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Health & Fitness

"MissRepresentation" - Challenging Gender Roles in the Media

The documentary "MissRepresentation" challenges us to look closely at how the media portrays women, and why we are under-represented in positions of power.

I can remember when “Title 9” came into law. Well, not really. I was 8 years old at the time. But what I do recall was how excited my Mom was about my opportunities to participate in sports at the same level as “the boys.” She then enrolled me in every recreational sports opportunity our small town of Holt, Michigan had to offer. I participated in recreational softball and basketball.  Sadly, I didn’t excel in either. Her hopes of a collegiate athlete slowly disappeared before her eyes. She didn’t give up.  Shortly after we watched “The Battle of the Sexes” in September of 1973, where Billy Jean King defeated Bobby Riggs in 3 sets of tennis, she enrolled me in tennis lessons. Visions of the next Billy Jean danced in her head.  Tennis did become my sport; but never at the same level as the great King. I still play today, because Billy Jean King paved the way.

However, 40 years after “Title 9” came into law – are we truly equal on the collegiate playing field? How many of you filled out your Men’s NCAA Basketball Bracket? (I filled out 2, which are now very busted). How many of you are following the NCAA Women’s Basketball Championship? Can you name one team still playing in the Women’s Tournament? I know, I cannot.  Why? Because the Women’s Tournament does not receive the same exposure and attention as the Men’s. Women continue to fight for equal exposure, if not for equal representation.  And not just in the arena of collegiate sports.

 “MissRepresentation” a documentary by Jennifer Siebel Newsom addresses the under representation of women in positions of power. The film sites such statistics as:

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* Women make of 51% of our population and yet comprise 17% of congress.

*There have only been 34 women as Governors.

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* While Women have made great strides in leadership over the past few decades, the United States is still 90th in the world for women in national legislatures, women hold only 3% of clout positions in mainstream media and 65% of women and girls have disordered eating behaviors.

The film is being shown this Saturday, March 24th at Oakland University’s Women and Gender Studies Program’s 28th Annual Film Festival.  “MissRepresentation” uncovers the glaring reality we live with every day but fail to see; how mainstream media contributes to the under-representation of women in positions of power and influence in America. From the basketball court to the board room; women are not equally represented at the same rate and levels as men.  “The film challenges the media’s limited and often disparaging portrayals of women and girls, which make it difficult for women to achieve leadership positions and for the average woman to feel powerful herself. The film draws stories from teenage girls and prominent public figures challenging the societal messages that suggest a woman’s worth and power lie in her youth, beauty and sexuality.”

The film will be followed by a lively facilitated panel discussion led by Professor Patricia Wren of Health Services at Oakland University. The panelists include:

* Dr. Kathy Battles: an Assistant Professor of Communication at Oakland University

* Rochelle Riley: a newspaper columnist, blogger and public speaker

* State Senator Gretchen Whitmer:  Senate Minority Leader of the Michigan State Senate

* Ann Blessman: a Royal Oak High School Sophomore (and my daughter)

The film festival is free. Donations will be accepted at the door. In conjunction with the festival, there will be an “Empowerment Expo” for organizations working in the community for the empowerment of girls and the support and mentoring of women.

If you have a daughter, a wife, a sister, a mother, you should care about this film and the issue’s facing women in our country.  

Billy Jean King was the last great female tennis player my Mom was alive to see play. She would probably be amazed by the strides we have made.  And probably a little disappointed to realize that her granddaughter faces such negative images in the media on a daily basis.  And perhaps a little proud that we are trying to do something about it.

And now, I’m going to take a look at the NCAA Women’s Basketball Bracket.

For more information go to www.oakland.edu/ouws

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