Femen Frenzy

By Megan Badger

Woman activists from Europe known as "Femen" gathered at the Italian Embassy in Kiev on February 14th 2011 to protest against the Prime Minister, Silvio Berlusconi. Berlusconi, already considered to be corrupt by many, is being accused of changing the birth records of the beautiful under age dancer, Karima El Mahroug. Silvio changed her records so she would be 18 years old, the legal age for sex with an adult. Karima, famously known by her stage name Ruby, says that she received seven thousand Euros from him in return for sex. However he denies this and said the money was him “merely wanting to help someone in difficulty.” Italian women supported by Ukrainian feminists are outraged by this scandal. Women in this country are seen to have no use, except for sexual pleasures, and now that they have an opportunity to speak out for themselves – Berlusconi denies all allegations.

In this image a woman is dangling a pair of sexy lingerie panties in the face of a male police officer. By doing this she is saying she wants “Equality!” and “Respect!” and that she “Is more than this thong!” On the internet this image is accompanied with numerous other photos of women bending over in front of the men while flipping them off. In a way it is very ironic, they are dressed up representing the way that men see and use them: sexual objects. On a video a woman speaks about the controversy saying, “I am a twenty-seven year old woman and being young in Italy is a disgrace! We are not considered useful.” They are not happy that men see their only use as sex objects.

These women want to be respected and not seen as just an object. They want a change, and this protest just might be the turning point. They want to be known for their personality and as a friend, rather than just an intimate partner. Although as stated earlier there is sort of an ironic twist with this whole scandal. Maybe men do not grant women with the utmost respect that they deserve, due to the way certain women put themselves out there. The way they dress and their attitudes in some ways represent themselves as only sex objects. So this may be the leading factor of how this controversy erupted.

These women are transgressing numerous stereotypes of how feminine women should act. They are protesting together against this showing that they not only care about politics but that they are taking action in them as well. They aren’t going about this in timid quiet ways; these women are being rather aggressive about it all. They show no fear through their yelling and raunchy gestures made towards the men and police officers. They are doing this as one. They are unified, not separate in anyway. They are all in the same situation that is why they are supporting one another.

The women activists of Italy are doing what needs to be done. However it needs to be known that this is a reoccurring problem, not only in this country but all over the world. Berlusconi should take responsibility for his actions and pay the price, time in jail for his crime against a minor and for his dishonesty. Women should work harder to be known for their personalities, so that mean will not see them as only sex objects. In every society, women need to come together as one and demand equality and most importantly, respect.