Thursday, January 20, 2011

Can I Travel With Pink Eye

Gender policing; Justin Bieber and femininity tests in sport


Gender''policing''(hard to translate in French) refers to attitudes that impose a collection of its kind to another person. The term policing is not referring to an organized institution like the police, but a very well-established social norm that will strengthen and maintain the kind of binary vision, ideals of femininity / masculinity and heterosexuality. Any violation of this standard may be stressed by behaviors of gender policing. Thus, a person who does not vision of society on his kind will suffer the mockery, criticism and other verbal abuse sometimes leading to physical and sexual violence. Two cases of gender policing in the news marked me most: Justin Bieber and femininity tests in sport.

Note: For the uneducated (or the lucky and fortunate from the point of view) who, like me a few months ago, do not know who is Justin Bieber is a young American singer of pop music 16 years .

Personally, I do not particularly like this artist, let alone his music, but beyond personal taste, the treatment reserved for him by some of the public is quite painful and revealing ...

Here are some jokes that circulate on the web:

" I Called Justin Bieber gay and he slapped me With His purse. "
(Trad: I have treated Justin Bieber gay and he hit me with his bag)

" Justin Bieber Is The Brand Ambassadors of sanitary pads. "
(Trad: Justin Bieber is the new ambassador of sanitary napkins.)

" Beiber Justin Will we turn next movie star, turning in His Name will be "Faggatron. "
(Trad: Justin Bieber will play in the upcoming movie Transformers, his name will be''Transformers''Tapettron)

and now the names of groups on facebook

" What is Justin Bieber doing out of the Kitchen? "
(Trad: What do Justin Bieber out of the kitchen)

" It Is an offense That We Need to Share the Same gender as Justin Bieber "
(Trad: It is an insult to share the same kind that Justin Bieber)

"If Justin Bieber Was a woman ... oh wait, never mind"
(Trad: If Justin Bieber was a woman ... oh wait, nevermind)

"Leave Justin Bieber alone, stop making fun of HER! "
(Trad: Justin Bieber Leave alone, stop making fun of it)

" Who Thinks Justin Bieber is gay and sings like a girl? "
(Trad: Who thinks that Justin Bieber is gay and sings like a girl?)

" I HATE Justin Bieber Because He sounds like a girl! "
(Trad: I HATE Justin Bieber because he sings like a girl)


As highlighted in an article Fbomb: Gender Policing and Justin Bieber , what all these jokes and comments on the kind of Justin Bieber reveal the vision of society on the female gender? (I would also add to our understanding of homosexuality)

His physique more feminine and the tone of his voice make it does not fit perfectly the image of masculinity associated with his kind. The gender policing is then used by people who better fit into the mold male "real" male, to strengthen the limits on their gender. Thus, a person from these limits will be dealt with gay, queer, fag, sissy to sort of put him in his place. In the case of Bieber, there seems to be so considered that the male was not associated with the feminine gender. Inevitably, if we overvalues masculinity, all manifestations of its opposite, like femininity, a boy, will be singled out and denigrated as something degrading. ( Another allusion to this post aspect )

Another man who had to endure nasty comments that illustrate the gender policing is the figure skater Johnny Weir. Indeed, following one of his performances, sports commentators, Goldberg Alain and Claude Mailhot commented on-air appearance. They argue the fact that Weir should be tested to verify its masculinity or femininity, they wondered jokingly if he should not be competing in women and even say that it detracts from his sport. These comments have also been denounced by the Quebec Council gays and lesbians (CQGL) .

Excerpt: "He's lipstick. He dresses in a feminine way. It tries to be as feminine as possible on the ice. That leaves a rather bitter about figure skating. It's very annoying because you think all the boys who will skate like him. "- Alain Goldberg
Johnny Weir

These words reveal a man who approaches the characteristics associated with women is considered a disgrace and it is permissible to ridicule the public (so to show gender policing)


short, when you do not fit the model of "real man virile," the first way is to insult you you treat gay and then you treat a woman ... quite eloquent on the value given to these two groups of people.

Somewhat in the same vein, the tests of femininity in the sport are, in my view, attitudes of gender policing as they are to challenge the gender of female athletes when perform.

A gender test is a test used during competition sports to determine whether professional sports would not be hermaphroditic or androgynous women. (wiki)

They are highly contested because they are not totally reliable and the genetic sex is extremely complex. Intersex in individuals , it is almost impossible to "classify" the person as male or female. Moreover, consider only the genetic sex sex occult influence social, psychological and physical person. In addition, test results have an impact on stigmatizing those who suffer them. The case of

Semenya who made headlines in 2009 is well the general attitude surrounding femininity tests. She easily won the women's 800 meters final at the World Championships in Athletics in Berlin. His victory made headlines quickly, but contrary to what one might believe this was not to report his exploit, but doubts about its visual biological gender. It is considered too tough, no chest, with a pool too small and too hairy, it looks too short not conform to gender stereotypes, she looks like a man. He will then take tests to prove femininity that she would be hermaphrodite.



For you it is the men's side? It seems that when they have incredible performance, it is either admiring or they are subjected to drug tests. We do not give them the kind in question, in fact physical performance confirms their manhood.

I find the latest questions in an article I read and advise you on the subject particularly relevant: Why refuse to compete in the category that matches what they believe to be the deepest of 'itself? Finally, why mention the doping when the exploit is masculine and to question the sexual identity of the athlete when the exploit is feminine?

short, gender policing is therefore an attempt to reinforce the idea that only two types exist and they correspond to two very accurate model, masculinity / femininity, which should not be waived. Additionally, it behind and between the two models, femininity and characteristics that are connected are lower and when present in a man, they are degrading.

GS

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