Body Acceptance, The Gym, And Naked People

Before I started going to Healthworks in Boston, I'd never been to a gym with a naked-place culture.  From my first day at Healthworks though, I noticed that women of all shapes changed out in the open, wandered to the showers nude, and used the hot tub, dry sauna, and steam room naked.  It was the first time in real life I'd seen that much nudity, and even though I wasn't looking, I still managed to realize that there was a LOT of variability in what women were shaped like, and that what someone looks like naked has very little to do with what they look like clothed-- clothes can enhance or detract from someone's appearance, altering it in subtle and major ways, and while I knew that, it was never so obvious as when you see someone strip down in front of you outside of a sexual context.  The naked-place aspect of the locker room isn't something I'd seen a lot of before or since-- maybe it's that people in Boston care less about nudity than those in Ohio or Oklahoma, or maybe it had something to do with the spirit of Healthworks itself.

Healthworks was a lot more body positive in general than many gyms are.  Instead of targeting fat busting or weight loss, their class descriptions talked about strength, endurance, and cardiovascular health.  Their fitness trainers ranged from the typical hot young stereotype of what a female fitness instructor looks like to buff older women who looked like they'd do well in a fight.  And they put in the idea that that you go to the gym for health, but also for fun.

A lot of women--and some men, but more women-- I know have issues with body acceptance.  The ideas behind why people have body image issues are discussed ALL OVER the place, but I think one small thing that could go a long way towards getting people comfortable and happy in their own bodies is to just see the range of shapes others come in, and see that in a neutral, non-sexual context where the body is just there, valueless.  Even if a gym like Healthworks, you can't get completely away from value aspects, since there ARE issues of strength and weakness and muscle, but hell, it's a step in the right direction at least.  Plus, going to the gym generally involves some form of exercise, which tends to get people more in touch with their body and all the awesome things it can do-- whether its yoga, cardio, or lifting, it's hard to hate a body that produces awesome endorphins.

Even though I don't currently go to the gym on a regular basis, it inadvertently cemented a lot of ideas about body acceptance in my head.

Planned Parenthood

Even though I'm a huge fan of Planned Parenthood, and would love to work for them or a similar organization some day, I had never actually been inside one till yesterday. One of my friends was getting a IUD, which most other doctors did not want to give her since she's never been pregnant-- she knows she does not want children in the next five years, though. I came along with her so she wouldn't have to go alone... in part because it's a new experience, but also largely in case there was anyone outside yelling that we'd go to hell for aborting the babies we aren't pregnant with. There's strength in numbers, and if holding her hand made it easier to go into the clinic, and then easier to walk out after a painful procedure, well, I'm always more than willing to help anyone in that situation.

The local Planned Parenthood looks like a fortress. It always makes me sad that it does, because, well, it's a place where people go to get their genital jabbed at, and get birth control, to get abortions, or to get prenatal care for wanted pregnancies. It offers so many services that are used when someone is at a vulnerable point, and I wish it could look more welcoming... and the fact that it isn't safe to look welcoming makes me incredibly sad. I'll never understand people who use violence, and I'll never understand protesters, especially considering that some of them get abortions after protesting, then go back to protesting.

We were in luck, though-- rain tends to decrease protesters, and it was so grey and gross that there weren't any there at all!

The inside of the Planned Parenthood is so different from the imposing outside! The waiting room is all warm and bright, with awesome colors on the walls and comfy couches. The employees were kind and efficient. Pop music was playing in the background, and a large TV screen was playing on the wall, cycling facts about sexual health and the services that Planned Parenthood offers. Interestingly, the waiting room was not all women. There were 4-5 guys there over the span of time I was there, which is awesome, really.

In contrast to most doctor's offices I've been to, my friend got called into her appointment right on time. She said it went very well-- they were all very respectful of her choice to get an IUD at age 24, and didn't try to talk down to her by telling her that she'd change her mind about kids, or that she was too young to be making this decision-- which is the reason she had to come to Planned Parenthood in the first place, she couldn't find anyone else willing to give an IUD to a woman without children. But she's a young single woman who is going to start her career as an attorney in a few months-- the chances of her wanting a child anytime soon are slim as slim. So now, after a quick and painful, but not too painful, procedure, she's protected against pregnancy for the next 12 years! And the best part? an IUD only cost her around 20 bucks (which is important, because, well, like me, she doesn't have a job and is interested in the ones that are more service oriented.)

I'm very glad that Planned Parenthood exists. It, and places like it, are doing so much to advance sexual knowledge and prevent unwanted pregnancies, and to help people at difficult times.

Completely irrelevant weekend chatterboxing

1. R is for Redbones. JD and I decided to walk to Redbones last night in celebration of the gorgeous weather. It really was lovely, but the next time I go on a four mile walk-- I should probably wear comfortable shoes. I have a lovely new set of blisters, though! This was JD's first trip to Redbones, and my third. I love it. I'm a big fan of meat, and every time i go to a barbecue place I end up getting pulled pork. The pulled pork at Redbones is some of the moistest, most flavorful i've had in Boston. The only downside is that I think it took us less time to walk there-- an hour-- than it did to take the T home.

2. JD downloaded the pilot for Caprica. I'm thrilled to see what they're doing with it-- the prequel to BSG. BSG had a lot of interesting charecter interactions and strong female charecters, plus excellent writing, so I'm hoping Caprica lives up to its example.

3. The majority of today and tomorrow will be spent buried in my Tax and Trusts&Estates hornbooks. Joy. See you on Monday with a new post!

I hate the T

I realize I just posted, I live on the green line.

So check this out: http://www.howfuckedisthet.com/green/

Or, if you live on another line, http://www.howfuckedisthet.com/ will allow you to examine any of them, based on their real time data!

I hate the T.  I am consistently half an hour early or half an hour late to nearly everything, even when I leave at the same time.

Stanton v. Metro Corp.

DEAR SELIGSGROVE, PA:  Maybe try a google scholar search to get to something other than this page?

Is it defamatory to imply that a teenage girl engages in promiscuous behavior? What if it's just using her picture to illustrate an article on teen promiscuity that appears on a metropolitan area magazine?

We discussed a case in Media Law today, where a teen girl was pictured as the illustration to an article on the increase in all the crazy sex ads kids are getting up to these days. There was a disclaimer, yes, but it said she was part of some other project that was also on teen sexuality, and it was small enough that some people in our class didn't notice it when they first looked over the article.

So-- it might-- or might not-- imply that this girl gets around. Her name isn't mentioned, but it's a very clear picture, and anyone who knew her would have recognized it. One of the guys, who used to work for one of my least favorite news organizations, was of the opinion that it would be ridiculous to call it defamation, and that media needs to be able to use stock images in their posts. Ok, fine, stock images, whatever. I can see stock images being ok most of the time, but in this setting, even if it's legally ok (which it was, in this case, because of the disclaimer) I think it isn't ethical.

Yes, there are some legal things I think are actually unethical!

The argument that readers will read the entire article and not decide the girl is involved in the behavior seems illogical to me. Even knowing that a lot of media sources use stock photography, I still think I would assume that a picture of a teen in an article about a subgroup of teens might be one of them. Particularly a shot where the girl pictured is clearly the average looking, non-model type. In something like Cosmo, which regularly runs sex articles alongside posed images, you know the advice or stories are general enough to not include the model. In something that's offering real life anecdotes from real teens, paired with an unposed image of teens? I think that leaping to the conclusion that the pictured teens are involved is not that far of a jump.

So. Assuming all that-- what's wrong with sending the message that a girl is promiscuous? After all, I'm pretty pro-slut, as long as people handle everything safely, and keep a realistic view on the emotions involved.

But not everyone is like that. And as much as some of us might like for sexual behavior to be de-stigmatized, it is still stigmatized, especially when we're talking about teens. Regardless of their actual sexual behavior, teens who are thought to be promiscuous are often judged. Adults may disrespect them, being less likely to offer them a job or scholarship, and honor societies may decide the students don't meet some moral honor code. Even if the other teens are promiscuous, this girl could have become a sort of poster child for sleeping around-- and despite the slant of the article her image was featured in, the other students may have labelled her as a slut, dirty, and not worth treating as an equal. Finally, sexuality is a personal thing-- and the amount people are willing to share can vary wildly. Just like people should have the choice to be open about their lives-- and not shamed for it-- they should have the choice to keep their sex life private-- and not be shamed for it.

It is unethical in my worldview because this girl should be in control of her sexuality and how she chooses to display it. That choice was taken from her by the actions of the magazine in a totally legal manner. And removing that choice is a violation of personal identity.