Sinead O'Connor's wise words to Miley Cyrus

[whatdoesittake48]

Apologies for the DM link...

www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2442321/Sinead-OConnor-writes-open-letter-Miley-Cyrus-response-similar-video.html

A somewhat rambling but heartfelt letter.

You can't say you are influenced by Sinead O'Connor and then promote your sexuality in the way Miley does without it seeming incongruous. A young woman who seems to have her concepts of female power somewhat skewed.

[GeraldineAubergine]

Has anyone read the follow up by cyrus. Its awful. Sineads response is brilliant. I wonder who is advising cyrus.

[stubbornstains]

I'm going to buck the trend here. I don't like that letter. I think the tone is patronising ("young lady" anybody?), and there's an element of slut shaming going on. I haven't seen the Miley Cyrus video- I have no doubt it's dreadful, but-

"This is a dangerous world. We don’t encourage our daughters to walk around naked in it because it makes them prey for animals and less than animals"

just sounds like victim blaming to me.

Also, there's a letter going round on FB- apparently her response to MC's (completely out of order) tweets- accusing her of behaving like a prostitute and encouraging other young women to do the same. What kind of feminist calls another woman a prostitute (unless they actually are one of course)?

[ReviewsOffers]

One who doesn't attach a value judgement to the word prostitute but uses it as a descriptor only?
She is not saying she is a slut for using her body to make money. Only that it will harm her in the long wrong. there's no hint of immorality or slut shaming going on.

[BasilBabyEater]

I'm in two minds about it.

OTOH a few quibbles aside, almost everything Sinead says in that letter is true.

OTOH you can't offer advice to a young woman in public without it being seized upon as criticism, judgementalism etc. The tone of the letter wasn't critical or judgemental and I also don't think it was slut-shaming - she's using the term prostitute in the context of "prostituting our art", but inevitably, if you're going to go public with a conversation, you're going to provoke defensiveness and defiance in all but the most intelligent, secure and confident of people.

She might have been better sending this letter in private.

But then OTOH she wouldn't have got her message out to all the other young women out there who would also benefit from hearing that message - from having some of their unexpressed uneasiness spoken aloud.

It might have been better if she did a more general letter not actually addressed to Miley C because then it would be less personal.

[FuckItLifeIsTooShort]

This has escalated. The ongoing 'discussion' has included Miley apparently mocking mental health issues while Sinead retorts in letter form get crosser and crosser.

I so hope the Miley has the grace to step back and apologise to Sinead. I agree that parts of Sinead's open letter left something to be desired, I hate the train of thought that blames the woman, but her intent was, I think clear and heartfelt.

I really hope Miley does not see this engagement as an opportunity to continue her move away from the sweet Disney character and in doing so hurt people.

[Ledkr]

I wonder who is advising Miley?
All the other stuff is now irrelevant to me, my 11 yr old would know it was wrong to mock someone for their illness.
In my opinion she's shown her true nasty colours, she's in her twenties not 16 ffs, nasty.

[JakeBullet]

Sinead O'Connor was actually quite patronising while making a sensible and serious point....too much "young lady" stuff. She is also quite capable of using an opportunity for publicity.....as is Miley Cyrus. Wouldn't be surprised if all this has been cooked up by publicists.

[PacificDogwood]

It's now getting nasty...
m.huffpost.com/uk/entry/4042996/

I really liked O'Connor's first letter apart from the 'your body belongs to you and your boyfriend. Nope, belongs to YOU.

[FuckItLifeIsTooShort]

Agree with the young lady point Jake. Sinead seeking publicity is a possibility but I would be surprised if this would be how she chose to do it. But, nothing IMO excuses Mikey's response.

[Ledkr]

Yes pacific that bit was indeed ridiculous!

[KaseyM]

I'm with Sinead. That letter is spot on, as is the third letter where she tells Miley not to be part of the anti-female brigade because one day she will be a victim of it.

And I'm with whatdoesittake because it IS hard to reconcile the natural pushing of boundaries as a teenager with the knowledge that men are "getting their jollies" from how you look. Nicely put.

What girls need is another REAL way to rebel.

[DownstairsMixUp]

I actually feel sorry for Miley. I get the vibe she is being advised to do these things as she'll be seen as "cool" and with it with her fans, instead, she seems to have the same old people buying her records (impressionable young kids) and everyone else just see's her as a laughing stock. :/

[Chubfuddler]

It's probably hard for a 47 year old to talk to a 20 year old, giving pretty wise but unsolicited advice without sounding a bit patronising tbh.

Age wise I am slap bang in the middle of them, and whilst Miley's response was crass and wrong on so many levels I don't even need to spell out, I very much doubt that she is even aware that she is bring exploited and probably thinks "what the fuck?"

She's wrong and sinaed is right. But sadly such a good number is done on young women in this regard that her stance is unsurprising.

[ll31]

I don't know, isn't it possible miley c is actually an adult who is intelligent enough to make her own mind up about what she does. Thought sineads letter was v patronising.

[FloraFox]

Sinead O'Connor knows the music industry and the pressures be

[FloraFox]

Argh! Being put on MC to do what she's doing. She was also responding to MC saying she was inspired by Sinead. I'm not going to pick apart her language. I agree with her overall message which is, in fact, to make your own decisions.

[Reality]

I loved Amanda Palmers reply to sinead. Can't link as on my phone but it was good stuff.

It's on her blog (and my fb if anyone on there wants to link it on here)

[ithaka]

I think as soon as Sinead used the phrase 'young lady' Miley will have stopped listening - & who can blame her?

I have been called 'young lady' on this board (hilariously, because I am old) and I knew damn well that phrase is intended to patronise, belittle and put a woman down as silly and wrong. Way to be a feminist.

I stopped listening to the poster who called me that - I don't think Miley needs to listen to SOC.

[Sausageeggbacon]

So Sinead's 14 date American Kindness tour starts next month and she starts a public spat.... now I wouldn't go as far as saying cynical but as the tour is promoting lasts year's album in the states it does sound the sort of thing a record company would come up with to promote the thing.

[TeiTetua]

"her overall message which is, in fact, to make your own decisions..."

Except that this is one person telling another person what to do, and starting from the assumption that she didn't make her own decisions in the first place. And I do think it's highly significant in this exchange that it's an older woman disapproving of what a younger woman does in the way of acting out sexually in public. It seems to link up with the thread we had here recently on "Young women dressing like sluts" and also whatever it was that Rihanna has been doing. Not that I think it's all fine and wonderful, but perhaps this goes beyond one or a few women's individual behaviour.

[unfortunatedischarge]

I know when Madonna first came in to the spotlight people were horrified by her dress, her sexuality her lyrics her dancing. But did anyone assume she was doing it because "she had been told to"?

I think that it is the difference with Miley and Rihanna etc... there is a feeling that these young women aren't "owning" the whole thing iyswim they look like factory churned out products of "sexy and outrageous".

Madonna dressed herself (at first at least) and also I believe wrote her songs and choreographed her moves... maybe that is the difference? She might have been upsetting some people's sensibilities..but she was doing it because she wanted to.

Lady gaga is equally naked in most of her videos, is she receiving letters that she might want to tone it down? Or do people see her as the brains behind her look? I think being in charge of yourself and enjoying yourself make the difference.

I kind of liken it to the girl who sleeps around in school because she is looking for attention and love and gets repeatedly tossed aside by assholes compared to the woman that goes out looking for sex because, well, she felt like getting laid.

[ll31]

But I don't really see why many people assume miley Cyrus say doesn't understand business,patriarchy, etc and doesn't choose what to do from a position of knowledge. . The attitude that she's young etc so can't uunderstand and is being exploited annoys me somwhat. I've met plenty scarily wise 18 yr olds tbh.

Also,

[ll31]

Also.... Zilch...