Stuff that is “for women” always gets made fun of. When something is embraced by mostly women it gets called “stupid” or “frivolous.” How often do we use the phrase, “That’s for 12-year-old girls!” It’s annoying. Um, do 12-year-old boys have exquisite taste in high art? Just because a lot of women gravitate toward something doesn’t mean it’s stupid and “girlie.” Yes, it maybe a little frivolous but most things are. No one needs romantic comedies but no one needs Jason Statham movies either.
When stuff gets labeled as girlie it also stops guys from liking it because in a lot of people’s heads girlie = dumb. Someone I know actually told me he would be “Way into The Hunger Games if it wasn’t for girls.” What the?! If you like something then like it, fool. Look, I am not pretending that there is anything “deep” about Pinterest or manicures but there’s nothing deep about male-targeted things like beer pong and sneaker culture. Obviously any gender can like any number of things but the stuff that is targeted to dudes is always “cool” and things that are for women are perceived as “cute and ditzy.” I say we take back the girlie stuff. We own it. These supposedly “stupid” things bring us a lot of joy. Not only is girlie not a bad it word, it doesn’t really have any meaning. Girls—women—we have multitudes, there’s simply no way of deciding or reducing us to any core aesthetic, style or set of preferences. Sports are girlie. Math is girlie. Shopping is girlie. Lipstick is girlie. Astronauts are girlie. They’re all boyish too.
These are the “stupid, girlie” things I have no plans on removing from my life even if people don’t take them seriously.
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