Janice Dickinson: What an Awful Thing for Everything

I may not be everyone's image of a feminist, but I like to think of myself as part of the solution when it comes to sexuality equality. Yeah, a bearded dude with a gut is one of many faces of feminism. Deal with that sexists! Anyway, two years at Emerson College has had one major impact on me, and that is that I view pretty much everything from the feminist stand point (in that I analyze most media in terms of sex and gender.)

This brings me to my next diatribe. What the fuck is the Oxygen Network (a network that, if I am not mistaken, is specifically geared towards women[which is a whole other sexual issue]) doing with The Janice Dickinson Modeling Agency?

For those who are not as well-informed in the area of former stars sucking the last drops of fame juice from the fame tree as I am, Janice Dickinson was "The World's first super model." She as abused as a Child, and instead of rising above it, she went headlong into the world of fame; promiscuous, unprotected sex with multiple partners; and cocaine (I'm not sure on this, but we can assume it's true). She got herself knocked up, and had just assumed the father was Sylvester Stallone, but was proven wrong by a paternity test. But all of this is really just personal garbage that really isn't of any import to me or my women's equality.

What is important, is that she was a model. At some point in her life she realized that looks was where she had it. Okay, part of how this world works is getting paid for your assets, that is true for both men and women. No harm, no foul. But as a supermodel, she is at least partly responsible for the world we live in now where women (and to a lesser extent men) are forced to compare themselves on a daily basis to the most fantastic looking of their kind. At best, that shows a lack of real understanding of the impact of her decisions, at worst, she doesn't care (she probably doesn't care).

And then, there's her current face. The woman is pushing 60 years old and obviously fears it. Her lips are clearly enhanced, as are her breasts and most of the rest of her. Her face is expressionless and taut like a sail caught in a draft or some such thing, and she behaves like a prima donna. Her image and behavior resist the natural aging process, telling us that beauty is a trait more desirable than any other.

Is it fair of me to pick on one woman, perhaps not. Many women are guilty of similar behavior, but none of them have a TV show, which leads me to the next half of this screed.

Modeling is an industry that commodifies beauty, then uses beauty (which you either have or not) to convince other people to try and become more beautiful. It's a money thing, you're all smart enough to know it. The participants are reduced to hunks of beauty, and there is no doubt that this has a more serious (and dangerous) impact on women.

So why does Oxygen give this woman a platform to relay this message? This doubtlessly sets back any chance at sexual equality. Sure, there are male models involved, but that might just point to the fact that the idea of modeling should be reconsidered in its entirety. Anyway, Janice Dickinson's modeling agency seems anti-feminist. That and looking at that face makes me punchy.