It’s tempting to watch the ladies in your life interact with their girlfriends and think that women are just better at the whole friendship thing than the guys. Their meetings just seem to consist of a lot more shared feelings, honest communication and emotional support, and a lot fewer Norm MacDonald jokes.

That difference is even more apparent when you look at their lens through the prism of social media posts. From that perspective, it’s all sorority group shots, cheek-to-cheek hugs, YASSS Queening, Brat Summer, and holding wine glasses. While a friend of mine once pointed out, the only time a group of guys says, “This place is great; let’s take a group photo,” is when they’ve just played a round of golf.

But that’s looking at the situation through a particularly narrow lens. According to renowned expert in the field – and if I’m correct, a grown woman herself – Sydney Sweeney, the interpersonal dynamics between women are not the only thing they stand for.

You may remember that in the spring she received some criticism from someone in her own industry:

Daily Mail – ‘She’s not pretty, she can’t act,’ claims Carol Baum, whose films include Father of the bride And Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Speaking to an audience of fans with New York Times film critic Janet Maslin, Baum said, “I don’t understand Sydney Sweeney. …Explain this girl to me. She’s not pretty, she can’t act. Why is she so hot?’

It’s safe to say that whatever you think about Sweeney’s relative beauty, there’s no doubt that she’s had enough of the bitchy cattiness directed at her by the very same type of female Hollywood power brokers who claim to be there to support other women trying to make a living. way in the industry:

Source – This spring, your team fought back when a producer questioned your appearance and talent. Anne Hathaway and Jennifer Lawrence have spoken about the tendency to put down female artists when they are at their professional peak. Why do you think that is so?

It’s very disheartening to see women putting other women down, especially when women who are successful in other areas of their industry see younger talent working very hard – hoping to make their dreams come true – and then taking every job they have , seeks to bash and discredit. they have done. Everyone says this whole industry is “Women empowering other women.” None of it happens. It’s all fake and a cover for all the other crap they say behind everyone’s back.

I mean, there are so many studies and differing opinions on the reasoning behind it. I’ve read that we’ve grown up all our lives – and that’s a generational problem – with the idea that only one woman can be at the top. There is one woman who can get the man. There’s one woman who can be, I don’t know, everything. So then everyone else feels like they have to fight each other or put that one woman down, instead of saying, let’s all lift each other up. I’m still trying to figure it out. I’m just doing my best here. Why am I being attacked?

Why exactly? What could possibly motivate a successful show business manager in his 70s to express so much resentment towards this popular young star who is just busy, playing roles and doing her job, which is putting asses in movie seats? I can’t think of any reason…

Advertisement

There’s not much to add beyond what I said in that original April piece:

This just goes to show that you can take a 70 year old woman out of high school, but you can’t take the high school out of her. You can be one of the most successful women in show business for forty years. But that doesn’t mean you don’t have a little Regina George inside you.

Giphy images.

My question is: why does a successful female film director doubt her physical appearance? Shouldn’t we have evolved further as a culture? Didn’t we all agree somewhere around #MeToo that look-shaming actresses is wrong? That it is harmful? That it leads to all kinds of serious consequences, from body dysmorphia to depression to addiction and worse? Honestly, I thought we had moved past body-shaming women thanks to stunning and courageous body-positive celebrities like Lena Dunham and Lizzo. I think I was too optimistic. And as a culture we still have a long way to go.

And I will say now, as I did then: No matter how much Sydney Sweeney is a victim of chick-on-chick crime, no matter how much pushback she gets from wealthy elites who try to bring her down because I don’t like her aesthetically attractive to the eye, then I will continue to support her. Be an ally. And to speak out against this brand of Toxic Femininity. Keep going, Sydney. Don’t get carried away by the bastards.