just a freestyle piece

Today may be not what I dreamed
and it seems
my future will continue to be full of hardships,
lined in tears and the desperate biting of lips
I must come to the realization that
tomorrow may not flip the past
instead I see the future everlast in familiar cycles of self doubt
which tends to clout
all my decisions
subliminally erasing my original mission
to be all I can be & to love myself

the question remains
will I be woman enough to be my own hero ?
I feel superwoman and wonderwoman wrapped under my skin.
Are they waiting for this moment in time to unleash my true essence -
just needing this time to teach me hard knock lessons??
Confession: Lately I find myself
self doubting no more because I had the balls to implore myself
massaging pieces of my soul back to life
slowly healing the strife
sadness, tears, and fear obliterate
while they float into outer space
and I shall be saved from the old me
the one plagued with insecurities
and you shall see
they shall name a hero after me
and her name shall be CHICA EXCELENTE

the time has come to get real

I don't know about you, but I'm just so sick and tired of seeing these anorexic looking things on my TV screen and in all the magazine ads every day. In my opinion, they are twisted, unrealistic, and unhealthy representations of what society urges women to be. They glorify starving yourself (at least on some degree) and urge women to somehow change who they are to conform to those norms. However, recent ads by major companies are slowing changing that. And that, my friends, is like a fresh breath of fresh air to me.

Can I just start off by saying that I ABSOLUTELY love what Dove has done recently to represent women out there? REAL women which actually have meat on their bones appearing on the side of buses and in subway posters boldly showing off their tattoos and NON size 0 bodies has started a revolution I hope never goes away. It appears that now Nike has jumped on the bandwagon, launching a new ad campaign which celebrates and empowers the bodies of muscular/curvy women who love to work out.

While some of the pictures, I reckon, are not geared towards their target market: extremely active women, I think that the campaign is in the right direction. For example, the picture below of a booty posing in spandex shorts will probably cause a few drool inducing stares by passing men. But, on the same token, who really cares what men get out of it? Its the everyday women that these campaigns call to who really will be positively affected. And those companies smart enough to join in the revolution will see their profits sky rocket, because they in fact have found the key to pitching to all the independent and strong woman in the country.

HMMM...Can it be that these skinny twigs on TV and in print ads will soon have to start actually eating (and not throwing up for a change) to keep their modeling jobs? OH MY!!!




example of Nike's new marketing campaign

controversy...where?

Don't even get me started on why I think this is the most beautiful ad I've ever seen

hear me roar

Ok, Ok..I was reading the poem I put on my last entry & I just wasn't feeling it the second time around. So heres one of my favorite woman power poems I wrote back in the day. Blame it on my wonder woman screensaver, but I am feeling mighty spunky and ultra feminista today. :)

SEXISM
October 29, 2003

Unseen
Underappreciated
Sadly incapacitated
Women in this country are taken as fools
Given the short stick for not playing by the men set rules
Overexploited
Hearts ablaze
Working twice as hard as the dicks to get that raise
The way of the world has gotten me sick
Opportunities taken away simply cuz I don’t have a dick
I know in my heart that there’s more to life
Than what genitalia lays under my fly
But everywhere I go
Its plain to see
That people just see perky breasts and not a college degree
People may read these words and just assume
I’m just another bitter bitch with something to prove
Matter of fact, I have nothing to lose
So I just try to speak the truth
Hoping my words will get through
And spark something up in your minds
Something that will stick with you long after my rhymes
So next time you see a woman walking down the path
Respect her, love her, and make her laugh
Don’t underestimate the power of a lady,
We work hard, play hard, and have the power to make babies
We are individuals just like you
But because we have pussies suddenly we have something to prove
Sexism…
Just another ism that can’t be smoked away
We need to start solving these problems today
So, my people, lets gather together right away
So our darling daughters won’t be treated the same way

to all the haters...its our bodies, not yours (so suck a lemon)

Today women worldwide rallied for their reproductive right to choose abortion. While I may be pro life for myself, I am definitely pro choice for other women. I truly believe in a woman’s right to decide what happens to her body and don't think the government, religious institutions, or even family members should have any say in whether she should have a baby or not. Its a woman’s prerogative and since she is the one who will be raising and caring for her child, she should be the only one to ultimately decide whether she should bring it into the world or not.

Now don't get me wrong, I do not take abortion lightly, especially since I recently found out that my own life was almost put to a premature end through abortion. My mom seriously considered aborting me when she found out she was pregnant because my parents simply couldn't afford another child. Then, she simply fell in love with me, and decided to have me despite all the money issues. Of course I'm thankful, and this revelation gave me a whole new perspective on abortion...

...but I still think abortion is a woman’s right and not a privilege. Many of these pro life activists judge and speak against a subject matter which they ultimately have never been forced to consider. I mean, all these people who call abortion murder obviously never had to deal with living in extreme poverty to the point that they are forced to nearly starve because they are obliged to give their children whatever limited amount of food they have. When they find themselves pregnant yet again, they are forced to make the hard decision on whether they can feasibly feed, clothe and care for another child.

These activists have never been in the shoes of a scared young single teenager who's "loving boyfriend" which she gave everything to (including her virginity) left her, with no support system, with no money to support herself, none the less support a child. While some may say she was stupid to begin with by getting knocked up, this is not a perfect world; sex is human nature and teenagers are increasingly sexual active. Even people who are protected sexually end up with babe 9 months later.

There are countless situations where women have to choose abortion over becoming a mother. It’s not an easy decision for anyone to have to consider. It's a scary, sad, and very personal decision that no one has the right to control except the woman herself. Pro life advocates may call these women murderers and whores and insist that its necessary for these women keep their children, but they do nothing to help these women out. They can say what they want, but they will not help these women raise their kids, and they certainly will not provide any monetary or psychological support for these children. Shit, they are just trying to force women who OBVIOUSLY do not want or cannot feasibly have more children to adhere to their ideals and religious beliefs. What’s worse to me, is that these children, if they were brought into this world, would most probably be raised in very undesirable and dire circumstances. This ultimately just increases the number of people living in destitution and just increases the gap of poverty in the US. Sigh…

What I really don't understand about all these right wing republicans (i.e. BUSH & gang) is their wide support of the death penalty (is that not murder as well? I thought they were PRO LIFE), and their rollbacks on laws protecting the environment (are they not supporting the poisoning of us & all the children of the world by lowering these standards?). Its frustrating to me. If they truly wanted to get to the root of this problem and reduce or eliminate abortion, they should at least make birth control and health care widely available to all those who need it in the US. Maybe then, there would be a HUGE drop in the numbers of abortions performed. But of course, that will never happen...So I continue to say:

"To all the haters...its our bodies, not yours (so suck a lemon)"...That is all.