Smart women talking about 50 Shades
Click to viewLast week I had the pleasure of taking part in a televised roundtable discussion about 50 Shades of Grey, sponsored by the Brookline Public Library. It was sort of like The View if everyone on that show were nerd girls who like erotica…okay, maybe it was nothing like The View. It was a sharp and needed conversation that handily covered so many topics swirling around the “50 Shades” phenomenon, including the responsibility of librarians, writers, and educators to support women’s sexuality on the one hand and our fears about the inaccurate and negative aspects depicted in the “50 Shades” film and book, depictions of women in the media and pop culture, where real-life BDSM meets fantasy, and much more.
One crucial voice on the panel was that of Cassie Luna, a representative from The Network/La Red, the domestic violence advocacy group I recommended folks donate too if they wanted to do something to stop domestic violence besides handwringing over 50 Shades. It was wonderful to have someone who could actually speak authoritatively about facts of abusive and coercive relationships.
Coming at it from another angle was Nomi Burstein, representing the OTW (Organization for Transformative Works, another group I’ve written about), to talk about 50 Shades’ fanfic roots and the thriving erotica communities that gave rise to it (and that are still thriving).
Michelle Cove was there both as a romance reader and as a representative of Mediagirls, a program that teaches middle-school girls to critique how girls and women are portrayed in mainstream media and to create their own. (How cool is that?)
And then there were our two librarians, Robin Brenner, who organized and moderated the panel, and Jennifer Webb. Librarians think about books differently from publishers or bookstores: they look at books as a public resource and a public good. This civic-mindedness leads to deep thoughts about the messages that may be carried in books, whether beneficial or detrimental. “50 Shades” has obviously sparked intense debate on the subject.
Well, and me, there representing the intersection of the real-life BDSM community and the romance writing community, and also a little bit the fanfic writing community, as well. Gee, I get around, don’t I?
A transcript of the video isn’t currently available, but you can watch the one-hour discussion on Youtube! (There was also a Q&A portion with the audience, but that was not videotaped.)
A few key highlights:
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Mirrored from blog.ceciliatan.com.