The Special Girl (the new fake news)
Earlier this year I sat down with a group Year 12 girls. We chatted about our youth that was packed with power girl mantras. "Dream Big" and "You can do anything" were plastered across magazines and blasted through pop lyrics. While I was looping this song on my Year 12 study playlist, these girls were probably listening to it on the radio on the way to their Under 12s sports games:
“Looks like a girl, but she's a flame,
So bright, she can burn your eyes,
Better look the other way,
You can try but you'll never forget her name,
She's on top of the world.”
- Alicia Keys
The New Pressure
One student mentioned that the problem of being a girl today wasn’t about dreaming bigger but doing something remarkable. While “believe in yourself… you can do anything” has been chanted on the sports field, in science classrooms and dress rehearsals there has been a new pressure creeping up from behind. ‘Potential’ has been scooped up by marketers and become another shiny new 'must-have'.
POP (Pressure of Potential)
For many months I have been trying to figure out the cause of what I like to call POP (Pressure of Potential). Reading ‘Powered by a Girl’ by Lyn Mikel Brown put the answer simply. The problem? Special Girl Economy. In Lyn’s words, the powerful 90s ‘Spice Girl’ has been replaced by the ‘Special Lone Activist’:
“Girl activists whose stories make the nightly news are the ones easily reimagine into saleable commodities…elements unique to [them] that made a difference in her life were removed…any fears and anxieties and failures …. would be swept under the rug. We are left with the most widely appealing (marketable) version of her story, a default option for the masses: a young, special everygirl.”
The Special Girl
To put this into perspective Lyn uses the example of Julia Bluhm. Julia was a teenager who drove Seventeen Magazine to sign a ‘Body Peace Treaty’ and stop photoshopping images. While Julia did create a petition, getting 80 thousand signatures, there was more to the ‘Maine Teen Wins Battle Against Seventeen on Photoshop Images’ story. What was left out of the glossy blogs, interviews and news shows was the fact that Julia was part of a bigger team:
1. Julia was a member of the SPARK Movement, an activist movement that provides women with resources and support to create a gender justice movement. Julia had media training, access to networks and financial assistance.
2. Her parents had supported her from a young age encouraging her to start a Lady Bug Club at school to raise money for community causes.
3. Julia’s sixth-grade guidance counsellor helped Julia and other students to create a student body advocate group in support of gender-nonconforming classmates.
Fake News
When we look at the bigger picture the truth comes out. True success and change are far from a ‘do it yourself’ overnight story. The problem with projecting the ‘Special Everyday Girl’ who is making real change all by herself is that girls are given a false idea. They are sold the fake news that as long as you possess a “can-do” attitude you can do it all by yourself. The result? We begin to believe that all girls despite circumstance, socio-economic background, levels of privilege and family background can do it because one girl did. This is a slippery slope and sets young women up for unrealistic expectations.
Shift
So how do we make sure that ‘Girls Empowerment’ doesn’t become another sales item, seemingly as easy to get as Kylie Cosmetics or a powder dipped nail look?
1. Keep girl ditch the special.
Make activism and creating change look and feel NORMAL. It is isn’t a glossy overnight success story but something that takes multiple people, multiple stuff-ups and multiple resources to make happen.
2. DIY is not a duty.
We need to make sure girls feel like they don’t have to do it alone. Research organisations that support and collaborate with girls to bring their ideas to fruition. Get your daughter comfortable with chatting and working with adults. Ditch words like ‘unique’ and ‘special’. Rather, facilitate a discussion to examine the warped idea success is only authentic when you are utterly alone.
3. Dig deeper.
Whenever a success story pops up in media or TED talks it is important to take the time to know the bigger picture. What organisations have they been apart of? What grants did they apply for? What was their experience? Who made up their support network? How can you access a similar one? What steps in their journey can you apply to your own?
