This past month, the nation tuned in to see which of their favorite movies of the year would earn a coveted golden trophy at the 91st annual Academy Awards. Upon first glance at the nominees represented by the academy, women seemed to have a record year. In the categories that were gender neutral, 52 women were nominated. This number was up from the previous year’s 44. However, many of the largest awards of the night were underwhelmingly diverse in gender.
The co-founder of the Women’s Media Center stated that “A nomination for an Academy Award can open doors… With three out of every four non-acting nominations going to men, women, again, are missing that stamp of approval.” No females were nominated in categories such as cinematography, editing score, visual effects, or director. In fact, only five women have been nominated for best director in Academy Award History.
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This is exceedingly frustrating due to the number of outstanding films directed by women in the past few decades, such as Big, Clueless, and American Psycho, as well as other groundbreaking pieces. Not only are actresses and females who work behind the scenes not getting equal opportunities, stories of women are not being told on screen. As stated by Jessica Chastain: “”We need more diversity. We’re not telling the stories of many, we’re telling the stories of few.
There’s a problem with the storytelling, with the protagonists…it’s in front of the camera, it’s behind the camera…This is not how we want to be working and we need to tell the stories of all.”” When their stories are not being told, the public is not able to be educated on things that they are ignorant of. This enables a cycle of mistreatment and inequality that has continued on since the film industry started.
While social media and activist movements led by women in the last few decades have stressed the need for equal representation on and behind the screen, progress continues to be frustratingly slow. While gender stereotypes in movies and televisions have received more of a negative connotation as of late, women continue to be taken advantage of in the industry. New inequalities are brought to light everyday in the form of sexual harassment, unequal pay, and discrimination in the distribution of jobs. If change is going to be made, women need to band together as they have been doing in the past few years and use their platform in Hollywood to speak out about bias happening in the industry.
This paper will cover the stereotypes that were being portrayed on screen 30 years ago through examples and why those stereotypes are not seen as often now in film, as strong female characters are appearing in movies more often. Next, it will compare the privileges given to straight, white men versus women in the industry and what is continuously allowing women to be taken advantage of. After that, the Me Too Movement and other activist movements will be discussed and the impact they have on the fight for women’s rights. Finally, the future will be theorized and how the banding together of women can change gender stereotypes for young girls.
Gender Stereotypes Portrayed On Screen
Before the turn of the millenium, women were being portrayed on screen in repetitive tropes, and constantly used as plot devices to motivate the male characters in the story. Female characters are seen as undesirable when they are nerdy and book-smart, and are only worthy of positive recognition when they are transformed with a wardrobe change and a makeover. In She’s All That, a movie from the 1990’s, Laney Boggs is a social outcast because of her traditionally “nerdy” lifestyle, and only gains attention when she is “transformed into a social butterfly by changing her clothes, hair, and taking off her glasses.” The fact that Laney is not valued for her art skills or her kindness by her peers before she is physically transformed is pinpointing the fact that women are only valuable for the way that they look.
Women are often seen as sexual objects, especially in sitcoms from past decades. They do not have much storyline of their own, and exist solely for the male characters enjoyment. Although the three female leads in Friends, a 90’s sitcom, have many empowering moments throughout the show, there are also examples of them being treated unfairly due to their gender. As stated by Ilana Kaplan, author for The Independent, “storylines laced with homophobia, sexism, borderline emotional abuse and sexual harassment are portrayed as punchlines…
Truth be told, several of the jokes written in the show that began 24 years ago probably would be thrown out before they even got into the writer’s room.” In one such instance, Joey, who is known for being a womanizer on the show, compares women to flavors of ice cream when comforting Ross through a divorce. “What are you talking about ‘One woman’? That’s like saying there’s only one flavor of ice cream for you… There’s Rocky Road, and Cookie Dough… Grab a spoon!” By comparing women to flavors of ice cream that men can enjoy whenever they please, Joey is dehumanizing women and justifying the way that some men objectify them. Also, he is saying that a man can take as many “flavors” as he wants, as if a women has no say if she will be “tasted”.
Sexist symbols in the media originated many years before sitcoms and movies were common, and made appearances in even the most beloved classic children’s story of Walt Disney. The appearance of women’s bodies in the original Walt Disney classics such as Snow White, Cinderella, and the Little Mermaid was unrealistic and provided unattainable expectations for young girls who idolized the princesses. “‘White as snow, and as red as blood, and her hair was as black as ebony…
When she was seven years old she was as beautiful as the day’” All of the physical attributes of Snow White are the most extreme in terms of beauty. She has the prettiest lips, skin, and hair which is a discouraging and confusing message for young readers. Furthermore, Snow White’s appearance is the first real description of her, making it more important in the story than her personality.
Explained by Bell: “The young heroines are typical of ‘the perfect girl.’ whose body, voice, and destiny are a ‘mesmerizing presence’ through which ‘girls [enter] the world of the hero legend, and experience the imposition of a framework which seemingly comes out of nowhere- a worldview superimposed on girls but grounded in the psychology of men.’” The idea of “perfect” is psychologically damaging to young minds because no girl in real life is ever perfect. However, no imperfections are dared to be shown in the bodies of the original Disney princesses. “Perfect” is a myth that a girl will always be chasing, rendering them self-conscious when they should be reading about and watching positive role models with known flaws.
In films and advertisement as of late, there is more demand for equality and empowering female roles instead of stereotypical ones. Roles for women in film and advertisement have become more diverse and they do not feature women as heavily in tired roles that have been overused. “Over the course of the history of TV advertising, women have been defined in very narrow roles… women were firmly placed in the domestic sphere, talking animatedly about cleaning and housework…
There have been some real strides in that recently, where ads show men in a much more nurturing rule.” By reversing, or merging, roles that certain genders were previously molded into, the advertising industry is allowing men and women to create their own identity without feeling as pressured to fit into one type of idea of their gender.
Although women are being featured more heavily in film and advertisement, equality is still a long way off. Because of all the gender inequality buzz happening in the industry, there is a scramble among workers to cast and hire more women than ever before. “The worst excesses have been removed, and we are much more sensitive as an industry. There’s a genuine desire to move with the times. But there’s still a long way to go. When brands feature woman as the lead character, it’s normally to make a point about their gender. Real progress will be made when it’s much more equally divided.” When women are cast in roles purely because they are deserved while still remaining equal with men, then it will make the industry an even playing field. Until then, the fight for gender equality will never truly be won.
With activism and the fight for women’s rights gaining traction, the small screen has seen an increase of powerful female characters recently, and less stereotypes and jokes at women’s expenses. “The millennium was an interesting transition time in American society, as female characters that supposedly broke societal rules were becoming more prominent on television.” The public is becoming more aware of circumstances and wanting equality to be a thing of the present, not the far-away future.
More roles for women standing on their own, not just as a plot device, are starting to emerge, although the process is gradual. “The millennium was an interesting transition time in American society, as female characters that supposedly broke societal rules were becoming more prominent on television.” The public is becoming more aware of circumstances and wanting equality to be a thing of the present, not the far-away future.
More roles for women standing on their own, not just as a plot device, are starting to emerge, although the process is gradual. Characters such as Galleria from the Cheetah Girls started to appear on screens and became an inspiration for many young girls who had never witnessed positive female role models in tv. Many of her feminist quotes can still be found online today, and many of them provided an example of how a women can allow herself to be treated.
In the Cheetah Girls series Galleria does not let herself be distracted by romance, proving that women can be more than the object of a man’s affections. In one scene of the movie, Galleria says to her fellow band members “May the power of all the fabulous divas who came before us be with us now. May we use our hearts, our brains, and our courage to reach our… potential.”
Galleria is calling for the union of strong women and how they can bring positive change to the world if they put their voices together. They are using their “hearts”, “brains”, and “courage” to work hard and reach their highest potential. This is going against the trope that women should rely on their looks and not aim too high, and saying that the opposite should be the goal if a girl wants it to be.
Along with gender equality improvements on television, the film industry has had a boom of movies centered around strong female characters, with many of them being aimed towards children. In 2017, the positive feedback that the hit film Wonder Woman garnered proved “that the need for women’s representation in pop culture is valid.” “We are all used to having male protagonists in movies [directed by men]. But the way Patty has captured the Wonder Woman character, she is very relatable to everyone. Boy, girl, man, woman — everyone can relate to her.”
The director of the film, Patty Jenkins, was able to create a complex character who could relate to all in the audience, not just girls despite the lead being female, and not just boys despite the action genre of the movie. Being a woman herself allowed Jenkins to use her knowledge and personal experiences to create a strong characters that did not follow the patterns of a Disney princess. “”Historically, audiences in this genre are male — 60 to 40 percent” When Wonder Woman premiered, more girls showed up to watch the show, excited to see a woman going on harrowing adventures and having her own storyline that was important to the overarching story.
The iconic Wonder Woman costume that has a 75-year history through movies has changed in design drastically with the introduction of the 2017 movie. For the creator of the original movie, it was important to create a character that has a “sexy and feminine” quality to “counteract what he called the “blood-curdling masculinity” of comics at the time.”
Another children’s movie that caught the eye of critics for overcoming gender stereotypes was the modern Disney movie, Moana, which focused on a young girl working to save her island from destruction in Polynesia. In the movie, although she does receive help from a male demigod along the way, Moana’s grandmother is her main source of help on the journey. The use of a female mentor for Moana is an interesting choice and highlights strong female relationships and how girls can support each other. At mentioned above, Moana bonds with a male on her journey, but there is never any indication that Moana and Maui have romantic feelings for one another.
The decision to not give Moana a love interest further highlights her strength and a female’s ability to carry a storyline without using romance as part of the plot. While still gorgeous, the character of Moana has a much more realistic body type than previous Disney princesses, a fact which the film’s producer said was a very conscious decision. “A leader doesn’t have to be size 0 to succeed.” A girl watching the movie should be able to see themselves in a strong female protagonist, and a “size 0” Disney princess is not realistic to most of the young viewers. By giving them a relatable character, they are more likely to see themselves in a strong role like they see that character.
Discrimination In The Industry
While the Me Too Movement only took off in 2017, women in the film industry have been oppressed and demoralized for decades, with that treatment not being discussed. Sexual harassment was enabled for years due to the stereotypes placed on women in the media and was not spoken about until very recently. On set of one of his movies, Arnold Schwarzenegger was accused of “‘playfully’ groping their breasts, buttocks, and crotches.”
Although the women on set all knew what was happening, their complaints were passed off as “Arnold being Arnold.” The mentality of “boys will be boys” is used as an excuse for inexcusable behavior by men. They are not being held accountable for their actions and this is allowing them to get away with more than should be permitted. Because Schwarzenegger is a “name” in the industry, he is able to get away with actions because of his dominance and power.
Another issue that is not addressed as much as it needs to be is that of the pay gap between male and female actors. The pay between male actors and female actors who have roughly the same amount of importance in a film has been following an unequal pattern, with female actresses getting paid much less than their male counterparts. “The world’s highest-paid actress, Lawrence, made $52 million in the 12 months to June 2015—an impressive number until it is compared to the $80 million banked by Robert Downey Jr., the world’s top-paid actor.”
While Lawrence and Downey Jr. are both very well respected in the industry, the difference in their pay is very noticeable. While both actors are putting in hard work and creating movies that garner positive reviews, they are being rewarded for this work unequally. Not only do women get paid less for their work, but they also are underrepresented on screen and behind the camera. Less than two percent of films in the last year were directed by women.
While more men in the industry have been pushing for equality come awards season, the inequality of opportunities doled out prevent this from happening. One of the most telling examples of pay inequities in the entertainment industry occurred during reshoothing for All the Money in the World. Although Mark Wahlberg’s team stated that he was getting paid just as much as Michelle Williams and their other costars. It was later revealed that Walhberg made $1.5 million in comparison to Michelle Williams, who earned less than $1,000 for the reshoot. That is less than one percent of her male costar’s earnings.
Me Too Movement
With the introduction of the Me Too Movement last year, women, both celebrities and the public, have come together to share their experiences with prejudice and sexual harassment, instituting a new system of change in the nation. The saying ‘Time’s Up’ has urged a change now. It adds a sense of urgency to shift the dynamic between men and women, not only in Hollywood, but all over the nation.
“Days after the first allegations against Harvey Weinstein were published by the New York Times, Milano tweeted: ‘If all the women who have been sexually harassed or assaulted wrote ‘me too’ as a status, we might give people a sense of the magnitude of the problem.’ The first response? ‘Me too, he was my stepfather.’”” When women realized that they were not alone in their pain, it gave them strength to spread their empowering message, using social media as a platform.
By claiming the words “me too”, women are empowering each other by sharing their own experiences and offering empathy and support. “In the first week, 1.7 million tweets included the phrase, and 45 per cent of Facebook users in the US had at least one friend who posted “”me too””. Second, its universality. What started with famous actors–Rose McGowan, Gwyneth Paltrow, Angelina Jolie, Lupita Nyong’o –soon spread.”
The wide spread brings attention to just how out of hand the issue of sexual harassment has gotten. Women had been suffering in silence for years, with societal codes rendering them unable to stick up. When positive female role models that are in the public eye join an activist movement, it gives the public strength to stand up as well. “Despite a media tendency to treat #MeToo as a celebrity story, the women at its centre have always insisted that its focus is much wider: not one monstrous Weinstein, but a whole patriarchal system that crushes women in the workplace.”
The Time Magazine 2017 Person of the Year cover featured a much different image than that of the Donald Trump, who had been on the cover the previous year. Instead, it featured a host of women named the Silence Breakers, whose message was almost the exact opposite of the current POTUS. The Silence Breakers are a collection of women who have been catalysts for the sexual harassment meeting.
Many of them have shared their stories with Time Magazine in order to inspire others to come forward as well and demand more from society. “‘I thought, What just happened? Why didn’t I react?’ says the anonymous hospital worker who fears for her family’s livelihood should her story come out in her small community. ‘I kept thinking, Did I do something, did I say something, did I look a certain way to make him think that was O.K.?’ It’s a poisonous, useless thought, she adds, but how do you avoid it?”
This hospital worker was under the illusion that the sexual assault was her own fault because of the way she was dressed, something that many people feel following an assault. However, upon reading other’s stories, it allows women like this one, who chose to remain anonymous, to realize where the real fault lies. It is not with the women: it is only with those who think they are allowed to take something from them without permission.
Conclusion
Apart from Me Too tweets trending on social media, more diverse kinds of women are now being portrayed on popular sites such as Instagram and Twitter, and many are using these platforms to speak out about gender related issues. Although many social media platforms, such as reddit, have predominantly male users, Instagram is much more geared towards young women. This allows women with a large platform to speak directly towards impressionable female minds and instow strong beliefs on them, as well as allowing them to form their own ideas.
Air Pollution Causes, Effects & Solutions
Introduction: Pollution is a widespread phenomenon that has been affecting many in the US and around the world for years. Pollutants range from carbon monoxide, mercury, nitrogen dioxide, ozone, and particulate matter. Looking more closely in California, specifically the San Joaquin Valley, the two most dominant pollutants are ozone and particulate matter. Ozone, also known as smog, is an invisible harmful pollutant that causes many health issues. Particulate pollution is a combination of different sized particles that each have different effects on the environment and human body that are considered dangerous. The San Joaquin Valley is home to agricultural regions that pose environmental challenges including some of the worst air quality (How Healthy Is the Air You Breathe? 2018). Due to its widespread land surrounded by mountains, the geography allows for the collection of pollutants produced from the surrounding areas in the north and south, acting like a bowel; therefore, trapping the harmful pollutants in the valley. There are many sources that have created the issue of poor air quality in the valley which has led to many diseases and contamination of the land and water in the area. Although there have been many policies put in place to help resolve the issue of pollution in the San Joaquin Valley, the geography of the valley has allowed ozone and particulate matter to pose a threat to the health, economy, and social life of the citizens in the area.
Sources of pollutants
Particulate matter: The causes of the pollutants in the San Joaquin Valley are largely due to its geography. The vast mountain ranges that surround the entire valley does not allow for the dispersal of the harmful pollutants such as ozone and particulate matter. The prevention of the spread of pollutants is due to an inversion layer: where warm air traps the cooler air along with ozone and particulate matter near the surface so they cannot circulate and escape (Berg 2011). This trapping effect of the pollutants causes the formation of new pollutants. Data has shown that the ozone and particulate matter in the San Joaquin Valley are very seasonal and vary from meteorology conditions to sources of the pollutants (Skiles 2018). Some of the sources found in the valley area that contribute to the particulate matter are mobile sources, biomass burning, smoke from cooking, and secondary organic carbon. Concentration of particulate matter observed in the San Joaquin Valley were found to have peaks at the end of summertime and during the winter (See appendix A). Biomass burning was shown most prominent and the main contributor of pollution during the latter half of winter time. Seasonality was also seen through meat smoke that showed peak averages between the beginning of fall through winter months. The more constant pollutant was observed to be mobile sources which contributed throughout the whole year. This was considered to be one of the highest sources of organic compound pollutants compared to the other sources, and would have peaks where other pollutants would not. Vegetative waste was one of the lower contributors to pollution; however, it was found to be linked to primary sources of pollution causing just as much affects as the other primary sources.
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Ozone: Other influences of ozone and particulate matter are contributed by meteorological processes such as: wind circulation, solar radiation, and temperature changes. These processes specifically alter ozone by affecting the control of the physiological and chemical responses that help to develop ozone (Jin 2011). There has been research done by sensitivity studies that has showcased factors other than meteorology that contribute to ozone pollution which include short term and long term emissions. The emissions that form ozone in the San Joaquin Valley are also due to local and upwind areas (Jin 2011). Areas in the north such as the Bay Area and Sacramento Valley, are some of the primary basins for the wind that contribute to the San Joaquin Valley ozone (See appendix B). Trends during the summer conveyed unique patterns that demonstrated peaks during individual days. The highest source of ozone was observed where there were more emission sources and least amounts of ozone were observed in rural areas. Therefore, ozone suggests that there are strong differentiations in the levels of ozone across the valley. These deviations in levels of ozone are related to source relationships with different meteorological processes in various regions.
Temperature can also affect the ozone levels as shown in Appendix C, where cooler temperatures were associated with lower ozone levels; whereas, higher temperatures contributed to increased levels of ozone shown more in the San Joaquin Valley. Diurnal changes have also been observed to be affected by temperature differences between inland and the coastal areas. The sea breeze from the coasts increase during the mid morning when heating occurs over land, and reaches its maximum around sunset. However, the winds differ depending on the region. During the daytime when it is the warmest in the San Joaquin Valley, the air becomes stagnant, trapping the polluted air and preventing it from moving out of the Valley. This correlates to the ozone levels and their relationship with wind patterns.
Agricultural impacts: The San Joaquin Valley is one of the most productive agricultural regions; however, brings about some of the worst air quality in the area. This is due to certain factors like irrigation which impact pollutants throughout the Central Valley (Li 2016). Since the San Joaquin Valley alone holds millions of acres of irrigated land in the US, it produces over 10 percent of the agricultural production. This land use and the coverage of land transpires due to changes in environment such as climate change and/or wildfires and human activities including agriculture. Irrigation happens year round and has posed the question of how it affects ozone and other pollutants. Irrigation in agriculture indirectly alters the meteorological habitats of pollution by multiple factors. One of the ways irrigation can increase pollution is by increasing moisture in the soil which causes a decrease in air temperature. Once the air temperature is decreased, it affects photochemical rates (Li 2016). Another way is increasing the humidity which results in concentrations of certain compounds to become strengthened in the atmosphere. Studies have found that this increase in poor air quality by irrigation has been linked to the absence of clouds and moisture in the air.
Not only has irrigation been a contributing factor to air pollution, but agricultural runoff has also become an issue in this regard. The impact of rising temperatures, precipitation, and pesticides have been correlated to changes in runoff (Ficklin 2009). This change in the runoff has resulted in the increase of carbon dioxide levels which in turn, increases other compounds in the air such as nitrogen and phosphorus. Such changes cause alterations to the precipitation and water cycle which affect crop production and agricultural runoff. This issue has caused much concern in the San Joaquin Valley due to the increase in contamination of surface water.
Health Impacts: Due to the poor air quality in the San Joaquin Valley, many of the citizens face short term and long term health-related issues. The area is among one of the highest ranked for the issue of asthma compared to other parts of the US (Meng 2010). High ratings of asthma have come down to the conclusions that areas with increased ozone and particulate matter levels are the main contributors in the San Joaquin Valley. Exposure to the pollutants has many factors including traffic, agricultural activities, wood burning, and combustion sources. These have been found to contribute to the health related issues that arise in the San Joaquin Valley. Other issues related to cardiac and pulmonary effects are largely due to the size differentiation in particulate matter and seasonal exposure (Plummer 2015). Pulmonary injuries and inflammatory responses were prominent in leading to cell damage in the body. These pulmonary diseases and inflammatory responses such as asthma attacks or exacerbation and acute bronchitis have lead to an increase in hospital admissions. Other adverse effects of pollution in the San Joaquin Valley have been correlated to preterm births (Huang 2018). Studies have linked particulate matter as well as other contaminants such as water, carbon, sulfate, and lead to increased levels of preterm births. This is associated with adverse consequences in childhood and adulthood secondary to exposure of pollution.
Economic impacts: New studies have suggested that health related impacts of air pollution have cost the region approximately billions of dollars each year. Initiatives that focus on the adverse effects of health related issues and their economic risks have found that the environmental concerns are typically put aside. The cost of air pollution in the San Joaquin Valley is around one-thousand per person due to premature deaths in adults, hospital visits and admissions, days off work, and other health-related issues (Hewlett Foundation 2006). These components are seen more prominently in communities of low socioeconomic status. This is linked to inability to have healthcare which in turn does not allow for the care the citizens need to help resolve or take care of the health issue. With the population projected to continue to grow, the San Joaquin Valley with only double the health effects and economic hardship with the increase of pollution. Since the San Joaquin Valley is vulnerable to environmental challenges like climate change, climate policies have been put in place to help control the impacts of pollution (Jones 2018).
The San Joaquin Valley has failed to meet federal health standards for ozone and particulate for years now. This has caused the implementation of various policies to be put in place to help maintain pollution in the Valley. The EPA has worked alongside the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District and the Central Valley Air Quality Coalition to help reduce particulate matter and ozone. Other works in the making have been enforced to regulate clean-vehicle programs, restrictions on wood burning, and other sources of pollution (EPA 2018). Other ways to help reduce pollution has been due to advances in technology in engines and clean energy. Medical research has been another contributor in finding ways to reduce the emissions of ozone and particulate matter and the health effects in children, adults, and the elderly. Clean air enforcement have been enforcing permits specifically to facilities to ensure proper installation for air pollution control. If facilities do not obtain these permits, they could pay penalties up to hundreds of thousands of dollars. Other measures to help reduce landfill pollution has been implemented by the Clean Air Act Settlement to make sure there are less landfill fleets with polluting vehicles. The Clean Air Act has also resolved a major issues regarding oil and gas production that has been correlated with greenhouse emissions. The company that was causing these emissions agreed to pay thousands of dollars to settle the issue (EPA 2018).
Although The Clean Air Act has implemented many policies to reduce emissions of ozone, particulate matter, and other sources of pollution, the San Joaquin Valley still reigns as one of the worst air quality in the US. Ozone and particulate matter have been linked to seasonal trends due to differing sources like burning and other secondary organic compounds. Trends that have been observed showcase differing peaks within certain times in the summer and winter that allow for various emission sources and their effects to occur. These trends have led to many health problems leading to increased economic value due to hospital admissions, acute diagnosis, and other long term effects. The effects of the pollutants are largely due to variation of sizes of the particulate matter and the increased levels growing population. This phenomenon has been a challenge for many years for the San Joaquin Valley; however, continuous research and policies are helping to reduce the problem of pollution.
