Book now for 2021! I am so pleased to see new speaking engagements coming in for 2021, after having lost most of my work in 2020. I will never take them for granted again! A special bonus is that I now have a young man working with me, a natural speaker with a special message […]
The shame is not with young women’s sexuality but with a culture that teaches them that is their only value Melinda Tankard Reist Everywhere girls turn they absorb messages which tell them their value and worth is in their sexual allure and their ability to attract sexual attention. Messages from media and popular culture tell […]
Media Release Grassroots campaigning movement Collective Shout has captured images of children participating in Easter activities being exposed to porn-themed shop front displays in WA shopping centres. Vicinity Centres-owned Galleria Morley and AMP Capital-managed Karrinyup Centre invited children to ‘Meet the Easter Bunny’ have their faces painted and hunt for Easter eggs within metres of […]
What happened to your body image and self-respect policies Girlfriend mag? In the year 2013, I wrote the ‘Girl Mag Watch’ reviews for Generation Next, which were published on the website of the youth mental health social enterprise and in its newsletters to thousands of subscribers. I reviewed Girlfriend and Dolly (an example of a review can be found here). […]
The heartbreaking realities of dealing with sexist treatment every day I’ve been documenting the experiences of girls everywhere I travel. I write down what they tell me (for example, as documented in this piece ‘Growing up in Pornland: Girls have had it with porn conditioned boys’ published by the ABC). Increasingly, with their permission, I’m […]
Stop the mutilation of women’s bodies for profit! If you missed ABC Four Corners searing expose of Australia’s cosmetic surgery industry and its callous disregard for the health and wellbeing of women, you really should take a look. You will see how the cosmetic surgery industry preys on the body angst of vulnerable women and […]
Free from ‘toxic chemicals.’ Not free from toxic messages Last week, 15 girls aged 14-16, and involved with Fusion Mornington Peninsula’s Real Girls program, took on Australian make-up and skincare brand Frank Body over its lip and cheek ‘Send Nudes’ product. Fusion Mornington Peninsula June 7 at 5:50pm Dear Frank Body, I am speaking on […]
Company apologises for ‘error’ after outcry including from eating disorder specialists It’s so good to be able to share another win with supporters. This one thanks to 13-year-old Melbourne teen Naomi, who spotted this billboard advertising the DFO at Morabbin Airport in Melbourne. Naomi told her mother, long time supporter Gloria Anderson, who texted me […]
An open letter to Weight Watchers International By Sarah McMahon I discovered today that Weight Watchers International is offering free membership for teenagers aged 13 to 17 under the guise of “helping the development of healthy habits at a critical life stage”. This was announced this week, simultaneously with their three year “2020 goal”, which […]
“Every time you spend money, you’re casting a vote for the kind of world you want” – Anna Lappe There are too many companies who want you to think they care about corporate social responsibility (CSR) when they clearly don’t. Every year we collate a list of the worst for you to send a message […]
‘I shaved my pubic hair and became highly sexual…my innocence was stolen from me’ Jemima (her real name withheld by request) is a 19 year old university student living in Melbourne. At age 10 she saw pornography for the first time. Her life began to unravel, culminating in sexual assault by a group of teen […]
Empowering boys to change Recently I addressed Year 10 girls and boys at a school in NSW. During question time at the end of my presentation, one of the young women read out a Facebook post by a male peer, filled with disparaging descriptions of the girls in his class. The girls were clearly […]
