Shakira doesn't lie, especially when it comes to taking a dissenting stance. In a surprising revelation, Colombian musician Shakira called the Barbie movie “emasculating” and said it “robs men of their possibility to be men”. Shakira didn’t shy away from putting forth her personal opinion on this critically acclaimed and hailed movie. She said: “My sons absolutely hated it. They felt that it was emasculating. And I agree, to a certain extent.”
Let Men Be Men
Shakira further said, “I like pop culture when it attempts to empower women without robbing men of their possibility to be men, to also protect and provide. I believe in giving women all the tools and the trust that we can do it all without losing our essence, without losing our femininity. I think that men have a purpose in society and women have another purpose as well. We complement each other, and that complement should not be lost.”
As expected, Shakira’s views are being endorsed by conservative critics and commentators like Piers Morgan who are hailing her for standing up for men being men.
In a world characterised by post-modernist tendencies like anti-foundationalism and anti-universalism, there is a push-back against all things traditional and stereotypical. There is no one way to be “a man”. There is no one way to be “a woman”. It truly seems “gender is a performative act” and anyone could be whoever they wanted to be.
It’s also most definitely true that Shakira is entitled to her opinions and her views do not interrupt any feminist ideas. They don’t threaten the feminism of Barbie. Having said that, the problem arises when conservatives like Piers Morgan who are on the lookout to attack women and feminists for being an anti-men ideology co-opt a woman’s views to justify their evil, patriarchal standards. What then happens is men like Morgan very easily shrug away their responsibilities and accountability. We can’t call them out because these are not their words, but a woman’s- a high, profile woman.
So, while I do agree that men and women have distinctive purposes in society, I don’t think they are mutually exclusive. Yes, we complement each other but not in a rigid, socially constructed way. Yes, the complement should not be lost but the deeply patriarchal connotation must, at all cost, be lost. Yes, empowering women shouldn’t mean disempowering men, I agree. And I think Gerwig and Margot Robbie also agree because they never, at any point, disempowered our ‘Ken’.
So, men can be men, as long as they don’t try to be ‘the man’.
Views expressed by the author's own.
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Shakira Calls Barbie Movie 'Emasculating' - Says "My Sons Hated It"
In a surprising revelation, Colombian musician Shakira called the Barbie movie “emasculating” and said it “robs men of their possibility to be men.”
Getty Images
Shakira doesn't lie, especially when it comes to taking a dissenting stance. In a surprising revelation, Colombian musician Shakira called the Barbie movie “emasculating” and said it “robs men of their possibility to be men”. Shakira didn’t shy away from putting forth her personal opinion on this critically acclaimed and hailed movie. She said: “My sons absolutely hated it. They felt that it was emasculating. And I agree, to a certain extent.”
Let Men Be Men
Shakira further said, “I like pop culture when it attempts to empower women without robbing men of their possibility to be men, to also protect and provide. I believe in giving women all the tools and the trust that we can do it all without losing our essence, without losing our femininity. I think that men have a purpose in society and women have another purpose as well. We complement each other, and that complement should not be lost.”
As expected, Shakira’s views are being endorsed by conservative critics and commentators like Piers Morgan who are hailing her for standing up for men being men.
In a world characterised by post-modernist tendencies like anti-foundationalism and anti-universalism, there is a push-back against all things traditional and stereotypical. There is no one way to be “a man”. There is no one way to be “a woman”. It truly seems “gender is a performative act” and anyone could be whoever they wanted to be.
It’s also most definitely true that Shakira is entitled to her opinions and her views do not interrupt any feminist ideas. They don’t threaten the feminism of Barbie. Having said that, the problem arises when conservatives like Piers Morgan who are on the lookout to attack women and feminists for being an anti-men ideology co-opt a woman’s views to justify their evil, patriarchal standards. What then happens is men like Morgan very easily shrug away their responsibilities and accountability. We can’t call them out because these are not their words, but a woman’s- a high, profile woman.
So, while I do agree that men and women have distinctive purposes in society, I don’t think they are mutually exclusive. Yes, we complement each other but not in a rigid, socially constructed way. Yes, the complement should not be lost but the deeply patriarchal connotation must, at all cost, be lost. Yes, empowering women shouldn’t mean disempowering men, I agree. And I think Gerwig and Margot Robbie also agree because they never, at any point, disempowered our ‘Ken’.
So, men can be men, as long as they don’t try to be ‘the man’.
Views expressed by the author's own.