The Sexy Lie: Caroline Heldman at TEDxYouth@SanDiego

A leading advocate for spotlighting how the mainstream media contributes to the underrepresentation of women in positions of power and influence in America, Caroline Heldman offers straight talk and an often-startling look at the objectification of women in our society. She illustrates how it has escalated, how we have become inured to its damaging effects and what we can do individually and collectively to demolish the paradigms that keep us from a better world.

Chair of the politics department of Occidential College in Los Angeles, Dr. Heldman appeared in the acclaimed documentary, Miss Representation and is co-editor of "Madame President: Are We Ready for a Woman in the White House?" She is a frequent commentator on radio and television and a regular contributor to Ms. Magazine.


In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized.* (*Subject to certain rules and regulations)

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[darkbyke]

The only right they are missing is "going topless". Even that is changing in some places, I know in Toronto it's okay. 

[Georgia all]

Clearly this video shows that things are not equal! which means that those goals are not achieved! Feminism is definitely not about 'total domination' that's just ridiculous. It's about defending women's rights and that will never be a bad thing.

[darkbyke]

Feminism is a bad thing now. It accomplished its goals many years ago, which was great. Equality for everyone! Now they are based on total domination. People should be "humanists" not Feminists.

[Jonatan Rastas]

at first i thought thi is probobly a radical feminist but i was wrong.She made some really good points :) But it would be nice to hear some more about the sexuallation of men.

[xyz727272]

Is this what feminism has become, really? Sad.

[Georgia all]

You keep saying feminist like it's a bad thing. A feminist is a person who believes in women's rights, not a bad person. What you're doing is implying that feminists are ignorant or that they have tactic. That being a feminist is bad when in reality everyone should be a feminist. People like you are exactly what this world doesn't need. Idiot.

[darkbyke]

Shoes aren't biology. Way to ignore the topic at hand. Typical feminist tactic.

[SeraphimKiss]

Not disagreeing that women need to make the choice too; we all do. But nothing will happen if we wait around for a unanimous agreement. I just try to live more consciously of these things and discuss it whenever I get the chance. If something this deep seated is going to change it's going to happen very gradually over a long period of time, and I don't expect to see much change in my lifetime.

I don't want to let the biological imperative determine the values I live by, but that's just me.

[MrAndryist]

A man can't make that choice until everybody agrees to at the same time, or the men who make that choice are breeding themselves out, reinforcing the importance of the competition. The fact is that WOMEN need to make this change first, as the gatekeepers of reproduction. When women start to value things other than a man's utility, men will adapt to meet their demands, because they want to pass on their genes.