I was pretty disappointed when I read Bette Midler's comments regarding Ariana Grande's image. Slut-shaming has become an extremely popular term in our vocabulary, when really it should be nonexistent. Shaming someone for presenting a sexualized version of themselves is so inappropriate in my mind, especially when sexuality is such a subjective concept in people's minds. So when Midler shamed Grande (or in this case, the "pornification of pop music... Grande was simply a means of example) for "whoring herself out," to get ahead it in her career, it bothered me to say the least. But the real quote I was waiting for was Grande's response, if she even would respond. Well, Grande took to Twitter to address the comments made by Midler, and while I appreciate the effort Grande put into her message, she didn't say all that was needed to be said.
Grande tweeted, with a photo of Midler, "Bette was always a feminist who stood for women being able to do whatever the F they wanted without judgement! Not sure where that Bette went but I want that sexy mermaid back!!! Always a fan no matter what my love.” First of all, good for Grande for not being afraid to use the term "feminist." There seems to be a polarizing opinion of the word "feminist" these days, some people love using it, and use it in anyway they can, and then there are some people — who sadly — are apprehensive to use the word. Why? I don't know, there is nothing scary about the word, in fact it should empower women more. Grande, being a 21-year-old woman, is a great role model to young adults everywhere. Using the word "feminist" in her defense will hopefully encourage young adults to do the same. The power of celebrity, am I right?
Before I get into my small issue with Grande's statement, let me first let me say that I appreciate her standing up for herself. I think it is important that Grande did respond to Midler's initial comments, since they were extremely unwarranted from the beginning. So here's my small hitch: Grande's response was passive aggressive. Grande has gone through a lot of bad press in the past few months, so she is no stranger to tweeting some damage control content that will appease her fans. In this case though, Grande didn't really take the high road in her response.
Hopefully this is the end of any type of "feud" between the two. Both parties spoke their minds on the situation, and it has opened up a forum of conversation on feminism and shaming, but let this be the end of women shaming other women for experimenting with their image and different levels of public sexuality.
