Education staff member Kathy Seipp and Apple Valley High School student MacKenzie Ellis conducted a workshop in honor of the 2010 International Women’s Day entitled: Challenge the Media: End the Sexualization of Girls and Young Women in Mainstream Media. The workshop analyzed the impact of media on the rights of girls and young women from an international human rights framework, specifically Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which states that girls have the right to safe, self-directed, and healthy sexual lives; free of coercion, exploitation and abuse.
According to Ms. Seipp, the idea for this workshop evolved from personal experience. While raising three young children in today’s society she noticed that more frequently that ever that mainstream media such as TV commercials, movies, music lyrics, and even Halloween costumes, sexually exploit girls and young women perpetuating unhealthy and unrealistic stereotypical portrayals of both young men and women. The idea came about to challenge the media and it proved to be an overwhelming success!
Over 100 people attended the interactive workshop. Participants, men and women of all ages, were given the task of brainstorming possible solutions to this problem. Some of the recommendations from those in attendance were: start petitions and blog about inappropriate TV ads, support female writers and directors in the film industry, give incentives to those promoting positive images in the music industry, apply TV ratings to commercials and hold major networks accountable.
“The Challenge the Media Workshop was a great opportunity to network with people in different occupations who all care about kids and the toxic messages that they are receiving. It was action oriented and motivating. We can take steps to turn things around and engage others to help. We can and we must. Thanks Kathy!” Patty Wetterling, Program Director, Sexual Violence Prevention Minnesota Department of Health.
One year later, and Challenge the Media has proven to be an even more overwhelming success! The Education and Women's Programs collaborated in a recent film series event, and used our Challenge the Media resources to facilitate a discussion after the showing of the new "Killing Us Softly 4". The turnout was astounding! Over 130 kids and adults, crowded into a St. Paul library and shared ideas about how to speak out against the violent and sexual images seen too often in mainstream media.
Click here to download the informational handout.