Quit pretending your idiot meme is feminist

[breakinglight11]

HEY, EVERYONE. THERE IS SUCH A THING AS BREAST CANCER. IT'S BAD AND WE SHOULD DO STUFF TO FIND A CURE ABOUT IT. NOW YOU'RE AWARE.

I find this a more effective way to get people thinking about breast canncer than a stupid Facebook status meme THAT DOESN'T EVEN CONNECT TO CANCER IN ANY WAY. See, see, it's really kickass GRRL POWER answering the question of "Where do you like to put your handbag when you first come home?" with statuses that sound vaguely sexual, like "I like it on the floor," or "I like it on the kitchen table" without every letting anyone (except other girls, of course) know what the hell you're really talking about! Doesn't that like raise so much awareness of a disease that's NOT EVEN MENTIONED? 

But see, here's the really awesome part! We don't explain it to men. So we get to laugh at them all like, "Buh?" That way they think we're talking about how we like it during sex and get all turned on by us. Then we get to feel sexy and desireable AS WELL as all superior to them because we're manipulating their base caveman urges when in fact we're doing something RIGHTEOUS FOR THE SISTERHOOD YEAH.

BECAUSE MEN CAN'T CARE ABOUT BREAST CANCER. Men can't hurt because they have mothers or sisters or wives or daughters who got the disease. Men only have one use for tits, am I right?

I'm sorry, but IT IS STUPID. Stupid to do something cryptic to raise awareness about something, particularly when couching in in false feminism. Oh, yes, let's all us women have our little solidarity meme, but let's not explain what we mean by it except to each other who ALREADY ARE AWARE and keep its meaning secret from men, because that's how you raise awareness-- you only let people who are already in the know in on it! Yes, this makes the most sense in the WHOLE WIDE WORLD.

It is NOT feminist. It is ELITIST, SELF-SATISFIED, and SEXIST. And if in its current form it does a damn thing to help even one person in regards to breast cancer, I'll drop dead of shock.

Sorry, but I'm in a BAD MOOD and this tweaks my feminist nerves.

Comments

[blendedchaitea.livejournal.com]

For reference, I don't think the meme is at all feminist, or really demonstrates "how powerful we women are." I just think it's cheeky and fun. I'm sorry if I upset you u.u

[breakinglight11.livejournal.com]

If you want to be cheeky and fun, be cheeky and fun. Why bother cloaking it in a guise of social responsibility?

[http://users.livejournal.com/_andre_/]

[blendedchaitea.livejournal.com]

"Tanks for the mammaries" might be the best sentence on the Internet.

[usernamenumber.livejournal.com]

Agreed! And it would be an effective way of encouraging people to "donate" funds, too. :)

[valleyviolet.livejournal.com]

Alot of funds, perhaps?

[usernamenumber.livejournal.com]

Well played!

Now I must resist the urge to go make one of those... :)

[ultimatepsi.livejournal.com]

Also, the implication that as a woman you carry a handbag is sexist. I don't use a handbag; I have *pockets*!

[laurion]

Be careful you don't discount the possibility of a woman having both pockets and a handbag.

Further, the implication that men cannot carry a bag for personal belongings is also sexist. Call it a manbag, a murse, a go bag, a day bag, a eurobag, or a man purse, I've carried one and refuse to be ashamed of it. So why can't I participate in the meme?

[ultimatepsi.livejournal.com]

Exactly!

[marigumi.livejournal.com]

I mostly just thought it was funny. And I explained it when people asked, because I figured that was the point. I know the meme itself doesn't have anything to do with breast cancer, but now everyone who asked me about it has at least thought about breast cancer in the past 48 hours.
I also didn't really think it was supposed to be feminist, more a lighthearted way to acknowledge Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

[offside7.livejournal.com]

Few random thoughts:

They managed to keep it pretty secret from lots of females, too. I eventually found out what it was through a guy.

Though not every awareness meme has to target every person, I just want to say- men get breast cancer. (They also donate money to support research, perform research, screen women, and treat women who have it.)

While I think this form of "raising awareness" is probably ultimately pretty useless, I'd bet it was more successful in catching men's attention than lots of other forms of breast cancer awareness, (like the pink stuff, which people's brains start to screen out after awhile.)

It's not sexist to imply women carry handbags. There's nothing about this meme that says "and if you don't, you're not a real woman." It's just that statistically, a significant proportion of women do carry handbags.

I wonder if there will be a prostate cancer meme.

This doesn't bug me nearly as much as items you buy to raise awareness that don't raise money for the cause. I dislike seeing ribbon bumper stickers and rubber bracelets when 0% of the proceeds go anywhere but into the pockets of people preying on those who innocently assume that if it's in the shape of a ribbon, somehow, there's a donation being made, but didn't think to double check.

[laurion]

Amanda likes it in the closet. I like it out of sight.

These are completely opposite of where breast cancer awareness and fundraising programs should be.

As someone who lost a grandmother and an aunt to the disease, I totally agree with you rage. Revise that. Even without such a personal connection I would agree with your rage.

Now, if this were a meme in support of colon cancer research, just imagine what they could do with it? (Fair warning, another of my aunt's used to work for the colon cancer foundation...)

[mirrored-echo.livejournal.com]

Agree that the game is completely idiotic; but, when I got the Facebook message, it didn't have anything to do with breast cancer awareness (beyond being inspired by the bra color meme.) The only stated purpose was to screw with people.

Then, I got forwarded the handbag meme almost a month ago; did it evolve since then?