Doubling Down!

LZ Granderson, author of the splendid piece we discussed yesterday, in which he admonished parents not to let their daughters dress like tramps, responded to some of the many comments he received on the article, and, suffice it to say, he wasn't moved by his critics. (Not that he seriously engaged any truly substantive criticism, anyway.)

[Granderson appears onscreen, holding a tablet computer, from which he reads comments.]

Here's a comment from Áth Cliath: "I blame Madonna." You are absolutely correct! It is ALL her fault. And Lady Gaga. And Beyoncé. And all the other women who your little girl doesn't know, only listens to, and yet emulates because YOU'RE NOT DOING YOUR JOB.

[edit. title: CNNOpinion.]

What's up? This is LZ Granderson with CNN.com Opinion, and I am here to talk about a piece I wrote recently called "Parents, don't dress your girls like tramps." And, uh, like four thousand of you wrote comments, and this is what I'm here to do today: Comment on your comments.

[edit; a comment by MindLikeWarp is shown onscreen, from which Granderson quotes]

"Just because a corporation can sell something, doesn't mean they should. I blame the parents first, but I definitely think the corporations have a role in it as well. Corporations are run by human beings." [edit; Granderson is back onscreen] You are so wrong, dude! Corporations [laughs] are run by dollars! And they're not gonna put anything out there that we're not going to buy. And they're not gonna give up too much cash just because we as parents refuse to do our jobs. So, yes, you're right: Corporations are the ones selling the product, but we can never, ever forget we're the ones that's responsible for buying the product.

[edit; a comment by Ant92874 is shown onscreen, from which Granderson quotes]

"Completely agree. My friend and I have a term for them—prostitots." [edit; Granderson is back onscreen] That's a little funny—but I think the blame is misguided. You can't blame a little girl for being dressed the way that she is. You gotta look at the parents, and I think it's unfair to kinda call them prostitots. Maybe you should call the parents pimps!

[edit; a comment by oldguy12 is shown onscreen, from which Granderson quotes]

"Nearly all of our domestic problems start, and can be fixed, in the family room. Rearing children has become just another task for too many 'parents' focused primarily on financial success, social standing, and self-indulgence." [edit; Granderson is back onscreen] Oldguy12, there's a lot in there that I agree with, and there's a lot in there that I don't agree with. Folks gotta work! Folks gotta put food on the table. And so I don't think the, the absence of parents being in children's lives can solely be blamed on being self-indulgent. Uh, but with that being said, you're right: We still have to make time to talk and be with our kids. We're still supposed to be the role models.

I'm not a great mathematician; I have no idea how you make twenty-four hours into twenty-eight; I just know that, at some point during the day, we have to talk to our kids.

Awesome.

So women are irresponsible sluts, parents are pimps, and corporations can't be faulted for a lack of principles because they're not run by people; they're run by money. Got it.

I noted yesterday that women are still hold the primary responsibility for procuring children's clothing in most homes. Today I will note that men are still the primary power-brokers in corporations that make, distribute, and sell those clothes. Which means, effectively, that Granderson is holding women responsible for how little girls dress and holding men blameless, without ever acknowledging the reality that the narratives by which people negatively judge women and girls based on how "sexy" their clothing is perceived to be are narratives born of and serving the Patriarchy.

Did I already say awesome? Awesome.

There's a lot more there warranting discussion. Have at it in comments.

[H/T to Shaker scatx, via email.]