IT'S 2020: SO WHY ISN'T EVERY BODY EQUAL?

Imagine a couple of guys at the beach on a hot day. The afternoon is coming to an end, so they make their way to the bus stop to catch a ride home.

Wearing the typical Aussie summer attire of board shorts, thongs, a hat and sunnies, they touch on their public transport cards. All is well and the ride goes ahead without any issues.

However, swap that same group of friends from men to women, and we have a problem.

Just ask 22-year-old Wollongong woman Selin Gulez, who faced criticism from a public bus driver over her outfit when she tried to board a bus near the beach.

Gulez attempted to board the free ‘Gong’ Shuttle Bus at Cliff Road in North Wollongong on November 7, 2019.

She was wearing a skirt, a bikini top and had a towel draped over her shoulders.

As Gulez was stepping onto the bus, the driver of the free shuttle said she couldn’t ride the bus without covering up.

“He asked if I had a shirt to cover myself up with, and I said no, I don’t have a shirt. He said I can’t let you on without covering up,” she said.

After contacting Transport New South Wales (NSW) regarding a dress code, Gulez was advised that there was no specific clothing policy which would have warranted a refusal of service.

The Gong Shuttles are run by Premier Illawarra in conjunction with the New South Wales government.

Premier Illawarra Compliance Officer Blake Hayward said the bus driver followed company policy.

“The driver did act in accordance [with] our company policy in relation to passenger dress code, where the passenger’s torso must be covered to ride for reasons of health and safety,” he said.

Gulez was allowed to ride the bus after wrapping her towel around herself.

She said that she has previously seen other shirtless passengers ride the bus with no issues. The only difference is that these other passengers were all male.

“I’ve been catching these buses since I was young… plenty of [male passengers] get on without shirts,” she said.

Gulez believes that incidents such as this are part of an ongoing issue where men believe they can govern women’s bodies and that inconsistency when enforcing company policy should not be tolerated.

The rise of the #MeToo movement has brought about many questions in terms of the way people’s bodies are governed, with that of women in particular.

#MeToo is an international campaign aimed at breaking down the stigma surrounding sexual assault and attempting to holding perpetrators responsible. It has seen many big-name celebrities coming out not only as survivors of sexual assault, but also as offenders.

Hollywood actress Emily Ratajkowski was arrested at a 2018 #MeToo protest in Washington. (Twitter)

The most notable celebrity within the #MeToo movement is Hollywood film producer Harvey Weinstein. He is facing accusations of sexual assault, rape and abuse from nearly 90 women, most of which are from the film industry.

Actress Jessica Mann testified in court against Weinstein in January, stating that multiple instances of sexual assault and rape between herself and Weinstein.

Mann’s testimony supported that of many other victims who said that assaults often occurred in Weinstein’s hotel rooms following promises of Hollywood deals.

One instance Mann described was the moment Weinstein found out that Mann had started a relationship with a fellow actor. Angered by the news, Weinstein was alleged to have assaulted Mann.

“You owe me one more time,” she quoted him in court as screaming at her, before he allegedly raped and sexually assaulted her.

Selin Gulez believes that there is an atmosphere of entitlement to women’s bodies amongst some men.

Former Rugby League star Robbie Farah caused controversy on Twitter in early February 2020 when he asked Canadian tennis star Eugenie Bouchard on a date.

At the time, Farah was in the United States for the National Football League’s 54th Super Bowl, held in Florida, where Bouchard is based.

“Surely you’re having a drink with me in Miami!” he tweeted at Bouchard, accompanied by a kissing emoji.

Less than 10 minutes later, he followed up his stellar pick up line with another.

“If I rub you do I get three wishes?” he tweeted at the Canadian, referring to her nickname Genie.

Twitter users were aghast at Farah’s bluntness, tweeting to him things such as, “Robbie, I reckon you might regret this one,” “this is weird and creepy,” and “have some respect, mate.”

Farah’s defence was that his comment was for “shits and giggles,” and that he’s “sorry for having a laugh.”

During the 2016 United States presidential election, something more controversial came to light thanks to The Washington Post: a video.

The video was a 2005 conversation between current US President Donald Trump and media personality Billy Bush, filmed while the two celebrities were travelling on a bus to film a TV show.

Trump was a presidential candidate when the video emerged in 2016. He was recorded making explicit comments about women.

“I’m automatically attracted to beautiful, I just start kissing them. It's like a magnet. Just kiss. I don't even wait. And when you're a star, they let you do it. You can do anything. Grab 'em by the pussy,” said Trump.

The comments were in reference to Arianne Zucker, the actress they were travelling to meet.

Trump’s past remarks were shocking to many, damaging his reputation and presidential campaign. Politicians, celebrities and citizens around the world were aghast with many calling for Trump’s withdrawal from the election.

"It's no excuse, but this happened 11 years ago. I was younger, less mature and acted foolishly," Bush said in a statement via NBC Universal.

Hillary Clinton, Trump's presidential nemesis, blasted him on Twitter.

“This is horrific. We cannot allow this man to become president,” she said.

A cartoon by Californian artist Scott Metzger illustrates a man and woman in identical outfits, standing on the beach. Both wearing shorts and sandals, without shirts, and exposing their naked torsos, the bodies of the two characters look identical from the neck down.

https://www.Patreon.com/ScottMetzgerCartoons

Metzger said the cartoon highlights that despite any difference (or lack of) in appearance, women’s bodies are not as free as that of men’s in society.

The illustrator said inspiration for the cartoon came to him at the beach, where a similar situation stuck him as funny.

“The double standard was odd to me. It was acceptable for him to go on the beach shirtless, yet she wasn’t ‘allowed’ to do the same, even though their bodies were very similar,” said Metzger.

The #FreeTheNipple movement has been building momentum for several years, campaigning for women to be able to take control of whether or not their breasts and nipples can be exposed, rather than being decided upon by corporate members of a social media conglomerate, such as Facebook-owned Instagram.

Instagram’s Community Guidelines state that they “don’t allow nudity on Instagram,” however the platform currently censors images that include female nipples, whilst male nipples are unrestricted.

An image circulating on the image-based platform shows a man and woman standing next to each other with their bare torsos exposed. The woman has her nipples blurred and censored, whilst the man’s remain undisturbed.

The reverse image is of the man’s nipples censored and the woman’s unretouched. Instagram allege that the platform has repeatedly removed this image for ‘violating its community guidelines’.

Meanwhile, the image with the women’s nipples censored is left alone by Instagram facilitators.

Instagram’s Community Guidelines also state that it prohibits “photos of female nipples, but photos of post-mastectomy scarring and women actively breastfeeding are allowed.”

Twitter users opposing the #FreeTheNipple campaign say that allowing women’s nipples to go uncensored accentuates female privilege.

Selin Gulez contends that in reality, it’s called equality, saying female privilege would be something like women not having to pay taxes. Much like churches don’t pay taxes.

Other anti-#FreeTheNipple campaigners say that exposing a woman’s ‘sex organs’ is obscene and offensive. Not only does this incorrect information highlight a lack of education within society about the female anatomy, it is also hypocritical.

Society encourages and celebrates hyper-realistic horror movies with blood and gore galore, like Scream, Nightmare on Elm Street and Texas Chainsaw Massacre. However, when it comes to the female reproductive system, a little bit of blood is the scariest thing of all.

Furthermore, the general societal consensus is that a little bit of boob never hurt anybody, unless of course, it’s there to nourish and feed a baby.

Over and over, stories are appearing in the media of women being shamed and humiliated whilst trying to breastfeed their children. It’s not as if people don’t know breasts exist, so does it seem to be such a touchy subject in society?

Comedian Cecily Strong made headlines at the 2015 White House Correspondents’ Dinner, where she drew a poignant comparison between women’s reproductive rights and politics.

“I’m not going to tell you how to do politics,” she said as reported by the Huffington Post, “that’d be like you guys telling me what to do with my body. Can you imagine?”

We are in an era where male, female and non-binary feminists are more vocal than ever. In a world where the most powerful man feels entitled to any female he wants, there is an ever-increasing number of supporters for equality between males and females.

Fundamentally, equality between sexes is what feminism stands for. The #MeToo movement has encouraged countless victims of sexual assault, regardless of gender identity, to come forward and share their stories.

Perpetrators of sexual violence must be held accountable. Women’s bodies must be accepted in whatever form they come.

The resistance is building.