Election Day 2012

Ann Cooper

WST 4022

November 5, 2012

Meredith Tweed        

Election Day

            As this election cycle comes to an end it is impossible to not think about all that it means.  Yes, today was a day that millions of Americans expressed their opinions, but the fact that I even had that option today is amazing.  As a middle class white female I have been priviledged to many things, but even my predecessors did not always have the right to vote. 

            I am often disappointed when I find out that people, especially women, do not vote.  This election season brought about many issues that are important for women to take notice of and to be concerned about.  Unfortunately, many women don’t feel that certain issues, such as amendment 6 or even the financial stability of the country, are important for them to take notice or take action.

Today, as I stood on the sidewalk in front of my local polling location and held my sign I was surrounded by others partaking in their rights to freedom of speech; it was rather moving.  Whatever your political affiliation it is amazing and important to take a stand, it is important to take your stand.  Everyone should get out and vote!

  

Service Learning Journal

Ann Cooper

WST4022

November 16, 2012

Meredith Tweed        

Service Learning Journal Entry

            I believe this experience has been one of growth for the whole group.  While it is not always best to speak for others, I personally have seen growth in the group.  Initially we all had high hopes and expectations for the project and the days, sometimes it seemed we might be getting a little too out there with our ideas.  We initially started out with things too theoretical and too mature for 12/13 year old girls; to be honest it seemed to be a contest to see who could be the best “feminist.”  Throughout the process we learned to reign ourselves in and to also understand our audience.

            We have learned a lot about dominant discourse about saving the cheerleader and saving the girl, but I think that these girls saved us as a group.  We spent so much time trying to prove who we are as feminist and that we could “save” these girls that we sometimes forgot what the whole point was.  It took a pause and a step back to realize it didn’t have to be that hard, it needed to be FUN!   Our activities, most recently the Alumni Day, were fun and active.  The group took a step back and realized that we needed to remember what we wanted to do when we were 12 and 13; obviously it wasn’t to sit and be lectured about feelings and how hard life is and how hard it could be. 

            As we wrap up I have thought about what it was like being 12 and 13 for me.  It was actually pretty hard and I often struggled with group dynamics and where I “fit” in.  A group like the YWLP would have been so great.  Watching the girls together made me feel good.  No, their dynamics weren’t always perfect, and it was obvious that there were the more outgoing girls and the more reserved girls.  The neat thing was that the group has a need for each kind of girl and there wasn’t any “leaving out.” 

            A last note, and one that I really want to add, was the “zap that” technique was awesome.  This is something that I personally am working hard on and I found it refreshing to see how the girls were “calling each other out” on putting themselves down.  Girls and women are their number one worst critics, so starting at a young age to nip it before it becomes even more toxic and detrimental is great!

           

Judy Blume Literature

Tuesday, November 13

Teen Fiction for Girls by Judy Blume

http://suite101.com/article/teen-fiction-for-girls-by-judy-blume-a70964

Thursday, November 15

Using Literature to Help Troubled Teenagers Coper with Societal Issues

http://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=SENjg_QeWn0C&oi=fnd&pg=PA79&dq=society%27s+impact+on+adolescents+and+their+sexuality&ots=5V73myhf4F&sig=LXknDdPF1eZiEBpoUDIrZ7T8VNw#v=onepage&q=society's%20impact%20on%20adolescents%20and%20their%20sexuality&f=false

Is Puberty A Dirty Word?

http://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?collection=journals&handle=hein.journals

Tuesday, November 20

Guys Read Judy Blume Too, and Not Just for the "Dirty Bits"

http://jezebel.com/5899849/guys-read-judy-blume-too-and-not-just-for-the-dirty-bits

Rationale for Body Appreciation

Ann Cooper   

WST 4022      

Meredith Tweed

November 9, 2012

 

Rationale for Body Appreciation

            Physical, mental, and emotional health are major components when it comes to body appreciation.  As a group we would like the girls of the YWLP to understand that body appreciation does not simply just involve like the way one looks from the outside.  As a class we have read many texts on the body being all encompassing and exhausting projects of maintenance and upkeep.  As a group we want the girls to understand that “feeling good” and appreciating the body comes not from following the “rules” and “guidelines” set by society and the media; “feeling good” comes from following their own “guidelines” and also from supporting each other in this tough world.

            Nomy Lamm may be an unusual role model for the girls of the YWLP, but she makes some excellent points on body appreciation, “feeling good”, and individual differences in both.  Lamm’s comment “good health is not about being thin; it’s about doing things that are good for your body” (p.81).  While it is great to read and hear about a young woman with the strength of Lamm there are girls on the other end of the spectrum who are struggling and it is important for us to all us look at the results of this too.  Leonard Sax wrote about the abundance of young girls who are obviously not “feeling good” about themselves and as a consequence of this are cutting their bodies.  There can be many reasons why a young girl would cut themselves, but clearly there is something missing in their physical, mental, and emotional health.

 Our goal on the day of the body appreciation workshop is for each girl to understand the multi-dimensions of appreciating themselves and “feeling good.”  We would like for them to take away new ideas of what they can do to “feel good.”  Whether it’s joining a crew team like Allison Torres, dancing with friends like Nomy Lamm, or stripping (well perhaps not for 12/13 year old girls) like Diana Courvant.  With the activities we have selected, dancing, cheering, crafting, we are hoping to give the girls new avenues for building their appreciation of their body.  We would also like for them to be understand how important it is to share these with and be supportive of their friends.

 

Work Cited

Lamm, Nomy. “Fishnets, Feather Boas and Fat.”  Body Outlaws: Rewriting the Rules of Beauty and Body Image. Ed. Ophira Edut. Emeryville, CA: Seal Press, 2003. 78-87. Print.

Sax, Leonard. “Why are so many girls cutting themselves?”  Psychology Today. Psychology Today Mag.,  14 Mar. 2010.  Web.  18 September 2012.

 

Service Learning Journal

Ann Cooper

WST 4022

November 8, 2012

Meredith Tweed

Service Learning Journal

            With the Body Appreciation Workshop coming up we have had many discussions about what is “healthy” as a group to get ourselves prepared to discuss it with the girls.  I think that this has actually been a bonding and eye-opening experience for the members.  As someone who is interested in the differences in women and what makes them “feel good” it was really moving.

Working as a team we need to grow stronger and it is important for us to break down some barriers and get a little more personal.  Most importantly a stronger team can only do better for the girls of the YWLP.

            I have previously mentioned in my rationale and other Service Learning entries I think that it is important for us, as young women, to be role models for the girls of the YWLP.  In the Body Project’s first chapter, which was not actually assigned, Brumberg discusses how important the system of young women mentoring younger girls is as a social interaction which both sides profit from.  Being young women we are different than their mothers but more mature than them (p.19).  While we are still trying to “figure” ourselves out we can also be beneficial role models for the girls; we can show them that it is okay to be confused and have questions.  We are also living proof that you CAN survive your adolescent years.

            This project and class, as a whole, have been eye-opening to me.  In the future I would very much like to work with females between the ages of 18-28 and I know their pathologies and problems do not just start at 18.  By spending time working on activities for the girls and with the girls I am learning about the different experiences that can lead to issues such as depression, anxiety, eating disorders, and cutting in their later years.  One can only hope that our information and experiences can reach the girls on some level and possibly quell future issues.

 

 

Work Cited

Brumberg, Joan J.  The Body Project: An Intimate History of American Girls. New York, NY: Random House, Inc., 1997. Print

 

           

Service Learning (I forgot to post, but I've had it!)

Ann Cooper

WST 4022

October 28, 2012

Meredith Tweed

Service Learning Journal

            It has definitely been a struggle for us to communicate as a group throughout the semester and the past two weeks have really put us to the test.  I have learned from Professor Tweed that there is an ongoing issue with women’s studies groups, and those of similar beliefs, struggling with leadership roles.  It would appear that sometimes are worst adversary can be ourselves when it comes to working as a group to teach others about the plight of girls and women. 

After several false attempts to get the group going we have had to re-assess our internal communication, as well as with our community partner.  As a result of the changes in our communication I do feel that there has been some growth in the honesty of our communication as a group.  While everyone is “adults” and working for the same cause it is still sometimes difficult to share and take concerns and constructive criticism with group dynamic and individual work.  I personally have grown in my comfort with taking criticism and standing up for what I think needs to be done for the better of the project and the group.

I found a connection to our groups struggle with leadership in our in class movie “Miss Representation.”  The video gave the experience of a young girl running for a mock presidential race and the responses from her, as well as her competitors were interesting.  Not only did she find that she was having a difficult time getting support from her female counterparts, but also her male competitors recognized that the girls were harder on a female running for the position.  While we were not running for a political position amongst our group I do think that it is important that we be supportive of each other, especially when being role models for the girls of the YWLP.

The Allison Torres reading, which was used as a part of my rationale for the lesson plan for UCF days, writes about the importance of building strong and supportive relationships (221).  I noticed that while we struggled at first, that we have grown through this experience and are working on our group relationship.  At the actual event we were all working well as a team, working well with our community partner, and with the girls. It was important and is important for each individual to see herself as an essential component of a well-oiled machine (Torres, 221).  In addition to watching our group grow and build relationships I was able to watch the girls at the human pyramid work as a team, literally have to build a strong and supportive structure as a team.  Each girl was an important component to the pyramid and they all realized that they were each important, particularly when we were debriefing.

In the end our efforts, though not always consistent, did pay off.  I feel that the girls enjoyed the experience as well as learned from it.  I also feel that each of the group members is learning something about themselves.  For me it is taking feedback and giving feedback at the appropriate time, as well as the importance of time management when working individually and as a group.

Work Cited

Torres, Allison.  “At Home in My Body.” Body Outlaws: Rewriting the Rules of Beauty and Body Image. Ed. Ophira Edut.  Emeryville, CA: Seal Press, 2003.  219-224.  Print.

Newsom, Jennifer S., dir.  Miss Representation.  Girls Club Entertainment, 2011.  Film.

 

Teen Focused Website

As I was searching Google for websites I tried different keywords phrases: how should my body look?, teen fashion, how do I get a guy to like me?  The last phrase brought about the most results.  Interestingly I first went to a bizarre website with more quizzes like the ones we discussed earlier in the semester.  After some digging I found this website http://www.girlslife.com/.  It appears to be a bevy of all kinds of topics from "how to get fit while you babysit", "10 weird boob qs", and "diy sugar high", and the list goes on.  This was an interesting website as it does not intially appear as "bad" as some of the others, with a "safe" look, but clearly some of the topics are just as destructive.

Girl Power Play Rationale

Ann Cooper

Meredith Tweed

WST 4022

October 25, 2012

Girl Power Play Rationale

            Girl Power Play, created as a part of the UCF Day for the Young Women Leaders Program (YWLP), has four main objectives: facilitate activities that will demonstrate the diverse and often overlooked ways in which our bodies perform; reveal how leadership is enacted through the body and its many functions; experience how bodies work and lead in different ways to do different things, and when they work together to complete common goals, community is created; feel and utilize the strength and power of our bodies, however they emerge and manifest.  These four objectives, of which are important in changing the discourse about the body, will be accomplished through activities such as the Human Pyramid and the Blindfold Challenge.

            “Big” and “strong” are just not used to describe little girls in our society.  Already, at birth, the molding of a girl into an object of beauty—and nothing else—begins (Cabell, 162).  Gender norms and the conversations around them begin at very young ages for both boys and girls as Cabell discussed in “Broken Up Over Gender Bias”.  By guiding the girls in activities that will give them a different view of their body and how it functions, works, and performs we can begin to re-address the term “strong”.  Through strength and leadership activities they themselves will learn ways to change the dialogue surrounding them.

            At the same time that it is important to address societies, and possibly the girls, views on being “strong” we can work to reach goals that Torres set out for herself: my mind had to be convinced that my body could do the impossible (222).  Though we are not implying that things are “impossible” for the girls of the YWLP, we are asking them to think outside the box and look at what more their body can do.  By becoming less focused on the way their body looks and more concerned with what it can do (Torres, 222) the girls again can change the dominate discourse involving the body as only something to be discussed in terms of looks. 

            The UCF Day lesson plan, Girl Power Play, may only be a small part of their day, week, or even year.  The goal of the plan is to send them away with a message; to help them see a different perspective than the one portrayed in the main-stream media.  As many of the readings have suggested, and in particular “Broken Up Over Gender Bias” girls are given the idea that they can’t be “strong” from an early age.  The girls will see that they can be strong and with that strength they will be able to form relationships of teamwork and leadership with their peers and their bodies.  By meeting our objectives we will aid the girls in understanding their bodies and what they can do (Torres, 221).

Work Cited

Matilsky, Sarabeth.  “Broken Up Over Gender Bias.”  blue jean: What Young Women are Thinking, Saying, and Doing.  Ed.  Sherry S. Handel.  Rochester, NY:  blue jean press,  2001.  160-166.  Print.

Torres, Allison.  “At Home in My Body.”  Body Outlaws: Rewriting the Rules of Beauty and Body Image.  Ed.  Ophira Edut.  Emeryville, CA:  Seal Press,  2003.  219-224.  Print.

Gloria Steinem Legislative Lunch

Ann Cooper

October 22, 2012

WST4022

Meredith Tweed

Gloria Steinem Legislative Lunch

            Gloria Steinem is seen by many as the leader of the feminist movement in America.  A journalist, author, social and political activist, teacher, and a woman she has been able to use her voice to speak for those whose voices are not heard.  After attending the universities legislative lunch my biggest take away was an answer to a question posed by an audience member: “We can find our feminist identity in our own way.” 

            As a young female with a desire to understand and help other females I enrolled in the Women’s Studies program to give myself a broader view of the plight of the female.  I felt it was important for me to be able to think outside the box and gain a different perspective other than my own.  Interestingly, in a program that it is set to reach all women and not just middle class white women, I did not know where I fit.  Should I be ashamed of the opportunities that I’d been given?  Do I have the right to have an opinion on other’s issues and troubles?  Am I a feminist?

            A year and a half of wondering was answered simply and succinctly by Ms. Steinem.  Of course I am.  I may not “look” like the stereotypical feminist, but that’s good because feminism to me means fighting stereotypes; what does a feminist look like anyways?  I may not have, or always comprehend, the “answers”, but that’s okay because I’m not there to provide the answers but to ask the questions.  Isn’t that what it’s about, asking the questions?

            Arriving on Friday I was appreciative of the opportunity to hear from Ms. Steinem and curious as to what she would share.  I left with a surprisingly new perspective.  I’ve been trying to figure out how to fit myself into a “box” and struggling.  Instead, I can now spend that energy working on creating my own feminist identity.

           

Service Learning 10/6

I am really getting excited about what we are doing for our girls on UCF days and in particular on the Body Workshop day.  While it took us awhile to get things going I think that we really are on a role now!

I am personally excited and proud of the ideas that we have created for the Body Workshop day.  The flow of our day really is going to focus on giving the girls a different way to talk about their body, a different dialogue.  Obviously, as young girls we/they are taught to focus on the aesthetics of the body, what it looks like, what size it is, and most importantly what problems it has.  The essence of the BODY PROJECT.  For the workshop we are going to direct the girls, through a fun project, to talk about the way that their bodies actually work, what they do, how they connect to the world with them and through them. 

Our text, mainly the Body Project, discusses the different courses that different eras have taken to "deal" with and "teach" young girls about their bodies.  Most of the conversations ended in either there being a need to buy something, the limitations of what the female body can/should do, but mainly the need to fix them.  We are really trying to focus on the endless amounts of things that the body can do and allows us to do.

Service Learning 9/29

I am very excited that our service learning project has FINALLY gotten on track.  We had a great meeting yesterday, at which I feel we got quite a bit accomplished.  I have also found that some of my experience in retail management is coming handy with managing our meeting agendas and the accountability process we have estabilished.  This weekend I am going to work on coming up with some concrete ideas, based on previous brainstorming, for our Body Workshop day. 

This project is really working to help me look at the different things we are reading and how they can be applied to the everyday lay person (girl).  I also feel that this is going to be extremely beneficial for me in my future career goals.

Discussion of Thursday's Readings

In class we have discussed several different aspects of society’s idea of how to “handle” the female body.  Throughout history the female body has been looked at or “handled” by pretending nothing’s really happening, by medicalizing it and giving the job of “looking after” it to medical doctors and the pharmaceutical industry, by commercializing and building the consumption of products, and disguising much of this in health.  I feel that there is a huge miss (obviously!) in disguising the body project in health. 

            The body is obviously about health, but magazines, marketing, and society have been using the term health rather freely.  Our readings from Thursday’s class, mainly Leonard Sax’s “Why are so many girls cutting themselves?” and “Unwanted” by Sicangu Lakota reiterated my feelings that there is a huge “miss” in our medicalization and misuse of health in terms of young girls’ bodies.

            Now, and very much in the past, the mental health system has missed the idea that girls and boys simply are different and should be treated differently when it comes to issues of mental health, especially when it comes to the body.  Sax (2010) discusses how many girls are either cutting themselves or partaking in some other form of Non-Suicidal Self Injury (NSSI).  The write-up also, mentions a major issue with the DSM-V’s criteria for the diagnosis does not address the gender differences of self-injury (Sax, 2010).  I have also done quite a bit of reading from a source that Sax cites, Susan Nolen-Hoeksema.  Much of her research is on adolescent girls and how we as a society are often teaching them to not actively deal, which is how we teach our boys, with their problems, but to spend much of their time talking and thinking about their feelings.  As a side effect of this girls are turning to their body and taking out their problems on it (Nolen-Hoeksema, 2006).  The girls mentioned Sax’s articles do not “show” as out of control or depressed, but instead are actually very good at presenting themselves as very much together (Sax, 2010).

            While Sax (2010) seems to be discussing the girl who on the outside has it all together, is pretty, and “meeting the gender-specific societal expectations”; Lakota (2002) is a girl of color with a different story that ends the same.  Her inner-turmoil has caused her to take it out on her body.  She spends so much time thinking about cutting and even suicide that she also falls through the cracks.  Unfortunately and probably because she does not meet the grouping that Sax describes her treatment by the system and the mental health system was not what the girl described in Sax’s article would receive.

            To bring it back to what I set out to say, I feel that the mental “health” and medical systems are letting girls down.  They are not treated or seen for their specific needs.  There is a serious need to understand why we are showing or telling our girls to hold their feelings in or to only deal with their issues by only talking about emotions.  We need to empower them to use their bodies, voices, and minds to actively handle the problems.  We need to work harder to understand why girls are turning to “hurting” their bodies to release the pain. 

Additional References

Nolen-Hoeksema, S. (2006). Eating, drinking, overthinking: The toxic triangle of food alcohol, and depression—and how women can break free.  New York, NY:  Henry Holt and Company, LLC.

Service Learning 9/19--LOVE YOUR BODY

I really wanted to share this website on my blog.  I found it while doing research for some activities that we can do with the girls.  I really think it's important to remember who our audience is.  This is about the girls, and we really need to focus on making this about them and not get lost in our "own" needs.  Anyways, that was a little bit of a rant. 

http://loveyourbody.nowfoundation.org/whatyoucando.html

Every day, in so many ways, the beauty industry (and the media in general) tell women and girls that being admired, envied and desired based on their looks is a primary function of true womanhood. The beauty template women are expected to follow is extremely narrow, unrealistic and frequently hazardous to their health. The Love Your Body campaign challenges the message that a woman's value is best measured through her willingness and ability to embody current beauty standards. (taken from the above website)

This is a great campaign that is for EVERYONE!!  I very much like their poster contest and feel that it would be a great project to share with the girls.

About Me

Well, my name is Ann Cooper and I go by Ann.  My journey began in Melbourne Beach, Florida, where I was born and raised.  After graduating from high school in 2001 I attended Auburn University for a communications degree.  After realizing that maybe I wasn’t a hundred percent sure on that path I moved to New York City.  While in the city “finding myself” I took classes at Parson’s and the Fashion Institute, as well as worked in visual merchandising for Saks Fifth Avenue. 

After working several different jobs in retail I found myself back in school about two years ago.  I have loved every minute of being back in school, no matter how hard it has been, because I am finally studying something I love.  I am extremely excited to be in my last semester as a senior in Psychology with my minor in Women’s Studies. 

I am also excited that this class was added so that I could take it before leaving.  One of the main reasons I was interested in this class is because I would really like to use my degree to work with females, in particular those in the 18-28 year old range.  While that isn’t in the range of girlhood I feel that the things that happen to young girls are what create who they are in young adulthood.  Many young women have terrible body images because of what they were told, shown, or heard as a young girl.  I believe that learning more about the “girl” will help me in treating and helping the “young woman.” 

In addition to learning about girls and their body images I also want to learn about some of the major issues surrounding body image.  I have been working on an Honors in the Major project, which involves female issues, and through it I have read many articles and a few books.  One of the biggest things I have learned about and I want to learn even more about is how girls and women do things to their body to deal with inner turmoil.  Whether it is through eating, alcohol, drugs, or hurting oneself it seems that girls and women do something to their body to solve, and only temporarily, their problems.  An author and psychologist whose work I have been following is Susan Nolan-Hoeksema, and I would recommend reading any of her articles or her books. 

I am really looking forward to working with everyone and most of all learning from everyone!