Halfords and every day sexism

[Baxer]

A poster started a thread about this on another section but I think it warrants a mention on here.

This might be a small issue when it comes to the huge battles women face at the moment, but for me these small instances of everyday sexism are a huge problem when you add them all together.

Halfords have decide to call two of their women’s bikes ‘Entice’ and ‘Virtue’. [name edited by MNHQ at OP's request] As the poster pointed out on her thread, it feeds into the misogynistic attitude that women are either enticing or pure.

On the other thread a large number of people couldn’t understand why it was a big deal, but for me these small acts of every day sexism are a big problem when you add them all up and whilst I can see through them, I worry about my daughters and other young women being exposed to these attitudes.

I have tweeted Halfords, but I suspect they will just ignore me like other companies do when I point these issues out.

Here's a few others that absolutely do ...

Tv and magazine ads showing our value lies in our youth and appearance

Strangers telling us to "Smile love!"

An assertive woman in the workplace is a ball breaker/aggressive/a bitch. An assertive man is just that.

School girls being ogled whilst wearing their school uniform by men

Having to Meticulously plan each stage of a night out (when we were allowed out!) to ensure our personal safety and that of our female friends.

They all add up.

@OldFolksTalkinBoutBackinMyDay2

Funnyinjury I like your posts and can't imagine you'd deliberately try and wind us up with fake adverts. If you say it's real I believe you. Could you hazard a guess as to roughly when this ad was current?

Those posts were deliberately misleading by suggesting those adverts were current. Halfords current children’s section has nothing like that (if it ever did). They scrupulously avoid any reference to boys or girls equipment.

@TorringtonDean

Boys had the Chopper of course!!

Really? How strange? Choppers were very big around the age I was 11/12. It certainly was not the case only boys had them.

Bit miffed now.
Did a search “girls chopper bike” and got a page of women in bikinis posing seductively on chopper motorcycles. Now that is sexism from Google.

For those doubting the authenticity of the Halfords helmets advert, here's an article that was printed about it at the time:

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3222424/Put-widdle-helmet-pretty-widdle-heads-Parents-fury-patronising-Halfords-online-listing-pink-bicycle-helmet-aimed-girls.html

Halfords were contacted and agreed to change the wording.