Hello to anyone reading! My name is Amina, and I’m currently a freshman at University of Maryland College Park. I am studying Neurobiology and Physiology as a pre-dental student. Once I complete my undergraduate and graduate degrees, I hope to start my career as a dentist and eventually develop my own clinic. Other than career goals, I enjoy fashion, makeup, and art. You can find me on twitter at Amina8mazhar.
The Barbie on the left looks like the typical toy that most girls or boys play with as children. The Barbie on the right is a newly developed version that represents what ‘real’ women look like, compared to the common Barbie.
This picture is from an article in the Huffington Post. It presents an issue that most people argue about regarding the unattainable standards that society places on women’s bodies. The Barbie on the left is tall and thin compared to the Barbie on the right. However, the Barbie on the right is what a typical woman’s body looks like. The argument amongst this issue is that society targets women to look a specific way rather than embracing different body types. If a girl is playing with the Barbie on the left, the shape and image of that Barbie will be engrained in her mind. Most girls and women these days have negative body images due to these standards that are placed in their minds of what they should look like.
I am looking forward to the Digital Activism Unit. I find it interesting how much the internet can impact various issues going on in the world. A simple hashtag can spread the word about a specific topic, which can lead to mainly positive but sometimes negative impacts.
Great choice of example; the “real” Barbie may not be an Internet-specific phenomenon, but she has been the subject of a lot of discussions for all the reasons you explain. Glad to hear you are looking forward to exploring digital activism further!