go or go ahead.

Feb. 29, 2012 at 5:46am with 177 notes

Reblogged from joydirection

[Flash 9 is required to listen to audio.]

Dear readers, today is a glorious day. Today, I’m not going to depress you with talk of a show on FOX that consistently disappoints me. Today, we’re going to talk about feminism!

Yes, I know, feminism probably leaves a dirty taste in your mouth and makes you think of bra-burning and man-hating liberal ladies in Birkenstocks. But fear not, readers, because feminism can be (drumroll please) awesome.

Take, for instance, this song. Recorded for a kids’ television show on Nickelodeon (yes, Nick), this song has sent me on a feminism high like I haven’t felt in ages. You see, the name of this song is “Take a Hint,” and I’m going to break it down for you, because I believe I’ve found what could be the next female national anthem.

(If you haven’t hit play, do so now.)

”I don’t want to be a priss, I’m just trying to be polite.”

What makes this song so fantastic is that it starts off where all things should: with politeness and decency. It’s good to be polite - it’s practically mandated for girls - but if someone flirts with you and you’re not interested, you have a right to say no. You don’t have to be rude about it, and then they can leave you alone. It works out for both parties, and nobody gets upset.

“You ask me for my number, you put me on the spot. You think that we should hook up, but I think that we should not.”

But then the song goes on, because they didn’t leave her alone. Turns out “no” isn’t that easy. The boys don’t take the hint - as boys often don’t, because we live in a society that ignores “no means no” and says instead, as Meg from Hercules so accurately puts it: “no means yes and get lost means take me I’m yours!” So they put her on the spot, making it seem rude for her to say no, I’m not interested, and she gets fed up with it. Natural course of events.

“What about no don’t you get?”

And here, the song goes on, because the interactions always go on. Because our society is about making no into a joke, about teaching boys to continue on until a girl changes her mind. I really love the way the song frames the indignity here - it really puts the blame on the people who simply don’t accept no for an answer, who press on until it becomes necessary to defend oneself like this. It’s perfect; if you say no and they leave you alone, it’s fine. The problem comes when they refuse to take no as an answer as if anyone owes them something for taking an interest.

“I guess you still don’t get it, so let’s take it from the top. You asked me what my sign is and I told you it was STOP.”

And then - and this is my favorite part - instead of changing her mind to go along with what’s easier (with what may keep her safe, with what may prevent these people from becoming angry and aggressive) she gets angry. She said no, and instead of them leaving her alone, they’ve pursued her. And that’s a problem. So she fights back, blatantly telling them to leave her alone, even when they don’t listen.

Get your hands off my hips before I punch you in the lips! No, you can’t buy me a drink, but let me tell you what I think: I think you could use a mint, take a hint, take a hint.

It’s a powerhouse rock anthem about personal dignity and it’s sung by women. That’s amazing. We’ve had thousands of songs about scorned lovers and revengeful exes, but I honestly cannot remember ever hearing a song about a girl standing up for herself against unwanted advances. Especially not a good song!

This is a song I want to press into the hands of every girl I ever meet. It’s the song I’ve asked for my entire life, a powerhouse anthem about standing up for yourself and not feeling obligated to go along with unwanted advances just to stay out of harm’s way. The fact is, no means no, and if we need a rock anthem to sing at sleazy boys at bars or in the street, I’m 100% for it.