| Tuesday, June 23, 2009 |
| Sexualisation for the Sake of it |
Aloha, anti-PETA expositors! This scorching summer day brings you a fabulous takedown of PETA's latest buffoonery, courtesy of Alderson Warm-Fork, author of Directionless Bones. It regards the ridiculous stunt described here, which sadly, is PETA's first campaign in South America. I mean, really, PETA? You couldn't start with an exposé of factory farms or otherwise describe where the meat on people's plates comes from? That says it all with regard to what PETA thinks of South Americans' values and intelligence, I think -- at least in the States and Europe they've done some actual uncovering of factory farm conditions.
Anyhow, without further ado, allow me to hand it over to Alderson:
A recurrent theme in animal-rights rhetoric is an attempt to connect with other
struggles against oppression, to present the abuse of animals as similar to the
abuse of different sorts of humans.
Now, for many people, the leftist revolutionaries of Latin America, from Fidel
Castro to Evo Morales to Salvador Allende, are a key example of that struggle
against oppression. So if you were an animal rights group and you found that the
granddaughter of Ernesto ‘Che’ Guevara was a vegetarian and was willing to work
with you, it would seem that you have a campaign ready made.
You might, for example, have her in an outfit and posture that echoes famous
poses that Che Guevara often held. You could use a slogan like “Join the
vegetarian revolution”. It’s a brilliant plan. It’s got a striking image with a
lot of resonance, and it’s also got a point that can be backed up (the
connections between different forms of oppression, the need for revolutionary
change in human-animal relations, the willingness to endorse militant tactics,
etc.)
It’s controversial, sure – Guevara is a controversial figure, hated by some and
loved by others. But let’s suppose you have no problem taking controversial
stances. And perhaps your main plan is to run the campaign in Latin America,
where Guevara’s very popular.
But now, imagine that you’re also PETA. Now a problem emerges. There’s a woman
in your poster, but there’s nothing sexual about it. Nobody’s going to get a
boner out of simply seeing someone in an inspiring pose of resolute defiance.
What can you do?
I guess you’ll just have to make her semi-naked. Get her tits out, yeah? Cover
them with an ammo belt of carrots, sure, but make sure that she’s clearly in a
state of undress. After all, she’d rather go naked than wear fur, amiright?
Never mind that there’s absolutely no reason for a sexualised image in a poster
themed around Che Guevara and revolution. He is hardly famous for having posed
nude while storming Havana.
And never mind that it introduces a completely conflicting message that is
liable to undermine the actual point – that will encourage viewers to look and
think ‘I’d like to do her’ rather than ‘I’d like to aid her in doing something
revolutionary’.
Never mind that you’re sending the message that women must always be sexual,
even when the subject at issue – political relatives – has nothing to do with
sex at all. Never mind that you’re encouraging a culture where every bit of the
media features soft-core porn and women are pervasively judged in sexual terms.
That’s all beside the point. This campaign might get more attention now, and
that’s all that matters. Nice one PETA. |
posted by The Venerable Vegan Empress @ 6:00 AM   |
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| 1 Comments: |
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hiya
ive been reading your posts for a few months now, and i really agree with your stand on all of the "un-natural" aspects of PETA's gig. My city has recently passed a ban on pitbulls- and since i own a mutt that resembles many breeds that are classified as a pitbull- i did some research and,of course, came across Ingrid Newkirk.
Shes quite evil. And, Im not sure your personal views on anything political or worldly for that matter- but my gut feeling is that there is a whole lotta bullshit happening based on these assholes ideas of power -money.
Sooo- i wanted to see what your thoughts may be on this: PETA may be some sort of subdivision of the FDA,or the "powers above"- since it is run by persons far more likely to invest in a slaughterhouse over an animal sanctuary-
and with their fucked-up "advertising"- appeal directly to the consumers who can never swing from their diet of meat and potatoes-
completely offend any person with a vagina(a big portion of vegans),
and have some sort of attraction to the power of lying about, seizing,killing, and disrespectfully disposing of these animals. (making people believe that they know best and what they are doing is the best course of action)
to me, this seems like the same setup as the pharmeceutical, oil, entertainment, and of course- food industry.
you happen to know the specs on how much newkirk gets paid? any ties to any government? anyone sponsoring Peta? it seems like peta's doing an awful good job at "mocking" factory farming with its derogatory views on humans- while murdering our pets- only making a bolder statement that: PETA is nothing uninformed individuals would want anything to do with because they kill our "friends" and use extremely offensive tactics to get people to stop eating chicken fingers... yeah, even the dumbest marketing director knows that people will hate PETA and the idea of veganism if all we vegans do is run around like prostitutes killing puppies and trying to corrupt their fancy steak dinners- fresh from the supermarket, dyed, saranwrapped and ready to enjoy.
there's gotta be a motivator to this insanity- and it ain't kittens.
anyways, thanks for the thought provoking posts and activist inspiring facts...
screw Peta and whatever is behind this madness.
im sorry if this has been mentioned or shot down in a previous post of yours...life's busy.
but thanks again
Allyson
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hiya
ive been reading your posts for a few months now, and i really agree with your stand on all of the "un-natural" aspects of PETA's gig. My city has recently passed a ban on pitbulls- and since i own a mutt that resembles many breeds that are classified as a pitbull- i did some research and,of course, came across Ingrid Newkirk.
Shes quite evil. And, Im not sure your personal views on anything political or worldly for that matter- but my gut feeling is that there is a whole lotta bullshit happening based on these assholes ideas of power -money.
Sooo- i wanted to see what your thoughts may be on this: PETA may be some sort of subdivision of the FDA,or the "powers above"- since it is run by persons far more likely to invest in a slaughterhouse over an animal sanctuary-
and with their fucked-up "advertising"- appeal directly to the consumers who can never swing from their diet of meat and potatoes-
completely offend any person with a vagina(a big portion of vegans),
and have some sort of attraction to the power of lying about, seizing,killing, and disrespectfully disposing of these animals. (making people believe that they know best and what they are doing is the best course of action)
to me, this seems like the same setup as the pharmeceutical, oil, entertainment, and of course- food industry.
you happen to know the specs on how much newkirk gets paid? any ties to any government? anyone sponsoring Peta? it seems like peta's doing an awful good job at "mocking" factory farming with its derogatory views on humans- while murdering our pets- only making a bolder statement that: PETA is nothing uninformed individuals would want anything to do with because they kill our "friends" and use extremely offensive tactics to get people to stop eating chicken fingers... yeah, even the dumbest marketing director knows that people will hate PETA and the idea of veganism if all we vegans do is run around like prostitutes killing puppies and trying to corrupt their fancy steak dinners- fresh from the supermarket, dyed, saranwrapped and ready to enjoy.
there's gotta be a motivator to this insanity- and it ain't kittens.
anyways, thanks for the thought provoking posts and activist inspiring facts...
screw Peta and whatever is behind this madness.
im sorry if this has been mentioned or shot down in a previous post of yours...life's busy.
but thanks again
Allyson