18 Empowering Illustrations to Remind Everyone Who's Really in Charge of Women's Bodies

http://mic.com/articles/92651/18-empowering-illustrations-to-remind-everyone-who-s-really-in-charge-of-women-s-bodies

Many of these remarks are not only directed at women for not strictly following the 'stereotypes' re sex roles (ie. not having children, not wearing makeup etc) but also things like racism, homophobia, age-ism, religious bigotry, alternato-phobia, size-ism and able-ism - it is often the women who face other 'disadvantages' or who are in other 'other' groups that also bear the brunt of these remarks about 'otherness' much more than men.

Yes, I have been criticized for what I wear, how I behave towards others, even for what I must be thinking - yep, I've experienced sexism of all sorts, 'able-ism', size-ism, alternato-phobia (because of my liking of heavy metal), religious bigotry (even though I come from a Judeo-Christian background myself), age-ism.  And even though I am straight and white, I still experience homophobia and racism (agree or disagree, we 'whities' also experience racism at one time or another, so just because I'm white, it doesn't mean I don't cop it).

However, she also left out a few ones that I would have included:

Take the example of being 'asexual':

1. even though I'm not a lesbian, I have been still accused of being one if I don't like every man in this universe, and a 'good man will fix that'; 
2. or if I do like men, that I must be a 'slut'.  
3. If I'm not a lesbian and rejected the advances of a lesbian woman, then maybe I'm really homophobic and/or 'in the closet' as some would say.   

Other things than an 'asexual' person might cop inclued:  

1. Maybe they're that way because they're 'not getting any' (when really, in this day and age, even being gay is considered 'better' than not being sexual at all in this increasingly sexualized world).  So because they aren't 'doing anything', they get laughed at or looked down upon because they 'must be boring';  
2. Or if someone doesn't get 'turned on' at the time, then something 'must be wrong' with them.  Never mind that the one 'not being turned on' might simply be 'not into' this person, what is expected from them is not their style, maybe the person 'wanting it' has done something to turn them person off, or maybe it's something else (such as being physically unwell at the time) :)

It doesn't make them less of a person, just because they aren't 'doing anything' at the time, or 'not doing anything' at all.  It doesn't have to mean they are in the closet, that they are 'hung up' and 'in need of a cure'.

So basically, people (especially women) get the impression that they are 'dammed if they do, damned if they don't' - a real double bind.

cheers,
Colleen