Sadly,sexual subjugation sells
By Dwight Daniels (Shanghai Star)
Updated: 2004-09-15 14:56

Kindly tell me what an airline attendant's beauty has to do with whether she or he can navigate a cart full of drinks and packaged "dinners" down an aisle on a packed Air China jetliner.

Stewardesses-to-be pose for a group photo at the beauty pageant held in last November in Zhuhai in South China's Guangdong Province. [baidu]

Anything? In fact, what does an attendant's chromosomes controlling his or her maleness or femaleness or beauty or eye colour or height have to do with anything? Nothing. Nada. Zilch.

If an attendant can push the cart and deliver the terrible food and pass out the beer, they can do the job, though a smile and a bag of peanuts along the way would be appreciated, thank you.

So why is that the men behind the annual China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition to be held in early November in Zhuhai in South China's Guangdong Province have decided to stage a "beauty pageant" for so-called airline stewardesses from more than 20 airlines. They must believe the prettier the attendant, the better the job she can do pushing that old cart.

These lovely ladies will vie for titles including "beautiful angel". The organizing committee has also prepared 16 other prizes for best professional skills, best company image, best language, best image, and who knows what else. Best kisser. Best legs. Best ... well, I'll leave it to your imagination.

In any case, let's not be picky. Let's get to the heart of why this is going on. Dong Taijin, deputy manager of the Zhuhai Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition Company, told Reuters the first China International Stewardess Beauty Pageant is slated to coincide with the aviation exhibition to help it showcase the culture and technical specialities of global aviation firms.

The pageant has attracted entrants from most of China's domestic airways and more than 20 foreign airlines, Dong bragged.

Well, if you haven't caught on yet. I smell a rat. Male rats. And wherever there are men, there are women being subjugated.

And it's not just at pageants. It's everywhere. Chinese publications, including this one, still publish pictures of nubile young women standing next to new automobiles or computers at unveilings of new brands of the day. Journalistically, decisions to publish pictures like these went out of fashion in Western newspapers decades ago. They were rightfully seen as sexist, treating women like objects.

But you see such pictures in China and Asia all the time. Perhaps it's because such young women are present at almost every news conference, including some that should be far above that kind of behaviour.

But what does this tell China's young women, who, sadly, must overcome centuries of discrimination as it is. Throughout the nation, birth rates for boys and girls remain out of proportion. Many remain unconvinced of girls' worth to families and some couples break the law and bribe doctors for information so they can give birth to boys.

Girls understand from an early age they must fight the view that they are second-class citizens and are not truly valued as equals. In the countryside, some are forced to give up their ambitions and hopes for an education or a career so that younger brothers can move forward in life. The only hope for these girls is to marry and repeat the cycle.

Beauty pageants such as the one in Zhuhai reinforce the view that women are objects. That's despite the nonsensical retort you'll hear from the organizers that, hey, there are occasional pageants held to choose handsome men, too. And others for cosmetic surgery victims. And for pregnant mothers. And for one-armed saxophone players who swim while playing.

All of that is simply sad and ridiculous. In fact, nearly all such pageants are nonsense because they tend to value looks over the character and the intelligence of individuals.

The sad truth of the matter is that the organizers of the annual China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition in Zhuhai want a big turnout for their event, and sexual subjugation is behind the idea. They think that inviting dozens of lithe, buxom international beauties will impress randy middle-aged aviation executives who'll be sure to attend for the fun.

Sadly, they are probably right. But that sure doesn't make it right.

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