By Culley Schultz
Culley Schultz is a senior at Glen Ridge High School, outside of New York City. She is the vice-president of the GRHS Girls Learn International (GLI) Chapter as well as the Secretary of the GLI Junior Board. Last year, Culley created a short documentary and commentary on the portrayal of women and girls in the media for the Women’s Media Center. It was through these organizations that Culley’s interest in the sexualization of women and girls was generated. As a result of her activism, she was led to SPARK where she is thrilled to be helping the movement to take sexy back!
There I was, sitting at the SPARK conference listening to Jamia Wilson and Megan Williams speak about the ideas of the day when they said SPARK is about “Taking Sexy Back.” There it was- the theme of the day. Then, I began to consider what I felt should fit into that new category. Athletic girls, smart girls, REAL girls.
Sift through the following pictures and decide which are sexy. My answers are posted below. Do we agree?
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2.
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Here are my thoughts:
1. sexy
2. not sexy
3. sexy
4. sexy
5. sexy
6. not sexy
7. not sexy
I have always believed that sexy is what you make it. The women that I labeled as sexy are sexy because they are taking ownership of themselves. The media is not objectifying them. They are comfortable in their bodies, and they are strong. Sexy should be the smart, athletic, awesome girls and women we are, not the models in magazines that are too airbrushed or posed to relate to us. SPARK solidified that goal. Here’s hoping you agree!