Purplewashing

Last updated

Purplewashing is a compound word modeled on the term whitewash . The prefix "purple" is associated with feminism while the verb "wash" refers to the co-opting strategies that use minority rights to maintain or enhance structural forms of discrimination. [1]

Contents

In the context of feminism, it is used to describe a variety of political and marketing strategies aimed at promoting countries, people, companies and other organizations through an appeal to gender equality. [2] [3] This marketing tactic has also been called "Femvertising", which was most discussed in Gillette Razor's #MeToo commercial aimed towards toxic masculinity. [4]

The term is commonly used to denounce the use of feminism to justify what is perceived as xenophobic or Islamophobic policies. [5] [6] [7]

Political

There have been many well-known politicians who have said controversial statements regarding women yet continue to introduce schemes and policies that are for women’s development. [8] A very well known Chief Minister who has introduced many reforms and policies for women empowerment campaigns, such as, Mission Shakti which hopes to raise awareness and tackle crime against women has said "Comparing women to energy, he says just like unbridled energy can be destructive and can go haywire, so too if the spirit of women is not controlled then it can prove dangerous." [9] [8] Within the Spanish Army, there have been many legislative and formal changes to fight sexism. However, it has not altered the relationship between the patriarchy and militarism that remains today within the Spanish Army. The report of Centre Delas d’Estudis per la Pau analyzes the women in the Armed Force and how they are far from actually reaching the feminist milestone for equality in the areas of power. Once again demonstrating the militaristic logic and patriarchal domination. The mechanisms and behaviours are perpetuated, regardless of changes, due to the preformative patriarchy. Through certain strategies, the Army has purple washed and therefore instrumentalized women in order to create a false reality of equality and modernity in the Armed Forces. [10]

Marketing

Through marketing and political strategies that reinforce a commitment to gender equality, western countries use this as an image-cleaning. [11] This marketing tactic has also been called, "Femvertising", which was most discussed in Gillette Razor's #MeToo commercial aimed towards toxic masculinity. In advertisement, women are often portrayed through gender stereotypes, the objectification of the female body and the little representation of women. The term "femvertising" gained popularity in 2014 after the iBlog magazine SheKnows defined it as "advertising that employs pro-female talent, messages, and imagery to empower women and girls." Specifically due to its ability to question traditional gender stereotypes tied to women in advertising. Through "femvertising" marketers are able to reach female consumers as they use female empowerment to advertise. [12] [13]

One of the most well known examples today is the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty (2004), which aimed to help young women and children gain confidence. By bringing up the idea of physical traits and other stereotypical traits associated to females whether it was personality, role, or occupation, it made sure to raise awareness that everyone was beautiful. Therefore, Dove is known for being positive advocates for women when it comes to social standards as they have used feminism in their advertising. This strategy is now used by many other brands and companies to attract female consumers.

Social media is a way in which companies can further market to females. Social media platforms such as Instagram portray the usage of "femvertising". Ads on social media apps provide a means for brands to bolster products and will strategize the marketable content that the users interacts with. These advertisements are generated based on the users’ activity, increasing interest and therefore the probability of purchases and interaction. [14] Social media feed that relates to females will drive the trends within these apps. Feminism is a popular way social media apps use female topics, such as campaigns for feminism or highlighting social issues involving females. The clothing company H&M designed a campaign titled "She's A Lady" in 2016 that was used on social media platforms. Campaigns as such online display the influence "femvertising" to invest in the interest of females. [15]

See also

Related Research Articles

Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism holds the position that societies prioritize the male point of view and that women are treated unjustly in these societies. Efforts to change this include fighting against gender stereotypes and improving educational, professional, and interpersonal opportunities and outcomes for women.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fatema Mernissi</span> Moroccan feminist writer and sociologist (1940–2015)

Fatema Mernissi was a Moroccan feminist writer and sociologist.

Socialist feminism rose in the 1960s and 1970s as an offshoot of the feminist movement and New Left that focuses upon the interconnectivity of the patriarchy and capitalism. However, the ways in which women's private, domestic, and public roles in society has been conceptualized, or thought about, can be traced back to Mary Wollstonecraft's A Vindication of the Rights of Woman (1792) and William Thompson's utopian socialist work in the 1800s. Ideas about overcoming the patriarchy by coming together in female groups to talk about personal problems stem from Carol Hanisch. This was done in an essay in 1969 which later coined the term 'the personal is political.' This was also the time that second wave feminism started to surface which is really when socialist feminism kicked off. Socialist feminists argue that liberation can only be achieved by working to end both the economic and cultural sources of women's oppression.

Gender mainstreaming is the public policy concept of assessing the implications for people of different genders of a planned policy action, including legislation and programmes. Mainstreaming offers a pluralistic approach that enhances diversity among people of different genders.

Lipstick feminism is a variety of feminism that seeks to embrace traditional concepts of femininity, including the sexual power of women, alongside traditional feminist ideas. The concept emerged within the third-wave as a response to ideals created by previous movements, where women felt that they could not both be feminine and a feminist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">African feminism</span> Type of feminism

African feminism includes theories and movements which specifically address the experiences and needs of continental African women. From a western perspective, these theories and movements fall under the umbrella label of Feminism, but it is important to note that many branches of African "feminism" actually resist this categorization. African women have been engaged in gender struggle since long before the existence of the western-inspired label "African feminism," and this history is often neglected. Despite this caveat, this page will use the term feminism with regard to African theories and movements in order to fit into a relevant network of existing Wikipedia pages on global feminism. Because Africa is not a monolith, no single feminist theory or movement reflects the entire range of experiences African women have. African feminist theories are sometimes aligned, in dialogue, or in conflict with Black Feminism or African womanism. This page covers general principles of African feminism, several distinct theories, and a few examples of feminist movements and theories in various African countries.

Feminist political theory is an area of philosophy that focuses on understanding and critiquing the way political philosophy is usually construed and on articulating how political theory might be reconstructed in a way that advances feminist concerns. Feminist political theory combines aspects of both feminist theory and political theory in order to take a feminist approach to traditional questions within political philosophy.

Gender in advertising refers to the images and concepts in advertising that depict and reinforce stereotypical gender roles. Advertisements containing subliminal or direct messages about physical attractiveness and beauty have been of particular interest regarding their impact on men, women, and youth. Gendered advertisements have and continue to shape what is expected of a distinct gender, regarding physique and attitude.

Gender plays a role in mass media and is represented within media platforms. These platforms are not limited to film, radio, television, advertisement, social media, and video games. Initiatives and resources exist to promote gender equality and reinforce women's empowerment in the media industry and representations. For example, UNESCO, in cooperation with the International Federation of Journalists, elaborated the Gender-sensitive Indicators for Media contributing to gender equality and women's empowerment in all forms of media.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Feminism and media</span> Use of media by feminist movements

The socio-political movements and ideologies of feminism have found expression in various media. These media include newspaper, literature, radio, television, social media, film, and video games. They have been essential to the success of many feminist movements.

SHE Media is an American digital media company. It operates the website properties BlogHer, SheKnows, STYLECASTER, and HelloFlo. It has been a brand of Penske Media Corporation since 2018.

Feminism in Argentina is a set of movements aimed at defining, establishing, and defending equal political, economic, and social rights and equal opportunities for women in Argentina. Although some women have been considered precursors—among them Juana Manso and Juana Manuela Gorriti—feminism was introduced to the country as a result of the great European immigration wave that took place in the late 19th and early 20th century. The first feminists did not form a unified movement, but included anarchist and socialist activists, who incorporated women's issues into their revolutionary program, and prestigious freethinker women, who initially fought for access to higher education and, later, legal equality with men. The early 20th century was also full of women fighting for their freedom and rights in the workplace. Despite the efforts of the first-wave feminists, Argentine women did not acquire the right to vote until 1947, during Juan Perón's first government. His highly popular wife, Eva, championed women's suffrage and founded and ran the nation's first large-scale female political party, the Female Peronist Party. Although she refused to identify herself as a feminist, Eva Perón is valued for having redefined the role of women in politics.

Fourth-wave feminism is a feminist movement that began around 2012 and is characterized by a focus on the empowerment of women, the use of internet tools, and intersectionality. The fourth wave seeks greater gender equality by focusing on gendered norms and the marginalization of women in society.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Celia Amorós</span> Spanish philosopher

Celia Amorós Puente is a Spanish philosopher, essayist and supporter of feminist theory. She is a key figure in the so-called equality feminism and focused an important part of her research in the building of relations between Enlightenment and feminism. Her book Hacia una crítica de la razón patriarcal constitutes a new outlook on the gender perspective of philosophy, revealing the biases of androcentrism and claims a critical review on behalf of women.

The Red Elephant Foundation is a youth-led civilian peacebuilding initiative that works for gender equality and peace through storytelling, art advocacy, tech-for-good and digital media engagement. The initiative was founded by Kirthi Jayakumar in Chennai, India, on June 5, 2013. On June 4, 2017, The Red Elephant Foundation was recommended by Committee on Non-Governmental Organizations, for Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fourth-wave feminism in Spain</span>

Fourth-wave feminism in Spain is about digital participation in virtual spaces, encouraging debates and using collective force to enact change. It is about fighting patriarchal systems, denouncing violence against women, and discrimination and inequality faced by women. It is also about creating real and effective equality between women and men. It has several major themes, with the first and most important in a Spanish context being violence against women. Other themes include the abolition of prostitution, the condemnation of pornography, the support of legal abortion, the amplifying of women's voices, ensuring mothers and fathers both have access to parental leave, opposition to surrogacy, and wage and economic parity.

Femonationalism, sometimes known as feminationalism, is the association between a nationalist ideology and some feminist ideas, especially when driven by xenophobic motivations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Romani feminism</span> Feminist trend

Romani feminism or Gypsy feminism is the feminist trend that promotes gender equality, the fight against social inequalities and the defense of the integration of women in different movements in society, making these processes compatible with the preservation of culture and values of the Romani people.

Imperial feminism, also known as imperialist feminism, colonial feminism or intersectional imperialism refers to instances where, critics argue, feminist rhetoric is used to justify empire-building or imperialism. The term has come into greater usage in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, with one scholar declaring it as something which "privileges inequality through gender bending that masquerades as gendered equality... Imperial feminism privileges empire building through war." The related term intersectional imperialism has applied to the foreign policy of Western nations which are perceived as engaging in, or supporting, imperialistic policies while at the same time promoting inclusive and progressive rhetoric at home.

Commodity feminism theorizes that the mass media appropriates feminism for commercial purposes, using it as a vehicle to sell consumer products and services. By associating brands with key concepts surrounding feminism, such as the idea that women are empowered and strong, marketers and advertisers use feminism in ways that are internally contradictory and appropriative.

References

  1. Moscoso, Melania; Platero, R. Lucas (16 February 2017). "Cripwashing: the abortion debates at the crossroads of gender and disability in the Spanish media". Continuum. 31 (3): 470–481. doi:10.1080/10304312.2016.1275158. hdl: 10261/187602 . S2CID   151949284.
  2. "Del pornoburka al purplewashing, los trucos más sucios contra el feminismo". El Confidencial (in Spanish).
  3. "Gender and Military Culture" (PDF). Centre Delás.
  4. Hinman, Pip (2019-01-23). "Gillette, gender and the struggle". Green Left. Retrieved 2020-03-16.
  5. Erlanger, Steven (13 July 2010). "Parliament Moves France Closer to a Ban on Facial Veils". the New York Times.
  6. "Burkas en el ojo ajeno: el feminismo como exclusión". Pikara Magazine (in Spanish).
  7. "'Purple washing' o acordarse del feminismo cuando interesa". eldiario (in Spanish).
  8. 1 2 Aggarwal, Ishika (February 4, 2021). "What is purple washing? How does it show the double standards of the perpetrator?". One World News. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
  9. "UP govt to launch 6-month long women empowerment programme 'Mission Shakti' to raise awareness". News On AIR. October 17, 2020. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
  10. "Report 41: Acculturation & purplewashing in the Spanish Army. A study of token women". Delas. Retrieved 2021-03-16.
  11. "Purplewashing". Women and feminism. 2021-03-16. Retrieved 2021-03-16.
  12. Becker-Herby, Elisa. "The Rise of Femvertising:Authentically Reaching Female Consumers". School of Journalism and Mass Communication.
  13. Åkestam, Nina; Rosengren, Sara; Dahlen, Micael (2017). "Advertising "like a girl": Toward a better understanding of "femvertising" and its effects". Psychology & Marketing. 34 (8): 795–806. doi:10.1002/mar.21023. ISSN   1520-6793.
  14. Descouens, Margot, and Valentine Gerbault. “Generation Y’s Attitude towards Femvertising in Cosmetics: Women Empowerment or Purplewashing?” UMEÅ University , 2021.https://umu.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:1572017/FULLTEXT01.pdf
  15. Davis, Darrell (February 13, 2020). "Power of Femvertising a New Weapon for Social Media Marketing".