Oct. 15: Protest: "I don't want my MTV"

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Oct. 15, 11:30am-1:30pm

I Don't Want My MTV!
A Protest of MTV

Times Square
[1, 2, 3, 7, S, N, Q, R to 42d St., Times Sq.; A, C, E
to 42d St.-Port Auth.; D, F to 42d-Bryant Park; M10, M16, M20, M27, M42,
M104 bus ]

Why Protest MTV?
MTV sets unreasonable and dangerous standards of beauty for young people: scarily thin girls, and overly muscled guys. There is so much emphasis on celebrities and their bodies-and not enough on health, and what real people look like. This causes self-esteem issues for both genders, and eating disorders at alarming rates.

MTV reinforces gender stereotypes that men need to be unfeeling and macho, and women brain-dead, beautiful, and catty. This contributes to our country's problems with disempowered young women, and machismo among men.

MTV exploits women and their bodies, portraying females as sexual objects, not people. While the sexualized women on MTV do make conscious choices about their actions, they objectify all women, and help form attitudes among men that women are simply for their viewing/using pleasure. The way in which women are represented by MTV programming bolsters the rape culture in which we live, where women are not viewed as intellectual, emotional human beings-they are walking targets for sexual predators.

MTV promotes racist stereotypes, by endorsing disrespectful attitudes towards women of color in hip-hop and rap music. Anti-woman rap music disempowers women of color-already one of the most oppressed groups in our country. Misogynistic music also spurs racist stereotypes against the African-American and Latino populations in all-white communities where teens come to think that this is how men in these ethic groups actually treat women.

MTV also sends contradictory messages regarding safe sex to young people. Although it does have lots of commercials and programming dedicated to HIV prevention and testing, the examples set by personalities on its shows send quite a different message. We have problems in the U.S. with younger and younger teens engaging in dangerous sexual activity-and they learn it from seeing 'one-night stands' with no discussion about birth control or STD prevention on reality television and other programming. If MTV is so adamant about publicizing music videos that encourage the curbing of women's reproductive rights (i.e. Nick Cannon's Can I Live?), then they shouldn't display young people behaving in a promiscuous manner that essentially hurts women.

What We Want From MTV:

1. For MTV CEO Judy McGrath to meet with Chapter President Liz Funk, NOW-NYS President Marcia Pappas, and NOW-National President Kim Gandy to discuss these grievances.

2. For MTV to broadcast images of healthy people, in a variety of shapes and sizes. While we recognize that it is unrealistic to expect MTV to not broadcast images of celebrities with apparent eating disorders/body image issues because of the immense popularity of these personalities, we would like MTV to spend more airtime endorsing people who respect their bodies.

3. For MTV to agree to stop sponsoring and broadcasting shows, music videos, and other programming which perpetuate stereotypical gender roles.

4. For MTV to agree to cease broadcasting music videos that demean women by sexually objectifying them. MTV should be encouraging female celebrities to seek actual empowerment-not bowing to patriarchal norms, and agreeing to be portrayed as sex objects.

5. For MTV to agree to stop the sponsorship and broadcasting of television shows, music videos, and other programming in which women of color are treated in a derogative manner by other members of their community.

5. For MTV to fully back their campaign on sex education and STD prevention, by not only continuing to air commercials on HIV testing, but to also air shows that display young people making smart decisions about safe sex.

We realize that MTV has an incredible amount of power and influences the ideas and opinions of young people-that is why we feel it is so imperative that the network use these persuasive powers for good!

The Capital District Campus NOW is also conducting a postcard campaign, encouraging the outraged populace to send Ms.McGrath pre-made postcards relating their thoughts on the damage MTV's doing to this generation of young people. To obtain postcards for your friends and family to fill out with their names, addresses, and phone numbers (it's basically a petition that can be participated in by people all over the country), e-mail Liz Funk at youngfeministsnow AT hotmail.com

Formed by activist Liz Funk in March of 2005, the Capital District Campus Chapter of the National Organization for Women (NOW) is a group of high school and college aged feminists in the Albany, New York area, working to promote gender equality through protests, petitions, and lobbying.
For more information, contact Chapter President Liz Funk at .
To join, send $15-$40 (whatever your budget accommodates) to P.O. Box 296,
Voorheesville, NY 12186.

Upcoming activities: (Dates to be announced)

Protest outside the FOX News Headquarters on 6th and 48th, against the network's right-wing-biased broadcasting

Protest outside the Trump Tower on 5th and 57th, against Donald Trump's sexist, outdated Miss USA pageant.

A silent Protest outside St. Patrick's Cathedral on Madison Avenue and 50th St:
'One Day, a Woman Will Be Pope.'