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Theresa Ruth Howard Dancer/Writer/Teacher Theresa Ruth Howard began her professional dance career with the Philadelphia Civic Ballet Company at the age of twelve. Later she joined the Dance Theatre of Harlem where she had the opportunity to travel extensively throughout the United States, Europe and Africa. She has worked with choreographer Donald Byrd as a soloist in his staging of New York City Opera's Carmina Burana, his critically acclaimed Harlem Nutcracker, as well as the controversial domestic violence work The Beast. She was invited to be a guest artist with Complexions: A Concept in their 10th anniversary season. In 2004 she became a founding member of Armitage Gone! Dance. As a writer Ms. Howard has contributed to Russell Simmons’ One World magazine (art), and The Source (social politics), as well as Pointe and Dance Magazine. While teaching in Italy for the International Dance Association she was asked to become a contributor for the premiere Italian dance magazine Expressions. Her engaging, no nonsense writing style caught the eye of both the readers of Dance Magazine and its Editor in Chief who not only made her a contributing editor and has collaborated with Ms. Howard in See and Say Web-reviews. Her articles about body image prompted her to develop a workshop for young adult (dancers and non-dancers) My Body My Image that addresses their perceptions both positive and negative about their bodies and endeavoring to bring them closer to a place of Acceptance and Appreciation. She recently launched a blog by the same name to reach a broader audience (mybodymyimage.com) As a teacher Ms. Howard has been an Artist in Residence at Hollins University in and New Haven University in addition to teaching at Sarah Lawrence College, Marymount, Shenandoah, and Radford Universities, and the historical American Dance Festival. As a result of her work at ADF Ms. Howard was invited to Sochi, Russia to adjudicate the arts competition Expectations of Europe and teach master classes, and in Burundi, Africa where she coached and taught the Burundi Dance Company. Currently she on faculty at The Ailey School but also extensively throughout Italy and Canada. Ms. Howard's belief in the development, and nurturing of children lead her to work with at risk youth. At the Jacob Riis Settlement House in Queensbridge New York, she founded S.I.S.T.A (Socially Intelligent Sisters Taking Action) a mentoring program for teen-age girls where she worked to empower them to become the creators of their destinies. In addition she developed a dance program, which lead to an exchange with the Dance Theatre of Harlem. Through her teaching and travels Ms. Howard began to observe a universal disenchantment and disconnection in teenagers that disturbed her, thus she set out to address it. Combining her philosophies of life and teaching, with the skills she garnered through outreach programs with diverse communities, she developed the personal development workshop Principles of Engagement: Connecting Youth to the Infinite Possibilities Within which gives teens a set of workable tools to increase their levels of success at tasks, and goals not only in dance, and all aspect of their lives. Theresa Ruth Howard is certainly diverse and multifaceted as an artist, and is moved to both write and create work; however she sees every student she encounters as a work in progress, and the potential to change the world one person at a time. The only was to make this world a better place it to be better people in it!

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There Is No Such Thing As A Bikini Body-Jezebel

Dodai Stewart — If you read tabloids or ladymags, pay attention to advertising campaigns, or happen to live on planet Earth, you know that the one thing women are supposed to strive for — more than a functioning body, a healthy body, or a strong body — is a bikini body.

Catherine Saint-Louis examines this phenomenon for The New York Times, and finds that in advertising, from yogurt to lotion to 100-calorie “snack packs,” the bikini is a symbol of victory, a goal, and a fear motivator. She also discovers that decades ago, when the bikini was invented (and even when it gained popularity) women didn’t feel they had to lose pounds — or even wax intimate parts — to sport a two-piece.

Back then, bikini preparation was starkly laissez-faire by today’s grooming standards. In her recently published literary memoir, Art and Madness, Anne Roiphe wrote that in 1965, she suspected that a suitor was into her because of, not in spite of, the “tufts of dark hair that stuck out of the top of my bikini.”

But today it’s assumed that only the lean, muscular, hairless and ab-defined will feel comfortable in a bikini. “It’s become difficult to feel natural with a normal body,” [Sarah Kennedy, the author of The Swimsuit: A History of Twentieth-Century Fashions] said. “Fatism has taken over. It’s O.K. to be mean to lumpy, lardy people. It’s a sort of subtle intolerance towards people that’s very bad.”

The truth is, the “bikini body” craze goes so much deeper than fatism or fatphobia. It is part of our society’s relentless insistence that a woman’s body is not her own. continue after the jump

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Is Your Body Image a Product of Sexism?

Our Mental Health Specialist Courtnay Veazey is back to talk about how systemic sexism may play a role in the way that you feel about yourself as a woman and the perceptions you hold about your body and its image.


I think that most women tend to just go about our daily lives with little thought to the way that we or women in general are perceived. There are times when our vaginas work for us, we like a door being opened for us, and what gal ever refused a drink, or dinner bought by a gentleman? When someone offers us their seat on a crowded subway we are flattered. Yes being a woman has its privileges. Conversely when the promotion does come, or we find that we make less money then male counterparts, or some pig says something sexually derogatory and embarrassing to us in the street, or worse when we pass a group of men and they ogle to girl behind us and scarcely notice that we are taking up space on the planet we feel the weight of our sex. There are also the times when we are single and feel like lepers or we are coupled and feel confined, when we don’t have children and feel ostracized by a portion of breeding society and even the government (try to get any medical or housing aid without a kid…) for not procreating, and when we have children we feel obligated to give the whole of ourselves and be the best mother- wife-working women – MILF- Superwoman… all that and we are also saddles with the reality that some how with trying to be independent, strong, soft, and modern, we are also supposed to have a hot bikini body! Yes sexism might have a smidge to with the way we feel about ourselves.

 

When it comes to experiencing a positive body image or claiming high self-esteem, women lag behind men. What causes women to experience more difficulty in achieving a positive body image and high self-esteem? What is it about the culture of women that leaves detrimental effects on our self-concept? (I write ‘culture of women’ because the identity of being a woman and the struggles inherent to that role transcend diverse cultural, racial, educational, spiritual, sexual orientation, and other backgrounds.)

Hello, sexism. If you are a woman, you are in the minority and thus experience the discriminations associated with a minority status. Before explaining how sexism becomes internalized and what that internalization means for your body image, allow me to define sexism. Sexism is the oppression – removal of power – based on gender. This oppression occurs when media sexualize women in its images, when women earn less pay than their male colleagues, or when others (both men and women) expect women to fulfill certain roles solely based on their gender. Also, sexism can occur in subtle moments. Have you ever had anyone roll his/her eyes at you when you said you would rather pursue a career instead of a family? Has anyone ever made a comment to you about the need to watch your weight because it’ll affect your chances of getting a date? Have you shared good news about a new job and the first question is about what you’ll wear on your first day? Those subtle comments are a form of sexism because men rarely experience those reactions/comments/questions.

Internalized sexism occurs when women begin to believe the negative messages that surround them and allow those messages to define them. (See my previous post about how to combat those internalized negative thoughts: http://mybodymyimage.com/sticks-and-stone-may-break-your-bones-but-words-can-destroy-you) Distress from internalized sexism leads to negative body image and lower self-esteem. However, internalized sexism is not the only dynamic at play because body image/self-esteem is a complicated and intricate aspect of humanity.

Here are some other areas in women’s lives that affect body image/self-esteem:

-Parental attitudes and behavior
-Peers
-Physical/emotional changes
-Environmental expectations regarding femininity
-Cultural bias toward masculinity
-Mother-daughter relationship

That’s a lot of different areas – some of which you may have never thought about before. Therefore, it is crucial that you take the time to examine those areas and identify the messages received from those areas about what it means to be a woman and what it means to be beautiful.

Where to Start:
Where is sexism evident in your life? What were your parents’ attitudes about their bodies? What behavior did your parents model for you regarding body image? Do you surround yourself with women who maintain positive or negative body images? How do their mindsets about their bodies influence your mindset? What physical changes are you experiencing right now? What emotional changes are you experiencing? How are those physical/emotional changes affecting your body image/self-esteem? Explore your personal, familial, educational, religious, and work environments. What expectations do those environments place on being a woman? How do those expectations affect your body image? Examine your relationship with your mother. What messages did she give you about beauty, body image, and self-esteem? Did she empower you or deflate you?

How do we combat the effects that sexism and the other listed areas have on our body image and self-esteem? What are some practical steps we can take to create a healthier body image?

1. Define Woman. What does that role look like to you? (Not look like to society – look like to YOU.) If you believe being a woman means being a stay-at-home mom, that’s wonderful. If you believe being a woman means finding your identity in a career, that’s wonderful, too. The different definitions are not what matters. What matters is your belief in that definition because lack of beliefs in your identity/role/definition of woman leads to lower self-esteem and a poorer body image.

2. Connect with your authentic self. You’ve defined what woman means to you. Now, pursue that definition. This step will not happen overnight, so don’t expect a miracle. Also, don’t expect it to be easy. Sexism is a societal problem that is subtly engrained in our interactions with one another. Therefore, you will encounter obstacles to your pursuits, which leads to the next step.

3. Remember the power of choice. You may encounter obstacles, but you have the incredible ability to choose how you respond to those obstacles. You do not have to agree with another person’s remarks/nonverbal responses to your beliefs, decisions, and actions regarding fulfilling your definition of women. Also, remember that someone else’s sexist response to your pursuit of an authentic self is not your issue. It’s his or her issue because the response comes from his or her mindset regarding a woman’s role.

4. Align with other women who share similar views. The personal is political – in other words, you are not alone in your struggles to overcome the effects of sexism. Perhaps you’ve been discriminated against because you want to have seven children. Develop relationships with women who have experienced similar discrimination and learn from their responses to that discrimination. Perhaps you’ve been discriminated against because you choose to never marry or to never have children. Again, develop relationships with women with similar stories. There is power, comfort, and encouragement in communities.

Remember that the previously listed steps will take time. We are human; therefore, we tend to fall back into familiar and comfortable habits. Don’t give up on yourself though because the ability to choose new habits, thoughts, and ways is always available to you.

Unfortunately, body image is not the only mental health issue that affects women differently than men. For information regarding other women-specific mental health issues, please visit http://nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/women-and-mental-health/index.shtml and http://www.who.int/mental_health/prevention/genderwomen/en/

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Beth Ditto Slams “Skinny” Role models


The full figured singer has never been shy about her size or body and she cares little what you think of her. I appreciate her confidence, and her ability to may people face themselves as they look at her in her body. In her skimpy brazen outfits she exhibits more confidence and courage then the women who obsess about every calorie, every bump or lump, or expression of femininity (except of course for breast there it’s the bigger the better) who may succeed (?) in becoming tiny stick figures of their former selves but don’t feel any better about who they are and how they look. Feeling self conscience they run for the beach cover up and spend hours kvetching about what they wish they had, wish they didn’t or simply wish for! check out Banning Bitchfests

Ditto seems to say to hell with all that I love me and I don’t really give two hoots what you think. I love what she has to say about societies perceptions of health and thinness… She is absolutely right.
Ditto says:
“I’m not an unhealthy person and I feel like one of the most tiring parts of being fat and being proud of it is…you do a lot of proving yourself all the time.

It’s really interesting to me that people will look at a thin person and go, ‘That’s a healthy person.’ I want to go, ‘Come open my refrigerator and look and then let’s talk about what you think is so bad.’

To be thin and to stay really thin, sometimes… some people literally do coke all the time. Some people smoke cigarettes instead of eating. That’s crazy. But that’s ‘okay’ because you look healthier.”

And on the subject of thin being synonymous with health Plus-size model Mia Amber Davis who passed away in May was an advocate for full figured women and models and I found this interesting footage of her debating the idea that obesity is the cause of rising health costs in America, The clip is from 2009 but argument is current.

It’s a little how crazed the MeMe Roth got- I guess she thought it was all about HerHer!

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Banning Bitchfests

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We have been overdue for another in-Stahl-ment!

Contributing Writer Jenny Stahl is back to share with us her thoughts and observations on how when women gather together the conversations somehow always turns into them talking about either their bodies or other peoples bodies and somehow the talk is never positive. Here is Jenny Stahl on the Bitchfest!
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Body image is as contagious as the common cold. It jumps from one girl to the next faster than you can say, “Cankles.” Just look at a room full of women: Once one starts judging herself harshly in front of the others, it seems like everyone has to chime in, announcing something they hate about their bodies. Suddenly each girl is trying to one-up the last.
“I hate the way these jeans make my muffin top pouf out in three directions,” one says.
“Yea, but at least you don’t have these jiggly thunder thighs of mine,” the next one counters.
“You guys don’t even know how much I wish I could get rid of these rolls,” another whines.
I have to admit, I used to find these body bitch fests incredibly liberating. Finally: I could admit that I hated my wide hips! I no longer felt like I had to hide all of my physical insecurities from my friends. Instead, I could actually say them out loud, sharing all of the dirty, awful self-hating secrets I’d been hiding in my attempt to appear confident. It felt like a 10-pound weight had been lifted off my chest, or rather, my hips.
I also loved learning that I wasn’t the only one who was unhappy with herself. As the self-criticism torch passed around the room, I realized that all of my friends, even the ones who’d seemed so sure of themselves, were actually bothered by their sizes and shapes, too. I found out that even though Melissa always showed off her slender, long legs in short shorts, that was really just a way to distract from her chubbier midsection. And Lila actually wished her backside could grow closer to the size of mine.
But recently I’ve come to the conclusion that all of this group grumbling is in fact a double-edged sword. When I hear that women I think are beautiful actually hate their bodies, it only makes me feel worse about my own: If they can’t even like what they see in the mirror, they must think a body like mine is pitiful. All of their complaining only reminds me of all the things I wish I could change about my body, and sometimes even brings up new insecurities I hadn’t even thought about before. I never felt awkward about my short toes until one afternoon when conversation turned to how unsexy stubby ones look in sandals. I don’t think I wore open toed shoes that entire summer.
Without fail, I notice that as everyone keeps talking about how ugly certain parts of their bodies are, a wave of self-doubt washes over the room. The conversation only ends when it eventually grows awkwardly quiet.
There’s something very female-specific about cutting ourselves down this way. When was the last time you saw a group of men sitting around complaining about the size of their thighs? Um, probably never. But with women, kvetching about body parts seems to be as natural as lending each other tampons.
So the last time that I was with a bunch of my girlfriends and this started to happen, I told them all to shut the hell up. Because as infectious as the insecurity is, the opposite is also true. Whenever I’m hanging out with a woman who isn’t perfect (because really, who is?) but completely owns what she has, I suddenly feel more confident in my skin—large rear and all. Her acceptance of her body, flawed as it may be, reminds me that while none of us got to choose our genes, we can’t change them either. There’s no point in obsessing over the things we hate; bitching and moaning only makes you feel worse. Appreciating yourself for what you are not only makes you feel more confident, but everyone around you, too.

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“Dark Girls” Preview: Documentary Exploring Color Bias Against Black Community! [Video]

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If you have a moment, watch this. If you are a woman of color you will hear a side of your story told here, be you light dark or even in between. The issue of beauty in the Black (I say black because it encompasses all people of color from varying parts of the world) community is inextricably linked to 2 things, the color of your skin and the texture of your hair. It is hardly a secret that having a lighter complexion is preferable, not just in America but all over the world, from Brazil, to India, China, Japan, and of course the Dark Continent Africa. The European standard of beauty is ubiquitous and far reaching, it has Asian women changing the shape of their eyes and African women bleaching out their skin, and almost all brown races have been caught up in the blonde is beautiful aesthetic. Brown people have long been chasing that light bright and almost white dream- while conversely and quite ironically white people have resorted to making themselves orange with fake tanners and bronzers to simulate the appearance of color which they associate with the look of “health”- though catching too much sun can be hazardous to one’s health.

Women of color, African American Women of all shades have suffered, with and under this obsession since the first Africans were brought over to be slaves. Lighter men and women were chosen for an “easier” life as a house slave while the darker were sent to the fields to do back breaking work. However female house slaves were put in closer proximity to white masters and subject to sexual abuse and rape, bearing “Half breed” children who were dirty secrets, and scorned on one hand and yet had the inheritance of what would become a version of light skinned privilege which as a slave or even as a freeman was an oxymoron. The historical back story is convoluted and complex but the issue still persists, though Slavery has long been abolished, civil rights fought for and won, for as far as we as a people have come we are still mired in this conflict of color, we perpetuate it in our language, in our choices, in our treatment of one another, it is no longer an external entity that inflicts this color bias (though it is supported visually and economically in business, sports, entertainment and media) but the community itself.

I have to thank director Bill Duke for shedding light on this topic, and hopefully creating some healing… Thank you for telling our story…. a story about our bodies and our images….Watching these women speak I heard myself, I heard my mother, my sister, nieces, I heard my girlfriends, my aunts (not the one who talked about me lol) but i heard us– I just hope that we can hear ourselves and stop the cycle, we are all beautiful because we are!


My Color Story

I am the youngest of nine, I have 5 sisters and I am the darkest of them all. My mother was extremely fair, my father on the darker side of Brown skinned-let me explain the color chart:

there is Light bright and almost white, yellow (yella) Brown with is like a Caffe au Lait, and then “Dark ” is anything darker than a brown paper bag, and I mean just a slight degree tips the scale. Dark skinned goes from a wet paper bag to blue black- purple, eggplant, aubergine -in Italian Melenzana which is the root of the term “mulignans”.

My Mother’s family was all on the lighter side of the paper bag test and both my Grandmother and my Aunt would talk about how Black I was, how I should stay out of the sun so that I wouldn’t get darker. They would openly and in front of me talk about how I was ugly because I was so dark. There were always comparisons made so and so is darker that her, there was a connection of being fair with being prettier, and you learned where you fit in on the color scale of beauty early. There were characteristics of beauty that were attributed with whiteness that made you more beautiful, or if you were dark they could save you from the rich hue of your skin, things like “soft” wavy or straight hair and light eyes. A dark skinned woman or man with hazel eyes is a wonder- they could actually have the face of a bit bull but people will say “they are so pretty, they have such beautiful eyes” Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye is a perfect account of how this phenomenon manifests within our community. Personally when I was a little girl I wanted to be lighter, but when I was in my early twenties I wanted to be darker. It was in the 90’s when dark skin was en vogue, it was around then that I started to claim my West Indian Bahamian roots. You see in truth I have always been painfully in the middle of the color chart. I am a forgettable, unremarkable flat dull brown.

There is nothing particularly special about the texture of my skin either, it is not super creamy or soft, it’s just skin. I think I look worlds better with a tan- yes black people can tan. That having been stated, ironically once I spent 5 weeks in Jamaica and I just baked. I knew that I was dark and I was happy, until I got home under my normal lighted I literally screamed, I was BLACK! and the actual thought that went through my head was “What if I stay this way?!” I live in the contradiction – I think I look better dark but I also know that in society there are prices to pay. I faded, but as a postscript- I have never gotten that tan again, I think that psychologically I can’t do it.

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Kirstie Alley is a different kind of Winner!

I won’t lie, I did not watch Dancing with the Stars this season. I have in the past but for the last 2 seasons I have kind of lost interest. The thing that I did keep track of was Kirstie Alley and her shrinking form. I think that it is just wonderful that through this program she has had an opportunity not just to lose weight, but to connect with her body on a whole other level. When you start dancing (no matter on what level or for what reason) you instantly feel muscles that you never knew your had, or ever wanted to. The more you do it the more your body supplicates itself to the rigor, it becomes in it’s own way yielding and malleable and once it gets the point of what you are asking it to do, it opens up. That’s the beauty of Dance (or any physical discipline really) The process changes you inside and out. People respond to the outward physical changes but it is the dancer who quietly observes the all important internal changes that are transforming. I sincerely hope that Kirstie not only “keeps the weight off” but I hope she keeps dancing!!! You look good girl!

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Mad Men’s Christina Hendricks: Modern Day Body Image Superwoman

I know, I know I’m late but I just recently got in to Mad Men. I was instantly enthralled! not only because the era was so interesting with the gender dynamics, the racial issues and of course the impeccable fashion but because the female characters were so rich and diverse. Diverse not only in personality but in look. I think Mad Men might be the only show that represents all types of women, real women not Hollywood’s version of what women are “supposed” to look like. Christina Hendricks is a prime example of that. She plays Joan Holloway (Harris) the Head Diva in charge of office management, she is in charge of the women behind (and under) the men at the Sterling Cooper advertisement agency.

(Hendricks and Joan Holloway)

She is the Marilyn Monroe zaftig red head that knows how to work her assets while keeping the wolves at bay. She is a tall, full figured woman the likes of which we seldom see on television or movies especially as the “object of desire”. There is such a confidence in the comportment that Hendricks gives Holloway, Joan is not only comfortable but confident in her shape and size, and it is glorious to watch. When I started to read interviews with her I was pleased to hear that Hendricks as a woman was as confident and comfortable with her body as her character and has been very out spoken about being a “larger” woman in Hollywood. Where the gauntlet was somewhat thrust into her hands because of the success of the show she has taken it up and been a spokes woman for the female body image in Hollywood. Here is a wonderful article with Hendricks that only solidified by respect and admiration for her!

‘I’m learning to celebrate what I was born with’: Why life is shaping up nicely for Christina Hendricks

Can there ever have been a more magnificent TV creation than Mad Men’s Joan Holloway? The indispensable office manager of Sterling Cooper and its breakaway ad agency, Joan is a woman capable of filleting secretaries with a single glance and subduing men with her incredible embonpoint (‘How does she not fall over?’ one potential client enquired).

Her majestic curves and waspish pronouncements seem to give Joan all the approachability of a lipstick-wearing crocodile, so it’s a pleasure to find that Christina Hendricks, the actress who portrays her, is not only approachable
but fun and girlie, too. ‘I love playing Joan because she’s such a departure from who I am. In season one I thought, “Oh Lord, this woman is terrifying – I couldn’t be her friend!”, but now I think I would be friends with Joan because she’s so strong and pretty wonderful,’ says Christina, adding: ‘I’d just ask her not to tell me what she really thinks all the time.’

But while Joan radiates impenetrable glamour, Christina herself is even prettier – softer and fresher (and at 5ft 8in, taller than you expect), but still exuding the creamy voluptuousness that has caused fans of both sexes to sigh in disbelief. Today her Mad Men wardrobe of fitted skirts and pillbox hats has been replaced by jeans, purple heels and a cream top (with cinched-in waist, naturally). Though it took her a while to get used to putting on Joan’s accoutrements, Christina is now a seasoned pro. ‘I was huffing and puffing into those things initially,’ she says, ‘but now I’m flipping on the garters with ease. It’s so great at the beginning of each season to see what’s in our characters’ wardrobes!’
We meet in the Koreatown district of Los Angeles in a charmingly unassuming café far from the glam environs of Beverly Hills, hours before Christina, 36, is due to attend the opening of a new Vivienne Westwood boutique. She’s a longtime fan of the British designer, ‘because her clothes allow you to show your waistline and shoulders and accentuate your bust,’ she says. ‘As a woman with curves, I love that her clothes unapologetically celebrate women.’

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/you/article-1388042/Christina-Hendricks-life-shaping-nicely-Im-learning-celebrate-I-born-with.html#ixzz1NC8TSPze

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/you/article-1388042/Christina-Hendricks-life-shaping-nicely-Im-learning-celebrate-I-born-with.html#ixzz1NBxpfBUv

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Say bye-bye to bad body image talk

Courtesy of CNN Living:
By Mina Samuels
Editor’s note: Mina Samuels, author of “Run Like A Girl: How Strong Women Make Happy Lives”, is a freelance writer and editor who does triathlons, marathons, yoga, rock climbing and kayaking.

(CNN) — The other day I tried to calculate how much of my life has been spent standing sideways to the full-length mirror, trying to determine if my stomach looks flat enough in the outfit I’m wearing so that I won’t descend into crankyville.

Is it every day? Thirty seconds? More than once? With time off for good behavior when I’m backpacking, and there are no mirrors available. Oh, and yes, the tic is worse on days I feel a bit blue.

What a waste, truly. And I’m not alone in this, right? After all, there would be no Sara Blakely, queen of the Spanx empire, if I were.

I am, in case it wasn’t already blindingly obvious, a woman.

In a room of 50 women the other day, I conducted a quick straw poll. “How many women here feel good about their bodies?” I asked. Only two hands went up, and they were wobbly and tentative at that. That’s 4% of the women in the room. In an independent study, only 12% of women thought they looked good in a swimsuit. I guess that’s three times better than my poll, but come on, both of those numbers are ridiculously low.

Is this really how we want to live? — in a state of perpetual discomfort about our bodies.

Continue here