Abreast of controversy
Updated: 2015-12-07 07:31
By Raymond Zhou(China Daily)
|
||||||||
Double standard
While I was in Berkeley, California, a male student suddenly decided to go to classes in his birthday suit. He said there was no campus rule prohibiting it.
He was expelled, which made local headlines.
Supporters came out in the nude to protest. The city council passed an ordinance outlawing public nudity but spelled out exceptions: One is breast-feeding, and the other is artistic performance.
It's my conjecture that those who found subway breast-feeding offensive could have subconsciously equated it with peeing in public.
Both involve the exposure of private parts, and both would be done away from prying eyes even when conducted in public spaces. (Of course, most would do it in private if they had a choice.)
But there is a key difference: A baby cannot regulate his or her food time, but a healthy adult (or kid) should be able to hold their urine until the right facility is found.
For those unable to do so, such as babies, diapers are the alternative.
Beyond the association with sex, there's the tradition that heavily pregnant women or new mothers stay indoors.
It's not privacy per se but something in our culture that's deemed "unclean" and should preferably be kept out of public sight.
It took a nude photo of Demi Moore holding her protruding belly to change public attitudes and let people know that expectant or new mothers project images of not only beauty but beatification.
The iconic photo has been imitated across the world.
At the risk of generalization, I want to express an observation about some of today's youth.
They seem to harbor a double standard when it comes to issues such as nudity.
They'd protest against the slightest perceived offense by others one minute and seek out online pornography the next without any embarrassment about their underlying hypocrisy.
When they see a breast-feeding woman, their minds instantly jump to the realm of a sex act.
Had they been in a less or more developed era, they'd probably not think this way.
But they seem caught in the shifting sands.
Contact the writer at raymondzhou@chinadaily.com.cn
For more stories by Raymond Zhou, click here
- Locals have tradition of drying foods during harvest season
- Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei govts to cooperate on emissions control
- Web promotion of prostitution to be targeted
- Two more spells of smog predicted to sweep North China
- Glass bridge in grand canyon of Zhangjiajie under construction
- Road rage cases pose huge safety challenge
- Can Chinese ‘white lightning’ make it in US?
- Gunmen go on a killing spree in Southern California
- Chinese, South African presidents hold talks to cement partnership
- China, Zimbabwe agree to boost cooperation
- First lady visits Africa's 'new window' on China
- BRICS media leaders to secure louder global voice
- Western science in the eyes of Chinese emperors
- Top 10 smartphone vendors with highest shipments in Q3 2015
Most Viewed
Editor's Picks
8 highlights about V-day Parade |
Glimpses of Tibet: Plateaus, people and faith |
Chinese entrepreneurs remain optimistic despite economic downfall |
50th anniversary of Tibet autonomous region |
Tianjin explosions: Deaths, destruction and bravery |
Cinemas enjoy strong first half |
Today's Top News
Shooting rampage at US social services agency leaves 14 dead
Chinese bargain hunters are changing the retail game
Chinese president arrives in Turkey for G20 summit
Islamic State claims responsibility for Paris attacks
Obama, Netanyahu at White House seek to mend US-Israel ties
China, not Canada, is top US trade partner
Tu first Chinese to win Nobel Prize in Medicine
Huntsman says Sino-US relationship needs common goals
US Weekly
Geared to go |
The place to be |