Violence is the New Black: Fifty Shades and the Glamorisation of Abuse Melinda Tankard Reist ABC Religion and Ethics 9 Feb 2017 “Every fairy tale has a dark side.” That’s the motto of the just released film Fifty Shades Darker, the second in the trilogy of films adapted from E.L. James’s Fifty Shades pulp fiction […]
Collective Shout, Australia; The London Abused Women’s Centre, Canada; Culture Reframed, USA; and The National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE), USA, are collaborating for the second time to reject the normalisation of violence and abuse against women portrayed in the franchise Fifty Shades of Grey, the most recent installment of which is the movie Fifty […]
The most potent and powerful expose of the hypocrisy that is the public pornification of breasts and the shaming of breast feeding mothers.
‘The proliferation and globalisation of hypersexualised imagery and pornographic themes has led to destructive ideas about sex and makes healthy sexual exploration almost impossible…the weight of evidence about the trends in online consumption of pornography by children and young people, and the harms associated with online consumption of pornography, point to the urgent need to […]
Governments and regulatory bodies continue to ignore the culture drivers fueling sexist attitudes and behaviours This week we’ve had big name global clothing companies General Pants, Calvin Klein and Queensland fast food eatery, Burger Urge, in our sights. GP and CK are repeat offenders. It’s the first time this slimy burger chain has come to […]
“[I want] better education regarding sex for both boys and girls [and] information about pornography, and the way it influences harmful sexual practices.” These are the words of Lucy, aged 15, one of 600 young Australian women and girls who took part in a just-released survey commissioned by Plan Australia and Our Watch. The survey, conducted […]
An amazing trip I recently returned from a lengthy speaking tour which took me to Brisbane, Sydney, Adelaide and New Zealand. I addressed schools, women’s conferences, youth groups, health and wellbeing events and The Mask You Live In. In New Zealand I was a guest of TEARFund, speaking on what I call ‘Everyday Trafficking’ –the […]
Ja feel men’s fashion label: corporate sexual predator promoting non-consensual sex acts Ja feel men’s fashion label: corporate sexual predator promoting non-consensual sex acts. Australian company, Ja feel, promotes the sexual abuse and degradation of women and girls (as well as pornographic imagery and racist stereotypes) all in the name of marketing their “lifestyle brand.” […]
Sexualised Violence isn’t Alright, Just because a Woman is the Perpetrator BBHMM revels in the eroticization of total power, control and domination over another woman. But we are expected to see it as empowering, because Rihanna and her henchwomen are the agents of this control By Melinda Tankard Reist A frame from Rihanna’s new video […]
Porn’s distortions need addressing in schools say educators The ABC filmed me addressing students at Healthdale Christian College in Melbourne last Wednesday. Some of the students were interviewed – hear how well they articulate the issues! (click on image below for link to video) MELINDA TANKARD REIST, AUTHOR, ADVOCATE FOR WOMEN AND GIRLS: Our boys […]
How sexualised behaviour has become the new normal While the content was disturbing, it was encouraging to wake up to the front page of The Australian on the weekend and see the issues myself and my colleagues write and speak about most days, reflected on the front page. A news piece titled ‘Click bait: kids […]
I’m quoted in this article by Kasey Edwards in Daily Life today: …This is symptomatic of a broader attitude where sex is regarded as solely about male pleasure and male desires. The man decides and the woman provides. Women having sex for their own pleasure is rarely portrayed in popular culture, porn or even sex […]
