London's "Muff March" protests the pornification of private parts
By Jeff MillsDecember 13th, 2011, 1:45 pmComments (29)
Britain's first-ever "Muff March" went down in London over the weekend, as women paraded down Harley Street raising objections over the glut of gynecological cosmetic surgeries ostensibly influenced by porn. The event was organized by UK Feminista and feminist performance artists The Muffia, who've gained some attention by wearing pubic wigs in public the last couple years.
Perhaps emboldened by the recent "SlutWalk" phenomenon, the march's mission was to point a finger at the porn industry for its responsibility in causing increasing numbers of women to seek out labiaplasties and other procedures that fall under the "designer vagina" umbrella. And in terms of grooming, the popularity of "The Barbie," or, "The Smooth," is seen as a byproduct of the adult industry as well.
The knock on the march, by at least a few critics, is that, while the principles behind it are noble, it's ultimately self-defeating, itself reducing women to being defined by their vaginas. This was sex researcher and educator Dr. Petra Boynton's take on it:
"The focus of the Muff March on porn is, I think, limiting. While porn has undoubtedly had an impact on how we view our bodies, I don't think it is accurate to simply see it as the main factor driving women to have cosmetic genital surgery or remove their pubic hair. In fact, I'd say the mainstream media has a far greater role to play here but is not held accountable."
I think The Guardian's Naomi McAuliffe makes a good point when she writes:
"It's remarkable that all women have to do to make a political statement, it seems, is not shave. So much is done to make us feel ashamed about our fulsome beavers that a full-on muff is seen as 'courageous,' 'brave,' or even 'Don King in a leglock.'"
So what are your thoughts on this? Is the "Muff March" misguided in its aims?
Commentarium (29 Comments)
First World Problems.
+1
actually, misogyny is the whole world's problem. it's not singularly about the fact that "we should not have to shave" but about the fact that a patriarchal institution, i.e., porn, has dictated yet another edict on women's bodies. and if it were a mere option to shave, that would be fine, but this particular fashion has taken a very firm hold; it's not an option to groom, it's a demand! suddenly you're gross if your crotch doesn't look a porn image. of course muffs are political!
Wait, is anyone forcing you to shave anything? It IS a mere option you dolt.
No one says you should be ashamed of your muff. If you meet a guy who says he won't sex you unless you shave your muff- tell him to fuck off and find a guy who does not mind.
firstworldproblem is damn right.
that England's women don't have any other problems to address.
How come they weren't naked? What kind of protest is that?!
If New Zealanders can manage a Boobs-on-Bikes, why couldn't the Pommies manage a Muffs-on-Motorcycles?
Definitely First World Problems or Vexing Bourgeois Dilemmas. Anyhow I like to keep mine groomed. It's also-excuse me for TMI-sooooo much tidier during that time of the month. I like my men tidy too. It's not like we let our head hair or armpits grow out forever either. Muffs don't need politicizing.
yep.
Britain should be protesting the fact that so many of their general populas is on the dole, because the government allows such abuse of their system. Their younger generation has no other aspirations other than to have children so they can get more government support, and not have to work at all. And here they protest porn??? Get your priorities straight!
I assume you're not from Britain. Please, never come here.
Best wishes,
Britain
I thought this would be about the reclamation of the word muff to mean that charming fur thing women used to wear in the winter. Those things are adorable and impossible to talk about without sounding ridiculous.
one protests one thing, doesn't mean they are ignoring the rest. I hate this whole "why are you protesting [insert thing here] when there is so much more important stuff going on in the world" crap, it's a false argument. Just because these ladies have chosen to protest the effect of porn (which I love) on how women choose to view their own bodies (which I hate, please just stay all natural, thanks) doesn't mean they don't care about their country's other more serious problems.
This. People deserve respect for protesting what they feel strongly about, no matter how big or small the issue.
I think it's very concerning that women will mutilate their labia's in order to gratify men. We are women, not little girls, so this fixation with removing all pubic hair is creepy now that it's so normalised. If only women weren't so insecure to not have to feel pressured to look like some glossy wank mag model.
This is a huge issue for young women, succumbed to the peer pressures dicktated by the porn industry.
...are we fetishizing little girls, or wank mag models? After all, there could be no other reasons to prefer a shaved pubic area.
"...to gratify men."????
WTF? They do it to gratify themselves. Leave men out of it.
Why don't these women just blame the women that are getting the procedure done rather than porn? Porn didn't sign them up for the appointment at the plastic surgeon's office.
By the way, I prefer women to shave as it makes oral sex more pleasant and easier.
I completely agree. Let's "blame the women who are getting the procedure done" for the social pressures causing women to get the procedure done. Pure logic, that. You must have difficulty understanding the existence of advertising agencies. It's not like they're actually forcing us to buy products, so they must be completely ineffective, right?
Thinking like that drops any personal responsibility from acts of moronic stupidity. It isn't like smoking, where back in the day mis-information and lies kept people from knowing what was going on in their bodies. And it isn't like there is a ton of advertising going about for labiaplasties. There are no TV commercials for them. Women who modify their bodies deserve to have surgically edited vaginas.
Shave them private parts!
I would agree that getting a labiaplastie (if that is indeed what it is called) is a stupid act. But you have to wonder WHY many women are willing, even eager, to spend an obscene amount of money to painfully mutilate the most sensitive part of their bodies. I wasn't referring to commercials for the procedure (though I'm sure they do exist somewhere); I was trying to make the obvious point that pop culture and mass media affect most of our choices in insidious ways. And I think you're just trying to be funny, but don't tell me to make the most sensitive area on my body vulnerable to bacteria and infected hair follicles. I have no qualms with your preferences, but would you be willing to reciprocate for a partner who prefers you to be hairless?
Yes.
People are responsible for their own actions. Period.
These so-called "social pressures" are so strong that they "cause" women to get plastic surgery on their labia? That's what you call logic? So, how come the vast majority of women seem immune to this social pressure? Clearly there's a missing link in this causal chain.
Where are these ads urging women to plastic surgery on their labia? I live in London, never seen one. But apparently, they're insanely effective. Pure logic, that!
I agree with Dr. Boynton. Mainstream media is way more discriminating than actual porn. Have you ever seen what actually looks like a vulva underneath skimpy bikini bottoms? Well, seeing camel toe would be outrageously inappropriate, but no reference at all is pretty conspicuous.
really, to blame either mainstream media or porn is pretty worthless because whether or not people in those fields choose to acknowledge it, they are pretty heavily reciprocal industries. hence all the kitschy cute names for porn flicks (sextreme makeover, etc) and all the references in tv shows to men watching porn. there's always been a link between the two, sort of like the link between being a porn performer and legitimate actor, but that link is not nearly so tenuous these days. how else do you account for all the kitschy-cute names for porn flicks (sextreme makeover, anyone?) and the growing celebrity of porn stars? the porn industry isn't just some cute little grass roots operation of sexually liberated people getting down and funky in their own weird ways, being vilified for no good reason. it has real influence on culture!
i am not british. but i have taken it upon myself to remove SOME but no-where near all of zee muff. it is, as someone said earlier, just a whole heck of a lot easier to manage cleanliness this way. if it weren't, trust me i'd quit shaving! also, please keep the upper muff region, going totally hairless is fetishizing young children. it's gross.
I'm a single guy and i prefer my sex partners be shaven...it is beautiful either way but i am much more attracted by bare and lightly haired for two reasons. Oral sex is something i love to do and pubic hair causes me problems. Second, i absolutely love seeing female genitalia, it is the most beautiful body part and when covered by pubic hair almost completely invisible.
I think women should embrace the uniqueness that they have, every flower in nature is different and each is beautiful in the same way every vulva is different. i love them all. If a woman is bothered by some feature of her vulva then it is her business if she wants cosmetic alteration...wherever the idea came from. The one thing i get angry about is when a woman gets cosmetic surgery not to please herself, but to please a husband....or worse a boyfriend.
I must say however i am happy to see women becoming more open and involved with issues they have remained silent about in the past. Good for you women!!
I really do, always have. That isn't to say I have pushed away a shaven pussy. I simply like pussy, I guess that's the case. But I certainly prefer some hair. The operative word there is "some". Sometimes too much bush is too much, but I've never once asked or pressured a girlfriend to shave.
That being said, I have had several girlfriends who feel very strongly about shaving. Two of them wanted it all off, period. I pleaded with one to leave some bush on top to stuff my nose in. My ex, who is a philosophy professor teaching "feminist philosophy" and takes none of these matters lightly, asked me about shaving and grooming. I said: hey, if you think it would feel good to have me lick your shaven cunt, do it. I'll lick you anyway, but if makes you feel sexy or dirty or clean or whatever......do it. She shaved below, kept it trimmed up top, and I went to town, and she loved her private parts like never before.
All of which is to say: there are all sorts of motivations for women to shave partially or completely, from highly discussed and intellectualized ones, to ones totally derived from peer pressure. At the end of the day, these sorts of protests irritate me for over-simplifying the entire discusssion. No, it's not the case that shaving or not shaving involves making a decision enthralled to the patriarchy or battling it. And having bush is neither morally nor politically superior.
Shouldn't women be free to choose what makes them feel good, sexy, or whatever? Shouldn't that involve a range of possibilities?
The idea that the porn industry has this massive power and control over women is, in itself, a tremendous abdication of power.
All decisions can be made for many reasons, evolved the opposite or random. But when there is a huge societal trend in one direction, especially away from the natural, there tends to be strong & unenlightened reasons behind it. Shaving is exponentially more prevalent within a generation. Don't tell me that this is not a result of conditioned shame & self loathing from mainstream media & porn. The vast majority of black woman have straightened or fake hair. Pretending this is not a legacy of internalized racism is laughable. Even the vast statistical bifurcation of wealth OWS protests, clearly this huge change in concentration is not healthy & natural.
Again, individuals who do these things may be healthy & indulging personal preference, whims, etc... But a whole population? It is not hard to find the "bad hair" equivalent references to a jungle down there.
Personally, I am fine with all, but prefer hair/bush. Even those who say things like do not like hair during oral sex: whaa? It is not like you get a mouth full of fur, an occ. hair is no big deal. And it is not so hard to keep clean, just like you don't need to be circumcised for hygiene. Jeez. The degree of delicacy we have about matters that should be enjoyed in part DUE to being unruly/Dionysian would make our ancestors laugh.
Now you say something