Those who know me already know I'm not “into” celebrity news – especially when it's gossip about others who are far more fortunate and glitzy than I am. Celebrity gossip doesn't get us little people anywhere but away from our pathetic lives and gives us something to talk about.
Another thing I didn't want to bring up, but feel professionally compelled to address, was the continued fashion reports on First Lady Michelle Obama – and THEN how wrong it was for Beyoncé to lip sync to her own song.
When I watched the news last week and “locals” offered their opinions on what they thought of Michelle's inaugural dress, it didn't sound like anyone was particularly WOW'ed. The question most reporters asked was, “What did you think of the checkered-patterned coat and dress by Thom Browne?”
I don't know about you, but I've never heard of Thom Browne and I probably can't afford anything his eyes have even laid eyes on! Have you heard of him before this event? What's more annoying to me, rather than focusing on the First Lady's plans for the next four years, was that everyone was talking about how “professional but elegant” she looked. Let's get real! Did anyone expect her to come prancing out in her pajamas? Did they think she'd sport one of the “nude” dresses that hip-hop artist J-Lo sports when she's making a grand entrance at an award ceremony?
Why are people talking about Michelle's attire when she is SUPPOSED TO represent everything that's wholesome, classy, intelligent and welcoming as an American woman. She is supposed to be a role model that all little girls look up to and want to be – a woman who stands for values and respects herself enough not to show boob while she's making a speech.
The only reason I can see the media making a big stink of her wardrobe is to demonstrate to women in politics - and civics – on a local level what a “professional woman” should look like.
Let's spare each other the details of what Kate Middleton and Hillary Clinton sported at their first “big” public appearance. You rarely, if ever, hear the critics saying how “god awful” soand so's attire was. These fine women are dressed by designers whose job is to bring out the “professional” in whoever wears their clothes. Do YOU have a personal assistant who tells you what to wear when you’re heading out?
And if you DO hear people criticize a woman's wardrobe (because all men have to do is throw on a tan t-shirt and dress pants and they're fabulous no matter what event they're attending), it's usually about someone who usually doesn't do a good job at looking “sane” half of the time. Your Katy Perry, Nicki Minaj, Lady Gaga fashion 'don'ts' are no surprise – and who cares! These women, as inspirational as they are to our young girls, are NOT lawmakers. I don't think they're close to being professional idols who we want our daughters to emulate.
The week after Michelle's extravagant violet gloves were idolized, the media turned their attention to the Beyonce debacle and what she did with the Star Spangled Banner. Is THIS yet another woman we want our youngsters to look up to? I mean, she was lip syncing to her own song – but WHO CARES? We know she can sing - and it's not like she didn't show up at all. And she didn't pull an Ashley Simpson (remember her sudden “ho-down” performance on Saturday Night Live in 2004 when the audio went haywire?).
Unfortunately, I can bet that more girls look up to Beyonce than they look up to First Lady Michelle Obama. We know that women in our community have their own style (and some should learn from the First Lady instead of wearing a blindfold when they're getting dressed).
The media is also sending mixed signals about what constitutes “successful.” You might not like how, but some of these women didn't go to Ivy League colleges and they weren't born into money. They didn't strive to get into politics and they're not “proper” like Michelle.
So why is everyone pining over a fabulous, elegant red dress that fits like a glove on the First Lady when most women are looking to make a bold statement when they get a chance to make an appearance at a big event? Of course, they SHOULD dress presidential when they're going on a job interview – and the message is clear: How you dress is a message of success.
This isn't always true, of course. But is all the hype over fake singing and elegant attire enough to change the way young girls represent themselves?
If you ask me, all the attention given to the inaugural gossip took away from important news that was seemingly a simple distraction just a few days before.
We KNOW that the First Lady can wow us with her wardrobe. We KNOW Beyonce can sing.
We also KNOW most women aren't showing up at local meetings wearing something designed for them by a gay European man whose million-dollar collection was just shipped overseas. Whether or not YOU'RE inspired by all the inaugural shenanigans is your business. I guess my standards are fashionably different...Ha!
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