A question
Democracies cannot dispense with hypocrisy any more than dictatorships can with cynicism Georges Bernanos, 1888-1948.Before I begin, let me make it perfectly clear that I am not attacking anyone's sexual orientation or persuasion. My purpose here is to generate an open discussion not a lurid little polemic on what is, to me, one of democracy's greatest hypocrisies.
A photograph of two lovely young women demonstrating more than a passing interest in one another was carried in the September 2000 issue of a popular women's fashion magazine, Elle. They are fondling one another in a Gucci advertisement.
For the life of me I cannot figure out exactly what Gucci is trying to say. I know the purpose of the ad is to capture the reader's attention. Okay, for me, mission accomplished, but please do not tell me the only thing Gucci is suggesting is that its leather products are soft and supple.
There is no doubt that Elle will experience neither a drop in readership nor a boycott of the magazine by the pious in response to this photograph. Whether the location is New York, Rio de Janeiro, Paris, Sydney or London, it seems to be quite all right to present women in the process of exploring each other's body.
On the other hand, if two men were presented fondling one another during an embrace full of sexual innuendo in Esquire magazine, for example there would be more than a few vociferous cries of moral outrage. No doubt there would also be a drastic reduction in the magazine's readership, subscriptions and circulation.
Why is it more acceptable to see women thus, than men? That is my question.
I think Georges Bernanos was right: Democracies cannot dispense with hypocrisy ...
Readers are invited to send their comments either directly to me or to Green Left Weekly's Write on section. I suspect that I am not the only one who would genuinely appreciate an insightful discussion of such a question.
BY BRANDON ASTOR JONES
[The writer is a prisoner on death row in the United States. He welcomes letters commenting on his columns (include your name and full return address on the envelope, or prison authorities may refuse to deliver it). He can be written to at: Brandon Astor Jones, EF-122216, G3-77, Georgia Diagnostic & Classification Prison, PO Box 3877, Jackson, GA 30233, USA or email <BrandonAstorJones@hotmail.com>. You can vicit the author's web site at <http://www.BrandonAstorJones.com>.]