Look What You Made Me Do: Defending Taylor Swift

So I’ve noticed a trend on social media as of late that is really starting to bother me. Less because of who it involves and more because it’s really difficult for me to understand that people don’t see it for the misogyny that it really is. I’m talking about all of the attacks on Taylor Swift. 

Honestly, this has been something that has been going on in the media for years. T-Swift did a whole song based on the media’s perception of her and her personal life. That’s really what “Blank Space” is about after all. Swift has an image of a serial dater, but even that is steeped in misogyny. The media and the public at large criticize Taylor for dating different guys at a rate that isn’t honestly out of the norm for women of her age. However, for some reason, we attach this idea to Swift that this makes her some kind of boy crazy siren. It’s ridiculous. When I was in my early 20s, I probably dated as many guys as Taylor has. 

Then there’s the double standard that accompanies her songwriting. Swift is consistently criticized for writing songs about her relationships. It’s treated as though somehow she should be ashamed of relationships ending. The truth is that the best songwriting comes from a place of honesty. Taylor is just expressing her own regrets and feelings surrounding her relationships. We praised such honest and vulnerable songwriting when it comes from the male voice. Ed Sheeran has made just as much of a career discussing his past breakups and relationships. We need only look to his hit song, “Don’t” for an example of this. But somehow, Taylor’s songs like “Dear John” and “We Are Never Getting Back Together” are exploitative and used to paint this picture in the media of the “crazy ex-girlfriend.”

However, for a long time, despite the media’s characterization of Swift, she was still considered by many in the general public as an “American sweetheart,” the good girl who can do no wrong. In the last two years, there has been an increasing backlash against Swift. Some of her critics call her out for a carefully cultivated public image, even going so far as going above and beyond for fans, that they deem as unauthentic and fabricated. Her feuds with Katy Perry and Kanye West have mostly been nurtured and cultivated by a media who would rather tear successful women down than build them up.

Here is the truth about American culture, as much as we enjoy putting our celebrities on a pedestal, we love it even more to tear them down off of the pedestal where we put them. When it comes to the way we treat young female celebrities the whole thing reeks of misogyny, internalized and otherwise. I just want to look at a couple of the issues that people seem to have with Taylor Swift.

Her battle with Apple Music over how they pay artists for streaming their music was the hot topic of 2015. It was the policy of Apple Music to not pay royalty fees to artists for music streamed during a user’s free trial period of three months. In response to the policy, Swift decided to pull her new album 1989 from the streaming service. The truth is that Taylor was right. If a company is using her music, she should receive the proper compensation, and this was a battle that Swift was able to fight because she already had a certain level of success. But the result of Apple reversing their policy didn’t only benefit Swift; it benefited all artists. I think back to a similar battle that Metallica fought against Napster in the early 2000s. Sure some people wanted to vilify Metallica, but the backlash didn’t seem to be at the same level of vitriol as the charges leveled against Swift for her stand.

Swift is also criticized for her silence on certain social justice issues. Now, Taylor is coming from the country music genre, a place that saw the band, The Dixie Chicks, lose much of their fan base for speaking out against the war in Iraq and specifically against then President George W Bush. It’s honestly a damned-if-you-do-damned-if-you-don’t situation. If Taylor uses her voice to address the social issues that some have decided that she should address, then she is likely to face the same level of backlash because she should “just shut up and sing” rather than express her opinion, a directive given to female singers far more frequently than their male counterparts. If she doesn’t speak out, she is accused of being uncaring about these issues, particularly when it comes to women’s issues. 

However, her actions often speak louder than words. Instead of just talking about the injustice in the trial around the accusations of sexual assault by the singer, Kesha, and her fight to be released from her Sony contract to make music without her abuser, Dr. Luke, Swift donated $250,000 dollars to the cause. Swift also famously sued a radio DJ who groped her for a single dollar. She made it clear that this suit wasn’t about money but about doing what’s right and standing up for herself as women.

Yes, it’s true that as a white, successful entertainer Taylor Swift has a certain level of privilege, but it is unfair to put all of these expectations for her to represent all women in their fight for equality. As a feminist, she should have the choice to use her voice and platform when and how she sees fit. To somehow say that she is less of a feminist because she doesn’t go headlong into the social justice battles that we have decided she needs to fight on our behalf is a micro-aggression that demands she act as a spokesperson for all women. This is an unfair expectation. We don’t expect successful male African American artists to act as the spokesperson for all issues involving people of color. I don’t remember a targeted outrage and attack on Kanye West when he met with Trump during the transition to the White House. 

There are somehow different standards for women in entertainment. It’s unfair, and it’s misogyny. So can we please stop tearing each other down all of the time? Can we stop this culture of calling out others for what they didn’t do that we’ve decided is their responsibility?

Can we please just leave Taylor Swift alone and focus on the real problems of misogyny in this country instead of contributing to the toxic environment?

Worst Kept Secret in Hollywood: Powerful Men Behaving Badly

This week Hollywood has been racked with a scandal of epic proportions in the allegations of sexual harassment and assault perpetrated by Hollywood powerhouse Harvey Weinstein. Weinstein has been the name in industry when it comes to the independent film industry. However, over the last thirty years, he has used his power and influence to take advantage of countless women in the industry.

The thing is that as much as men in Hollywood and even the general public are “shocked” by these revelations, the truth is that this is an old story. Weinstein’s actions aren’t a new phenomenon in the industry. This is old hat. Tales of the “casting couch” go back decades. It’s been a trope in cinema for years. Of course, most often, we are looking at a “by-gone” era that no longer exists, but the truth is that this type of behavior never went away. We just hid our heads in the sand and deny the truth.

However, as the days go by more and more women are coming forward. This is great that they no longer have to feel the shame or worry that often pushes women into silence about their abuse and assault. As I heard the news and read more and more accounts, I grew more disgusted. The problem is that it wasn’t the behavior that disgusted me the most. Of course, I was disgusted that all of this happened to these beautiful talented women from Rose McGowan, Ashley Judd, and Gwyneth Paltrow, but I was more disgusted by the fact that I wasn’t surprised that this still happened.

Here is a link to an article with all of the women who have made allegations so far: 

Harvey Weinstein: All of the Women who have Made Allegations against Him so Far

We live in a world where a man can brag about sexually assaulting women in a recorded conversation and still be elected President. His talk was dismissed as “locker room” talk. I wrote a blog earlier this year about the Women’s March and why feminism still matters. This is exactly why it still matters. We cannot ignore that “leaders” of our country profess to be disgusted by this type of behavior in one breath but still hold up a system which allows it to happen. In the face of the infamous Hollywood Insider video, Billy Bush lost his job for his participation in the conversation, but the GOP did not withdraw Trump from their party’s nomination. So many Republicans condemned what he said but did nothing when it came to withdrawing their support for Trump as the representative leader of their party. 

One thing that has been nice to see in the wake of these allegations are the men who are standing up and recalling their own victimization by the powerful in Hollywood. The truth is that women are not the only victims of this kind of behavior. Young men experience it as well. It is sheds an important light on the issue of sexual abuse and harassment when men tell their own stories. Not only because it is important to recognize that they can be victims, but it also breaks some of the stigma that often surrounds this topic. 

Women who come forward years after an incident are often criticized for waiting so long to tell their stories. Pundits will question the veracity of their claims because they waited. However, men like Terry Crews and James Van Der Beek are recounting events that happened to them years ago. If these strong and capable men waited so long to tell their stories can we really blame women who have much less opportunity for recourse. Accusations like this levied against directors and producers can damage a career. The possibility of being black-balled for roles is a very real prospect that many of these women face.

The truth is that the actions of Weinstein were some of the worst kept secrets in Hollywood. People would warn friends about possibility of being harassed or assaulted by Weinstein. They would recount their stories, and actresses like Angelina Jolie and Kate Beckinsale often refused to work with Weinstein. Weinstein would even joke about how Beckinsale "lived to tell him 'no'" as if the idea that a woman would refuse to work with him because of his behavior was a joke. After all, Weinstein was a very powerful man who headed a major film studio and distributor. Seth MacFarlane took a very personal and public jab at Weinstein when announcing the nominations for the 2013 Academy Awards. Everyone knew, and no one really did anything. Most out of fear of reprisal in the case of the victims, but there were some complicit in these actions. That’s perhaps what disgusts me the most. 

Weinstein isn't the first powerful man to be accused in this way, and he certainly won't be the last until we fix the fundamental problem. This is where feminism not only helps women but men as well.