Feminist Claims That Women Who Dress Girly Are Victims Of Patriarchy, Gets Quickly Shut Down
There is a never-ending dialogue about patriarchy and the impact it has on society’s definition of femininity and masculinity. Some people believe that acting and dressing ‘girly’ is actually a result of patriarchal oppression and a long history of men telling women to dress and look a certain way. However, other times it can simply be the preference of a woman just wanting to wear a dress, a feel comfortable in a style that fits into the traditional mold of femininity.
Recently, artist Kiana Mcmillian received a lot of attention online after sharing one of her illustrations on her blog
Image credits: Kiana McMillian
This is not the first time Kiana has shared some of her work online. the artist already has a blog dedicated to her art where she shares all kinds of adorable illustrations. But out of all her work, this image illustrating her changing style while growing up has sparked the biggest debate.
One user quickly declared that women who dress girly are victims of patriarchy
It is a recurring issue in today’s society for people to judge others based on what they wear. It is often understood that a woman who prefers to wear dresses, makeup and spend more time on their appearance might be doing so because of a long history of patriarchy and men telling woman that they need to look a certain way, a way that pleases them.
But Kiana was not having it, she quickly responded to these claims by explaining why women should be allowed to wear whatever they want
Another user also responded by saying that some women are afraid to look feminine because they are shamed for being too girly
With over 177,000 reblogs the post quickly went viral with people supporting Kiana and saying that every woman should be allowed to dress however they want, without others judging them for their decision.
Many people came to Kiana’s defense
69Kviews
Share on FacebookYes, it's all about having the freedom of choice and not being judged for it
Load More Replies...I so much appreciate the artist's response. I've been a girly girly my whole life, because it's who I AM. I love pretty things and enjoy traditionally feminine things and that's okay because that's what is right for me and makes me happy. I am sick to my back teeth of the militant so-called feminists shaming women who value traditional femininity. I am not diminished, less-than, stupid or victimized by the "patriarchy" which has been tossed around so much lately it may as well be the "illuminati" because I like sewing, needlework, cooking and yes even housework! I think there is tremendous value in femininity, traditional womanhood, homemaking that has been diminished by women shaming women. Every time I see a comment like the one criticizing the artist I feel like the militant feminists are trying to shame the rest of us with ovaries into joining their gang. You do you girly girls! You do you not girly girls! If we all do that we'll just be happy girls!
feminism is choosing what you want! CHOOSING... that was a thing woman didn't have few years ago. now they can choose. my wife chose to stay at home with our kids. she loved that. that doesn't make her less of a woman for that. sick of terrorrism feminism
It doesn't make her MORE of a woman, either. Housework or paid work, nothing makes us more or less a woman. I am a woman because I AM. Feminism has been a great blessing for me, because not only am I able to be the woman I chose to be, but also regarded as a fully-fledged member of the human race.
Load More Replies...Some days I'm girly, some days I'm not, and some days just don't deserve makeup lol
Acting like there is something wrong with traditionally “feminine” things fits the textbook definition of sexism!
I was the kid who tried mega hard to distance herself from anything coded 'girly'. I play rough, do whatever the boys do, but inside I really really want to play with dolls and pretend cooking. no one ever told me it was okay to be 'girly', only that nobody likes girls who liked girly things. only as adult I found my way to the right path after discovering and understanding feminism, and I regret all those days I would have enjoyed more if I have more girl friends. I still can't dress as a woman even as adult. the damage to the little girl inside me is permanent. now, I just hope my niece will not have the same childhood as mine. I will be the one to tell her it's okay to be girly and that there's no shame in it.
As a man, I'd just like to say... (trips and falls downstairs, rendering self unconscious.)
I am thankful for all the women before me who worked hard to give me a choice. I choose to dress more masculine, cos it is more comfortable. When I want to dress up in dresses and make-up I can. I don't like it when someone tells me I am anti-feminist or a butch cos I wear men's shirts. My choice not yours. Kudos to the artist standing up to the keyboard warrior.
Shaming femininity is anti-feminist. If women become like men, then the purpose of feminism has been defeated. Feminism is supposed to give women the freedom to be women and not be seen as the weaker gender. It's not about putting femininity aside. It's about embracing it and being proud of it and not worrying that it'll make anyone think less of you
I hate this sort of thing. Do what you want. There will always be people who will make you feel guilty about how you dress. They mean nothing. I do not care about Feminism because these so called organizations mean nothing except for their own agenda.
At 49 I'll tell you, today I no longer give a s**t what others think. Solves so many problems like this. The beauty of age. Learn it early and your better than the next person because you don't spend your days trying or not trying to impress anyone. If they won't take you as you are, then screw them.
Perhaps we should also ask why "girly" things are considered feminine. Why not consider them manly, who's in charge of that? Pink used to be masculine, for boys, you know.
Yup. Pink was thought of as a bold colour and therefore masculine, and blue was thought of as soft and pastel-like so it was feminine. From what I gather it's clothing companies that shaped our views as opposed to something innate. That said, I'm a straight man and I like pink a lot. Lots of guys damn near fear it. It's just reflected (or emitted) light, fellas. No need to freak out.
Load More Replies...I often wear black and blue, but I were pink on other days as well. People should be able to wear what they want without being considered a " tomboy" or a "girly-girl" because on an alternate world the roles could be easily be reversed.
15 and just recently starting to accept pink and other bright colors are not necessary feminine and struggling with the fact that wearing these will NOT hurt my pride of a bipeing a very different, flexible person who is unique....
this is all fake lmao kiana didn't say any of that apart from the last comment with "busket" as the url https://twitter.com/watery_day/status/1068651470122307585
Kiana, the woman with her FULL NAME AND FACE, has requested to take this article down (or at least remove her name and face from this article). http://busket.tumblr.com/post/180666807903/bored-panda-published-an-article-about-me-using Please respect her wishes. This (in my opinion) is a breach of privacy if she didn't explicitly agree to name-dropping.
Kiana, the woman mentioned by FULL NAME in this article, has been trying to ask for this to be taken down (or at least remove the full name/picture of her face). http://busket.tumblr.com/post/180666807903/bored-panda-published-an-article-about-me-using Please respect her wishes.
I tend to dress "girly" when doing snake removals, simply because the best clothes I have for the job are quite feminine. Likewise when working on the car. At work, I'm in boring business casual. Feminism is about choices, options, and opportunities.
Can't wait for the day I can finally wear a pushup bra and low cut shirt to work. Guess I'm just trapped into the masculinity society pushes on me and I'll keep wearing a tie each day.
I heard someone once say that feminism is "trying to turn women into lesser men"
*looks at pink t-shirt I'm currently wearing* What does this mean for me? Am I more feminine than I care to admit, or doesn't it matter, because it's a f*****g colour, and associating them with genders is something that even pre-school kids don't even do anymore?
How come I, a girl who dislikes dresses and pink and 'girly' things, must have been shamed for being girly, when nothing of the sort happened?! I'm enjoying what I enjoy.
feminism means choosing who you want to be. simple. i work in STEM, i only wear pants and bandshirts, black is my happy colour, i have Long hair and love Makeup. all that because i want it that way. now.. some self proclaimed feminists get mad about it. because " i wear Makeup to please the guys" - false. i wear Makeup because i think ist awesome. or : "you coock because evil cis men expect you to do so" - false again. i cook because i love it and because my boyfriend would manage to burn the water while cooking. lol. or my favourite : "you work in STEM because you want to please the men and because womens quota" again , false. i work in stem because i love it and i enjoy working with men. i think i would go crazy in a room filled with other women. it's just my way to do stuff and i'm heckin okay with it. yet "feminisits" complain about it.
Yaaas Queeen! M and S get slated for advertising slinky knickers for Christmas. TV thinks equality is having commercials show girls playing football. So the answer is to be a feminist girls have to not like pretty things and do man things. How about giving us equal pay.
She didn't just drop the mic, she hit her upside the head before dropping it.
Its funny, society gets blamed for many things in social conceptions. I work with women all the time as a fashion and editorial photographer, and often as not you can change the word society to women. Women are more likely to hate on other women for being to thin or too fat or too ghetto or not street enough or any other myriad thing. Not that men do not engage too, but at a far far lesser rate than women do.
I'm not sure what today's feminism word means though. I can tell you after what I've watched you couldn't pay me enough to be associated with anyone that does a woman's march for feminism. To me that's delusional women that apparently never really had a good job or felt like they were in their own shoes. I'm 49 and I've never had a problem my entire life. That s**t went out with Laws decades ago. So for me today when I hear the word feminism and I like camo OR baby shabby chic pink, I'm a 15 year breast cancer survivor but I hear that word today and I imagine women bitching into the sky like a wolf howls. And they look stupid. Especially since the War against women was just a Democratic ploy for our votes. Be you cause you will never be anyone else
I agree with the recently comment as well. There are times when I would like to be more girly and I do not know if stylish is the best word (you get the point) but mostly when that happens people look at you from above, their mind being sometimes set as "if you care about all this stuff and being pretty, then you don't care about serious important stuff in your life like have a house and children" , I even have at attitude from my dad sometimes who encourages being girly but in the same time if I do it he would argue and say that I am picky or finical. so yes I do understand the comment, and I understand her post as well. As we grow up we evolve, so do our preferences.
i think feminist is an out dated term. we are all human with our interest determined by who we are. Not what we are. Male or female be who you want to be, not what others think you should be. Why does this still need explaining?
Feminism is more about social and political change, not personal interests.
Load More Replies...I am a feminist, and yeah, I blame sexism on you. But I don't blame sexism on you because you are a man, I blame you because you are making generalizations about feminists.
Load More Replies...Yes, it's all about having the freedom of choice and not being judged for it
Load More Replies...I so much appreciate the artist's response. I've been a girly girly my whole life, because it's who I AM. I love pretty things and enjoy traditionally feminine things and that's okay because that's what is right for me and makes me happy. I am sick to my back teeth of the militant so-called feminists shaming women who value traditional femininity. I am not diminished, less-than, stupid or victimized by the "patriarchy" which has been tossed around so much lately it may as well be the "illuminati" because I like sewing, needlework, cooking and yes even housework! I think there is tremendous value in femininity, traditional womanhood, homemaking that has been diminished by women shaming women. Every time I see a comment like the one criticizing the artist I feel like the militant feminists are trying to shame the rest of us with ovaries into joining their gang. You do you girly girls! You do you not girly girls! If we all do that we'll just be happy girls!
feminism is choosing what you want! CHOOSING... that was a thing woman didn't have few years ago. now they can choose. my wife chose to stay at home with our kids. she loved that. that doesn't make her less of a woman for that. sick of terrorrism feminism
It doesn't make her MORE of a woman, either. Housework or paid work, nothing makes us more or less a woman. I am a woman because I AM. Feminism has been a great blessing for me, because not only am I able to be the woman I chose to be, but also regarded as a fully-fledged member of the human race.
Load More Replies...Some days I'm girly, some days I'm not, and some days just don't deserve makeup lol
Acting like there is something wrong with traditionally “feminine” things fits the textbook definition of sexism!
I was the kid who tried mega hard to distance herself from anything coded 'girly'. I play rough, do whatever the boys do, but inside I really really want to play with dolls and pretend cooking. no one ever told me it was okay to be 'girly', only that nobody likes girls who liked girly things. only as adult I found my way to the right path after discovering and understanding feminism, and I regret all those days I would have enjoyed more if I have more girl friends. I still can't dress as a woman even as adult. the damage to the little girl inside me is permanent. now, I just hope my niece will not have the same childhood as mine. I will be the one to tell her it's okay to be girly and that there's no shame in it.
As a man, I'd just like to say... (trips and falls downstairs, rendering self unconscious.)
I am thankful for all the women before me who worked hard to give me a choice. I choose to dress more masculine, cos it is more comfortable. When I want to dress up in dresses and make-up I can. I don't like it when someone tells me I am anti-feminist or a butch cos I wear men's shirts. My choice not yours. Kudos to the artist standing up to the keyboard warrior.
Shaming femininity is anti-feminist. If women become like men, then the purpose of feminism has been defeated. Feminism is supposed to give women the freedom to be women and not be seen as the weaker gender. It's not about putting femininity aside. It's about embracing it and being proud of it and not worrying that it'll make anyone think less of you
I hate this sort of thing. Do what you want. There will always be people who will make you feel guilty about how you dress. They mean nothing. I do not care about Feminism because these so called organizations mean nothing except for their own agenda.
At 49 I'll tell you, today I no longer give a s**t what others think. Solves so many problems like this. The beauty of age. Learn it early and your better than the next person because you don't spend your days trying or not trying to impress anyone. If they won't take you as you are, then screw them.
Perhaps we should also ask why "girly" things are considered feminine. Why not consider them manly, who's in charge of that? Pink used to be masculine, for boys, you know.
Yup. Pink was thought of as a bold colour and therefore masculine, and blue was thought of as soft and pastel-like so it was feminine. From what I gather it's clothing companies that shaped our views as opposed to something innate. That said, I'm a straight man and I like pink a lot. Lots of guys damn near fear it. It's just reflected (or emitted) light, fellas. No need to freak out.
Load More Replies...I often wear black and blue, but I were pink on other days as well. People should be able to wear what they want without being considered a " tomboy" or a "girly-girl" because on an alternate world the roles could be easily be reversed.
15 and just recently starting to accept pink and other bright colors are not necessary feminine and struggling with the fact that wearing these will NOT hurt my pride of a bipeing a very different, flexible person who is unique....
this is all fake lmao kiana didn't say any of that apart from the last comment with "busket" as the url https://twitter.com/watery_day/status/1068651470122307585
Kiana, the woman with her FULL NAME AND FACE, has requested to take this article down (or at least remove her name and face from this article). http://busket.tumblr.com/post/180666807903/bored-panda-published-an-article-about-me-using Please respect her wishes. This (in my opinion) is a breach of privacy if she didn't explicitly agree to name-dropping.
Kiana, the woman mentioned by FULL NAME in this article, has been trying to ask for this to be taken down (or at least remove the full name/picture of her face). http://busket.tumblr.com/post/180666807903/bored-panda-published-an-article-about-me-using Please respect her wishes.
I tend to dress "girly" when doing snake removals, simply because the best clothes I have for the job are quite feminine. Likewise when working on the car. At work, I'm in boring business casual. Feminism is about choices, options, and opportunities.
Can't wait for the day I can finally wear a pushup bra and low cut shirt to work. Guess I'm just trapped into the masculinity society pushes on me and I'll keep wearing a tie each day.
I heard someone once say that feminism is "trying to turn women into lesser men"
*looks at pink t-shirt I'm currently wearing* What does this mean for me? Am I more feminine than I care to admit, or doesn't it matter, because it's a f*****g colour, and associating them with genders is something that even pre-school kids don't even do anymore?
How come I, a girl who dislikes dresses and pink and 'girly' things, must have been shamed for being girly, when nothing of the sort happened?! I'm enjoying what I enjoy.
feminism means choosing who you want to be. simple. i work in STEM, i only wear pants and bandshirts, black is my happy colour, i have Long hair and love Makeup. all that because i want it that way. now.. some self proclaimed feminists get mad about it. because " i wear Makeup to please the guys" - false. i wear Makeup because i think ist awesome. or : "you coock because evil cis men expect you to do so" - false again. i cook because i love it and because my boyfriend would manage to burn the water while cooking. lol. or my favourite : "you work in STEM because you want to please the men and because womens quota" again , false. i work in stem because i love it and i enjoy working with men. i think i would go crazy in a room filled with other women. it's just my way to do stuff and i'm heckin okay with it. yet "feminisits" complain about it.
Yaaas Queeen! M and S get slated for advertising slinky knickers for Christmas. TV thinks equality is having commercials show girls playing football. So the answer is to be a feminist girls have to not like pretty things and do man things. How about giving us equal pay.
She didn't just drop the mic, she hit her upside the head before dropping it.
Its funny, society gets blamed for many things in social conceptions. I work with women all the time as a fashion and editorial photographer, and often as not you can change the word society to women. Women are more likely to hate on other women for being to thin or too fat or too ghetto or not street enough or any other myriad thing. Not that men do not engage too, but at a far far lesser rate than women do.
I'm not sure what today's feminism word means though. I can tell you after what I've watched you couldn't pay me enough to be associated with anyone that does a woman's march for feminism. To me that's delusional women that apparently never really had a good job or felt like they were in their own shoes. I'm 49 and I've never had a problem my entire life. That s**t went out with Laws decades ago. So for me today when I hear the word feminism and I like camo OR baby shabby chic pink, I'm a 15 year breast cancer survivor but I hear that word today and I imagine women bitching into the sky like a wolf howls. And they look stupid. Especially since the War against women was just a Democratic ploy for our votes. Be you cause you will never be anyone else
I agree with the recently comment as well. There are times when I would like to be more girly and I do not know if stylish is the best word (you get the point) but mostly when that happens people look at you from above, their mind being sometimes set as "if you care about all this stuff and being pretty, then you don't care about serious important stuff in your life like have a house and children" , I even have at attitude from my dad sometimes who encourages being girly but in the same time if I do it he would argue and say that I am picky or finical. so yes I do understand the comment, and I understand her post as well. As we grow up we evolve, so do our preferences.
i think feminist is an out dated term. we are all human with our interest determined by who we are. Not what we are. Male or female be who you want to be, not what others think you should be. Why does this still need explaining?
Feminism is more about social and political change, not personal interests.
Load More Replies...I am a feminist, and yeah, I blame sexism on you. But I don't blame sexism on you because you are a man, I blame you because you are making generalizations about feminists.
Load More Replies...
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