Usually sexist jibes, statements, or even t-shirt logos, have some kind of juvenile or puerile humour to them. There’s more often than not a slight hint of tongue-in-cheek that allows most women to just pass off the remark or slogan as ‘stupid banter’ – even if they are seething inside. It’s just easier and we know it’s not meant with ‘any real harm’.
However, this crass message stitched onto the label in these cheap chinos from Madhouse, genuinely took me aback.
There was no attempt at wit, and unlike the Topman t-shirts, which offended so many with their brazen slogans to be worn across young men’s chests - this was a hidden message - or rather an order, intended to encourage women to reassume their once their ‘proper place’ (in the home) and young men to maintain the expectations of their grandfathers.
Even the language – ‘Your Woman’ – presupposed some kind of Neanderthal mentality from my boyfriend, an unwilling shopper after some affordable chinos – preferably not lined with sexist imperatives.
When I posted a photo of the humourless trouser label onto Twitter yesterday, ironically two days before the 101st International Women’s Day – I had no idea how large the reaction would be.
Suddenly I was inundated with both women and men calling for me to ‘name and shame’ the brand behind such a tasteless stitching.
Hundreds of tweeters were soon expressing their own shock at the washing instruction and letting me know that they would boycott Madhouse – even though the majority of them had never heard of this discounts men’s clothing shop. The subject even started trending on Twitter.
But then, cue the predictable minority chorus of men telling me to “lighten up” and “learn how to take a joke” and the women who love to be ‘one of the boys’ and live in fear of being called a ‘feminist’, informing me of how “hilarious” the message was. One man told me not to “get my knickers in a twist” - which albeit patronising, was at least an attempt at humour.
And yet, that’s just it. If the comment had been remotely funny – I would have been the first to laugh and shrug it off – as it really wouldn’t have bothered me enough to photograph it, tweet it and then write about it. But it was the lack of any implied humour and the horrible surprise of such an incongruous message hidden away inside some trousers, that left me just plain stunned.
We really are in a bad place as a society when laughing something off has become virtually the only response to anything vaguely anti-female, or anti-male for that matter. When football pundit Andy Gray, was sacked by Sky Sports News, and his colleague Richard Keys resigned over their respective sexist remarks last year – there was an enormous pressure for women to laugh their remarks off as ‘lads being lads’ – when that simply just was not the case.
People have also expressed their frustration to me that through highlighting this chauvinist label, I have given Madhouse great publicity and it will financially benefit. Really? It can hardly claim the same brand awareness level as the likes of Topman – plus the company has yet to even respond – or fix its dreadful website – which has been down for at least the last three days. This is a moot point. I don’t think anybody expects hordes of people to specially seek out Madhouse as their shopping destination this weekend.
Some sexist remarks are funny; but some really aren’t. The individuals and brands behind the offensive ones deserve outing and shaming. And just remember - the people pointing out these inappropriate comments can still have a perfectly decent sense of humour.
![Being able to lift 267 pounds is only one of the things that makes 18 year-old British Olympic weightlifter Zoe Smith tough. She can also swat down sexist Twitter trolls like they’re flies.
While Smith was preparing to set an Olympic record for Great Britain in the clean-and-jerk event, men (and some women) on Twitter were busy saying she wasn’t attractive enough, or that she was manly, or that there was something wrong with her body because she was so muscular.
So Smith took to her blog to respond:
[We] don’t lift weights in order to look hot, especially for the likes of men like that. What makes them think that we even WANT them to find us attractive? If you do, thanks very much, we’re flattered. But if you don’t, why do you really need to voice this opinion in the first place, and what makes you think we actually give a toss that you, personally, do not find us attractive? What do you want us to do? Shall we stop weightlifting, amend our diet in order to completely get rid of our ‘manly’ muscles, and become housewives in the sheer hope that one day you will look more favourably upon us and we might actually have a shot with you?! Cause you are clearly the kindest, most attractive type of man to grace the earth with your presence.
Oh but wait, you aren’t. This may be shocking to you, but we actually would rather be attractive to people who aren’t closed-minded and ignorant. Crazy, eh?! We, as any women with an ounce of self-confidence would, prefer our men to be confident enough in themselves to not feel emasculated by the fact that we aren’t weak and feeble.
Sexism seems to be almost as common as sweat at this year’s Olympics — which has a record number of women participating — from female boxers being asked to wear skirts to differentiate them from the men to women’s teams taking coach while men’s fly first class.](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m866w96dD71r9d5u1o1_400.jpg)
