just me – and every other parent I’ve talked to.
As the TV credits state 50 Shades of Grey is a “worldwide phenomenon”.
A phenomenon is a remarkable wonder, something impressive or extraordinary. In today’s age what exactly is extraordinary about the fact that the ‘sex sells’ mentality continues to dominate (no pun intended) the choices of society at large?
Who wants a piece of Mr Grey more than Ana? Retailers. So much so that Target thinks putting the Fifty Shades of Grey blindfolds and vibrating ‘love rings’ right next to kids’ toothbrushes is a good cross-marketing approach.
Nothing quite so ‘phenomenal’ about a conversation with your young reader about why they can’t have a vibrating love ring.
The response to this photo from people – “oh, who takes their kids to the toothbrush section”… um, clearly you don’t have children that want full autonomy over toothbrush decisions.
.@Target think you might want to move the vibrating cock rings a bit further from the children’s tooth brushes? pic.twitter.com/9Eq6QiKyY2
— Jacob B. (@RealJeniTalia) January 16, 2015
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Vermont Teddy Bear whose mission is to “Make the world a better place, one bear at a time” is “crazy for Fifty Shades of Grey!” And seriously, laundry detergent?
But what’s the big deal about a movie promoting kinky sex – isn’t this just an erotic movie? No, it’s not. And here’s the part that no one is talking about. It’s in the trailer, and it’s in the book, if you read it.
What sort of ‘rough start’ did his character have? How about being a survivor of physical and sexual child abuse.
Now, imagine if the movie started with that part of the story. A little boy having cigarettes put out on his skin. A teenager ‘seduced’ by an adult and shown the ways of bondage, whips, and pain as a means of coping with his issues.
Sexy, huh? Who doesn’t want to watch that guy act out on his past by sexually controlling another person? Who needs therapy when you can just continue the cycle and dominate and abuse other people under the guise of consensual sex?
Fifty Shades of Grey is not about a loving, respectful relationship that has some kinky sex — it’s a story about a man who seeks to control women because he feels out of control in his life.
Now, some people know this about the story and feel this is what gives the story ‘depth’ — but this isn’t a drama with deep character analysis – this is a book and movie that is set to appeal to the masses that don’t know or don’t care to empathize with Christian’s past abuse.
BUT, IT’S JUST A BOOK, RIGHT?
BUT ANA CONSENTED!
BUT HER LOVE SAVES HIM!
BECAUSE I’M TERRIFIED FOR MY KIDS
A couple weeks ago, I sat in a room with various police and school administrators and listened to officers in their 20s, mind you, talk about kids in the fifth grade performing oral sex on the back of the bus. How they are shocked how far things have gone since they graduated from high school not even ten years ago. That kids these days think sex with no strings attached is normal. Kids that just have sex with one another – and don’t even date.
You can’t just say it’s a parent’s job to talk to their kids about this. Sexual messages are like second hand smoke for our children. They cannot look away, their brains are literally hardwired to ingrain what they’re exposed to as normal – good or bad.
Because I watched ‘Sexy Baby’ – a documentary about the sexualization of our culture. I sat and listened to teenage boys talk about girls’ ‘meat curtain’ – aka, the labia, and women that pay thousands to have them surgically reduced in size because porn has taught boys that girls shouldn’t have them, and girls feel that if they do – they’re gross and no one will want to have sex with them.
THIS ISN’T JUST ABOUT US.
“But everyone is seeing it!” We don’t have to be everyone. We’re not supposed to be. We’re supposed to be ourselves. Think for yourself. A long time ago, people smoked cigarettes and sure, maybe it gave them cancer – that was their fault – but it’s not the fault of our kids who are having this poison blown in their face. I cannot put my children in a bubble and protect them from the effects of our highly sexualized culture. Nudity? I’m down with it. I’ll take my kids to the museum and show them Michaelangelo’s David. I’m not ashamed of the human body. But I am ashamed that we live in a society that tells women not to breastfeed in public and then celebrates a Sports Illustrated cover where a woman is practically exposing her vulva on the cover. Saying vagina out loud is taboo but little girls in beauty pageants dressed like prostitutes is entertainment.
We need to get our priorities in order. We can’t say domestic violence and sexual abuse are wrong, and then promote the very things that glorify sexual objectification and abuse. Turning a person into a thing is the first step to any form of abuse. Not respecting a person’s emotional needs is the first step to objectifying them.
People have a right to their own sexuality, but we also have a responsibility to protect the vulnerable, first and foremost – our children, who have a right to a nurturing and wholesome childhood.
We feed the machine that produced and turned Fifty Shades into a ‘worldwide phenomenon’ we better be prepared for what is next, because when it comes to profit over people, they will only seek to go bigger and more shocking. We have the power — it’s our money they want. Don’t give it to them.
Did the feminists all go to sleep about women being empowered with their own sexuality? What is this about sexual abuse? This is a story about a woman who chooses to engage herself. She is not coerced. The lead gives her multiple chances to remove herself but she is “roaring” now as Katy Perry would say. Y’all love that but all of a sudden this is not a heath roar because it promotes objectification and sexual abuse? Horse hockey. It two consenting adults that are doing things not much different than in bedrooms all over the country. Of course sexual… Read more »
Mark, you obviously don’t have children so I’ll excuse your stupid comment. Now, I want you to think real hard. If , by some chance , you had a ‘little one ‘ in your care, would you wish this young innocent child to see the Weather report given by some woman with a ‘crotch shot’ on a ‘camel toe’ or for that matter a ‘crotch shot budge’ and just write it off to ‘Freedom of Speech!
Oh jeez BobbT I have 3 kids and don’t bring up nonsense like a weather guy or girl crotch shot. That’s so over the top to not be worthy of debate except for puritans. Even the teasers for 50 shades is so blase that most channels of regular TV are a lot steamier. Take that “cat’s bum” off your face. Know what a cat’s bum is? It’s English slang for that parsimonious pursed lips look that prudes give that looks exactly like what’s under the cat’s tail.
What you seem to forget is that you do not have a right to be shielded by your view of embarrassment or smut while trying to see what the weather will be. It’s called freedom of speech. You might not like it all but then again things you say might be distasteful to someone else. I don’t mean this is hi falutin’ art here. It’s basically trash. But unfortunately I have to support their right to be offensive to you so by censorship you are not offensive to me.
I agree with Bobbt here. You cannot blame men for the objectification of women. They are part of the problem, but so are women. Case in point: it seems that every female in North America age 14 to 50 is hell bent on buying and wearing tights (in public) that basically expose every nook and cranny of their female anatomy. I make up that none of them had a gun put in their face and were ordered to purchase the aforementioned. Naturally as a guy, I am going to notice an attractive woman in skin tight clothing, but I certain… Read more »
Sorry July, you can’t point the ‘Finger of Gender’ blame on this one (you know “It’s all the Menz fault!) This book was written by a woman, the movie was directed by a woman, and 80% of the opening night audience were women. As Momma Bear said, it’s a SOCIETY problem! I mean, even a reviewer who liked this film (female) said this is nothing but “Soft core BDSM porn”. Here’s something to think about, with a weekend gross of almost 82 million dollars, you know the next film is in pre-production planning as we speak, and if form holds… Read more »
Thanks for this article. I do not have kids yet myself, but I fear when I do, how much worse this sort of thing will be then. It is difficult being a parent to start off with, and this sort of thing makes it even more so.
I can’t even believe that women would want to be so itemized in the first place? Sure it feels good to look good, but being more than looks feels even more empowering.
Agree with most of your points. But at the same time, we have a responsibility to live our lives and raise our kids the way we see fit. All this stuff is always going to be around. But we can make sure it doesn’t negatively affect our inner circles. And the movie sucked. But apparently it was just like the book, so I shouldn’t be disappointing.
You certainly have to hand it to Christian with how he deftly handles the quantum string dilemma during one of their sex scenes.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IkdGwW9vJho
I will now need to see this film.
Maybe you guys have such sexualization of young girls (not as much for young boys) because you guys accept so much the message that women are decoration? Because you guys have a culture where over 80% of the sexual objectification is done to female bodies? Because your men really enjoy it, support it, pay for it, love it and even have aggressive reactions when we want to tell them that this type of message is degrading and dangerous to girls and women? And yes, even to boys and men as well, as it pushes the culture to be even more… Read more »
We accompanied my teenage son (shortly after his 14th birthday) and a bunch of his friends (boys and girls) to the movie theater to see “Lucy”…while we waited for “Lucy”, we saw a trailer for “50 Shades of Grey”….yup, it was cringe-worthy….interestingly, I have heard them mention that the movie sounds “really messed up”….
“It’s a story about a man who seeks to control women because he feels out of control in his life”… anyway, it’s an interesting springboard to some deep conversations about what’s wrong in the world…and what constitutes popular entertainment…
YES! You, this, every point right on the money! How is it that Feminist, that I remember protesting at stores that sold Playboy and Penthouse as ‘Degrading’ toward women, is silent(and maybe waiting on line to buy their tickets) on this! I mean, how about a little consintantcy with the message, O.K.!