In a society where media is the most persuasive force shaping cultural norms, the collective message that our young women and men overwhelmingly receive is that a woman’s value and power lie in her youth, beauty and sexuality – and not in her capacity as a leader. While women have made strides in leadership over the past few decades, the U.S. is 90th in the world in terms of women in national legislatures, women hold only 3% of clout positions in mainstream media, and 65% of women and girls have disordered eating.
These are troubling facts, and most people would agree the progress made so far needs to continue, even accelerate. There is the need for a movement to shift the cultural mindset of communities, interrupt and stop patterns of sexism, change the way women and girls are represented in the media and ensure a tipping point that will lead to gender parity in leadership throughout the United States.
The Junior League of Greenwich and YWCA Greenwich, organizations focused on developing and empowering women, invite you to join the discussion at the community-wide screening of the documentary Miss Representation. The screening will take place on February 5, 2013 at Bow Tie Cinemas, 2 Railroad Avenue, Greenwich at 6:30 p.m. Following the screening, there will be a discussion led by Teresa Younger, Executive Director of the Permanent Commission on the Status of Women, and Livvy Floren, Connecticut State Representative.
Tickets to Miss Representation are available for purchase in advance for $10.00 each or $15.00 at the door. They can be purchased online at www.ywcagreenwich.org (go to What’s Up). For information please contact Nichole Perna at (203) 869-6501 ext. 161 or n.perna@ywcagreenwich.org.
Miss Representation was written and directed by Jennifer Siebel Newsom. The film exposes how mainstream media contribute to the under-representation of women in positions of power and influence in America. The film challenges the media’s limited and often disparaging portrayals of women and girls, which makes it difficult for women to achieve leadership positions and for the average woman to feel powerful herself.
The documentary features stories from teenage girls and provocative interviews with politicians, journalists, entertainers, activists and academics like Condoleezza Rice, Lisa Ling, Nancy Pelosi, Katie Couric, Rachel Maddow, Rosario Dawson, Jackson Katz, Jean Kilbourne and Gloria Steinem. The film offers startling facts and statistics that will leave audiences shaken and armed with a new perspective.
Miss Representation first premiered in the documentary competition at the Sundance Film Festival where it caught the eye of OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network. It made its television debut as part of the OWN documentary film club in October 2011, with over 1.3 million people tuning in to its multiple airings. Additional
screenings with corporations, non-profits, religious groups, government
organizations and communities are happening every day all over the world.
