I've got work later on, and tonight my bar is running a 'beach party'. This means that I'm expected to turn up in some sort of beach wear, preferably something bikini-esque and titilating.
I'm not entirely sure how I feel about this. Granted, it's not being run as a deliberate attempt at prostituting the (exclusively female) bar staff and my boss sees it as a fun thing for us to do. A night out, but at work if you will. But there still feels something decidedly...exploitative about the whole thing, and I'm not sure how willing I am to participate.
I don't know whether the problem could be that I have no choice but to participate. Anyone not in 'the spirit of things' will be either chaistised or sent home. I'm all for fancy dress, but not when the choice is to get my baps out or dress like some enuch surfer.
The thing is, I'm not sure exactly why I have an objection to all this. It's been organised by my (lovely) female boss, and it's not being mooted as a formal way to exploit staff - just as a bit of fun. The fact that my choice is taken away from me can't really be a deciding factor in my reluctance - we have to dress up on halloween, NYE and christmas eve and that's always brilliant.
One thing making me uncomfortable is my co-workers undisguised glee at the prospect of serving customers dressed in bikinis. For my whole life I've been brought up in a strongly feminist household, and it makes me upset to see very intelligent young women so happy to flash the flesh, safe in the knowledge that a few hundred men will be taking more than one mental picture home with them.
During work (mostly, it must be said, due to the said 'assests') I try to cover up as much as possible, and it really angers me whenever I get eloquent comments like "you've got massive tits" growled at me as I try to do my job.
Thinking about it, what's really making me angry is that I should be able to serve in a bikini. I should be able to serve in little more than nipple tassells and a thong, should the mood ever take me. I should be able to wear what I like without having to endure crass comments on my appearance. In what other profession would it be acceptable for a customer to enquire about my bra size and marital status? But I can't. I can't wear something tonight without being incredibly self concious in the knowledge that I'm being scrutinised continuously but drunken louts.
And, no, I'm not just having a moan at a few comments. It's frequent and comes from men of all shapes and sizes. I've even (on occasion) has women commenting on my appearance.
And it's not bloody fair.
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Word. Feminism and the lack thereof has been a personal bugbear recently. Society seems to think that the battle is one, and female sexuality is free to be commodified again, and we can all have a laugh because this time the girls are in on it. Witness Playboy stationery. I'd tell you not to stand for it - but as you say, it might lead to you losing your job.
ReplyDeleteSexism is back, and it's EVERYWHERE.
Ahem. "Battle is won" is what I meant there. Natch.
ReplyDeleteAgreed. It really, really annoys me when women exploit themselves. Especially in the name of so-called 'post-feminism'. Which is an impossible oxymoronic term, given that there's still glass ceilings, disgusting pay gaps and the like still prevelent in our apparently equal society.
ReplyDeleteRant, much?