Captioned with "Who has time for homework when there's a new Justin Bieber album out? She'll love this tee that's just as cute and sassy as she is."
Horrific. In 2011? Really, JC Penney, REALLY?? Listen up: this shirt is neither cute nor sassy, it's just insulting.
Good readers: I don't have to tell you, as an educator, that it burns me up that marketers want girls to be stupid and boys to be plagiarizers. Luckily, there's a petition on change.org - go there and sign it; or write an email to JC Penney; express your outrage.
As one blogger put it, "This shirt is on backorder. If you need me, call someone else. I’m shopping for a new planet to live on."
It has been pulled. :D
ReplyDeleteNot only that, but JC Penney issued a statement apologizing:
ReplyDelete"jcpenney is committed to being America's destination for great style and great value for the whole family. We agree that the “Too pretty” t-shirt does not deliver an appropriate message, and we have immediately discontinued its sale. Our merchandise is intended to appeal to a broad customer base, not to offend them. We would like to apologize to our customers and are taking action to ensure that we continue to uphold the integrity of our merchandise that they have come to expect."
Well, that was speedy. Gotta love the internets.
Oh. My. Heavens! Glad JC Penney pulled it already, but i have to wonder about the geniuses who got it that far down the production line.
ReplyDeleteYah, I can't believe it got that far down the production line either. Someone, you would think, would say, "Um, let's be careful here and not insult our customers."
ReplyDeleteWhat I found so interesting about the shirt was that it didn't say girls were stupid. It said: "I'm very smart and I could do my homework, but since I'm pretty also, I shouldn't have to bother with homework." Somehow a girl should be relieved of such menial tasks just because of her looks. That also sends some really bad messages. You may be smart, but looks are more important. Or, even if you are intelligent, you'll only get attention if you are also pretty. Also, it communicates that if you are pretty, you'll wield enough power to make people do things for you - especially boys (including even your brother).
To combine that with the caption of "Who has time for homework when there's a new Justin Bieber album out?" doubles this. Whether or not the shirt implies the girl could go do homework, the caption asks, "Who even cares?" School doesn't get you anywhere, looks and the right music do. (And apparently they assume most moms shopping for their daughters would agree.)
So my concern isn't that much different in the end from others', but I find the subtle differences interesting. If we have progressed in our culture from the "girls aren't smart enough" mentality, apparently it's only inched forward (if that) to "Sure, girls might be smart. Whatever. Girls should be 'cute and sassy.'"
Very sad.