Letters to the Editor
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Amen
Thank God for strippers.
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I second that...
... now let's bring on the nearly-naked men. Mmmm...
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My panties are also in a ruffle
As someone who has worked in a male-dominated field (in my case IT) where entertainment provided at professional gatherings would sometimes seem to assume that all of us were male, I can understand why some of the female scientists were upset at sexualised entertainment, even if it was relatively tame. Having your minority status thrust in your face, clad in vintage underwear covered in balloons, is not necessarily entertaining.
And if those women were offended, good on them for walking out rather than sitting there with fixed grins showing what good sports they could be.
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Ridiculous
This is probably the stupidest reading of a news item ever posted in Broadsheet. Shouldn't we be upset that women's objectification is used for entertainment purposes in a professional setting? It's not a question of how many clothes they took off, or the cleverness of the metaphor/analogy, but a question of why these women were paid to take off their clothing in the first place. The fact that the idea of this event was even broached, much less implemented by the conference organizers, shows how far we have to go as women to obtain equality in the workplace.
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Are you joking?
Broadsheet pals, if you're going to get all spun out about Abercrombie t-shirts or padded bras for 6-year-olds (for example--and I don't disagree with you), I think it's pretty poor taste to make fun of scientists who walk out of a strip show in the middle of a global warming conference. Hey, I love a good burlesque show as much as the next girl, but I don't think I'd find it appropriate during working hours if I were talking about giant hurricanes and melting ice floes. Ending the story with "Don't get your panties in a ruffle" grabs you the cheap joke, but really, it's disrepectful and well, just not that witty.
I re-read this a few times, trying to figure out if you were *really* making fun of the idiots who thought this would be a good idea, but, um, I don't think you are. I'm disappointed.
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Stripping...how about the Dancing Boys?
Ok, Adrienne...it was only a bit of female flesh and a bit of light-hearted fun, you say? It would have been fine if there had been a few "dancing boys" for the female attendees to enjoy also. Otherwise, I say, "Right On!" to those who said, "Shut it down!" I had a boyfriend who regaled me with stories about conferences in the days before "mean feminists ruined things." Nights out at strip clubs, "models" at dinners, heck, even strippers at the events themselves! Well, suffice to say, the "boy" did not remain a boyfriend long and I can see why, even a modicum of unbalanced sexist "fun" can get on the nerves of mature people.
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Whoa . . . .
Gotta agree with the pissed-off folks on this one. Personally, I've never understood quite why I should find stripping "humourous" or "ironic" or anything like that; I accept, however, that, as is the case with American football or synchronised swimming, some people may enjoy it in some contexts, even if I don't. In anything even vaguely like a work setting, however? Do be consistent, Broadsheet; as another letter-writer said, if you're going to let Abercrombie and Fitch get up your nose, don't act like this is okay.
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And I thought we were prudes
"The most that any of the girls get down to is vintage lingerie, which is corsetry and stockings," Gale told Australian Broadcasting Corp. radio on Friday. "It's not like we were doing full nudity and simulating sexual acts or anything like that."
"There was not even a midriff on display," she said.
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This sounds about as risque as a episode of "Deadwood" minus the profanity.
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I'm a burlesque dancer
AND a feminist.
AND a female professional in a 9-5 male dominated field.
I see nothing wrong with work being a little sexy and a little sexy being someone's work.
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This has to be a tongue-in-cheek post...
... and I hope that Adrienne reposts and makes that clear.
I tipped Broadsheet off to this incident. I study at the Australian National University and I was shocked by this story. The link Adrienne posted is a fluff piece from a Canadian newspaper. I wish she'd put up a more serious report from one of the Aussie papers, such as the one I sent:
http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/stripper-storm-at-climate-meeting/2006/09/07/1157222252849.html
As a conference attendee told The Age newspaper, "This is ... supposed to be a gathering of scientists at a government-sponsored event in an already male-dominated industry where it is hard enough for a woman to make inroads".
Adrienne, this story is a serious issue for feminists here in Australia. Please clarify your position on this issue. If you were serious when you said that we Australians shouldn't 'get [our] panties in a ruffle' I'd like to see an expanded explanation of your position on this issue.
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My $.02
I'm going to chime in here as a colleague. I'm not a burlesque dancer, but I am a stripper, and even though I think the "getting hot in here" idea is cute, I do think it was ultimately inappropriate for the conference. The idea should have been giggled over when it was first brought up in the meeting, perhaps contemplated in seriousness for a second or two, and finally been shot down.
It's not only because some female attendees might have been offended - male attendees could have also been made uncomfortable. My own personal panties are far from being ruffled by the concept, but this was just a poorly thought-out stunt.
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Will the real offensive people please stand up?
I always find it amazing that these truly offensive people, who seem to always find time to legislate morality while they are busy destroying people's lives with their know-nothing policies, are always the first ones to be offended by some little inconsequential trifle.
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a disservice to the burlesque dancers...
I'm a burlesque dancer, and I can't see why in hell any of those dancers would agree to perform at a Global Warming conference in the first place. In saloon-era costuming, no less. It's absolutely nonsensical. Burlesque performers are batty, brilliant (yes, brilliant: if you doubt me, check out the current burlesque revival) queens that deserve their own artistic space and certainly don't deserve sideline status. Not only was this a surprisingly bad idea, it's an insult to the dancers themselves.