Two women wore naked dresses yesterday, and only one of them is being slammed, and it says everything about the way we police women’s bodies based on ridiculous old fashion views.
Singer Ciara stepped out in a see-through dress, while actor Hunter Schafer stepped out in a skirt and used a risqué feather as a top.
Both outfits were equally revealing, but only one woman is getting attacked over her fashion choice.
So why?
Well … s*xism. .
Ciara is 37, married and has two young children. Hunter is dating, childless and only 24.
According to the internet Ciara should be covering herself up but Hunter is entitled to be living her best life.
Ciara’s Instagram post is flooded with fans expressing their disappointment in her nude outfit. Meanwhile Hunter is getting lumped with praise and her outfit is going viral because people love it so much.
The difference is so stark that Hunter is being called an “angel” while Ciara is being accused of being “tacky”.
On face value the differing reactions make zero sense. Two famous hot women in ‘naked’ outfits and yet only one is getting shamed.
But once you dig into the commentary surrounding Ciara’s outfit the answer becomes very clear.
People are mad because she is a mother and wife daring to be a s*x symbol.
Nothing makes people madder than women refusing to stay in the box the patriarchy carefully crafted for them.
Hunter’s allowed to be basically nude because she isn’t married, and she isn’t a mother. Meanwhile, Ciara’s meant to cover up because she’s married and has children.
Yawn.
I know that theory might sound extreme, but if you read the comments, you’ll find it hard to argue with me.
One fan commented: “She’s beautiful but it’s like she’s craving attention when she has a whole husband.”
Whole husband? Let us unpack that for a second. That fan is saying that Ciara’s marital status should somehow dictate how she dresses.
Now Ciara’s a celebrity. They tend to dress wilder than the average person, but can you imagine if your friend didn’t wear the top she liked because her husband didn’t approve?
It would be wrong, wouldn’t it?
Yet that is the kind of messaging that Ciara’s outfit brings out in people. Her nakedness has managed to reveal how s*xist people still are.
Similarly, a fan commented, “You have kids, and young women look up to you. It’s not a good example.”
There it is again, this idea that a woman dressing s*xually somehow means she is no longer a good role model, or a good mother even.
I’ve never seen anyone question if Channing Tatum’s habit of taking his shirt off in movies has meant he is setting a bad example for his young daughter.
Why? Because men are allowed to be plenty of things.
They can be s*x symbols and dads, but we don’t like it when women with families step outside their roles as caregivers and show themselves as fully dimensional people.
Another fan commented, “But she’s a Christian and a wife!”
Can you see there is a theme here?
Hunter isn’t getting any of this kind of flak because she’s childless and unmarried and therefore that means she’s entitled to dress however she wants.
Yet somehow Ciara lost that privilege through childbirth and marriage.
I am forever fascinated by how we treat women in the public eye because it puts a microscope up to how ordinary women are treated.
I look at the differing reactions to Ciara’s and Hunter’s photos and the main thing I feel is fed-up.
Ciara and Hunter are equally entitled to wear naked dresses and if seeing a mother and a wife owning her s*xuality makes you uncomfortable – well leave your s*xism where Ciara left her bra last night – at home. Couple crossed all limits in train, made physical relations in front of passengers, watch video
