The Super Bowl halftime show featuring Jennifer Lopez and Shakira has some Christians upset. Was it a case of objectifying women’s bodies or an important validation of Latin culture and female liberation? Phil & Skye unpack the debate.
Also this week, Drew Dyck is back with his latest book and TV picks. He offers his take about the Trinity, secularism, and a controversial Netflix series about a modern-day messiah.
Yeah - I hear you. My comment about the pumped-up gym guy who walks into a restaurant with his biceps on display wasn't related to the half-time show - it was related to the idea that women (or men) dress provocatively for themselves. Which, I think, goes against the definition of the word "provocative." The half-time show is another matter. It didn't bother me much, because it was pretty typical for our culture, so I'm accustomed to it. (Stage it in Saudi Arabia and you'd probably be arrested. Different culture.) We don't really dress for ourselves. We dress for the way we want to be perceived by others. Even if you dress completely uniquely and unlike anyone else, …
Phil---
You are assuming the guy in the muscle shirt has 2 main motives for dressing the way he does & applying it to female pop stars. It's borderline sexiest to say, "Why else would they dress that way if not for men or to make others jealous or attention..." The fact these women are entertainers DOES make for the case that this is a part of their act. If we want to have a a discussion of the "rightness" or "wrongness" of our current pop culture, lets do that, but that's not how this discussion was presented which is why I think there's been such a negative response.
It was implied that female entertainers are living under intense pressure…
I liked the halfime show commentary by Phil and Skye... AND wished there was a lady present. ;)
Simply put, both Shakira and JLo were on brand. They didn't wear any less than what they usually wear (FOR DECADES NOW!!). The wore ON PAR for what most women that are *size 00-2* pop stars wear, and especially at the Super Bowl, an entertainment show highly advertised toward hetrosexual men.
sidenote: I believe it was Prince, or possible another rock male artist who slid their crotch directly into the camera in previous SBs. Neither JLo nor the male crotch was desired for my eyes.
Those that were scandalized are naive and have been hiding under rocks.
As women who have autonomy…
Thanks for all the comments, everyone. A couple of responses...
1. Not criticizing Shakira for the song "Try Everything." Just making the point that the message "Try Everything" might need a little qualifying before being thrown at kids on the cusp of adolescence.
2. Not criticizing Latin culture. Unless stripper poles are now an official element of Latin culture, which, when last I checked, they were not.
3. I'm curious about the idea that when women dress provocatively, it isn't for men, it's for themselves. I'm going to flip that around. Sometimes men - particularly men who spend a lot of time in the gym - wear clothes around town that put their muscles on conspicuous display. You know, re…
I was particularly annoyed at your commentary because you keep making the assumption that women are dressing that way for men. Stoppppp! From JLo to Billie Eilish, how women dress isn’t FOR men. Billie isn’t “sticking it to the man.” She’s dressing how she wants to. These particular women are Latino entertainers. Their dance & their dress do have a lot to do with cultural expression. We can have a discussion about the choreography or even clothing as something Christians should be offended by or not, but it’s different altogether assume the intent of these performers was to put on show for men.