Photo by Mohamed Kassem, Edited by Yara Alsayes
Superficiality is surely embedding itself within our society. From preventing veiled women from entering public spaces, to judging people based on the brands they can afford and parties they go to rather than on their achievements and characters, our society has become extremely shallow.
Nothing comes closer to accurately and perfectly portraying the sad reality of superficiality we are facing today, like the latest Marassi Billboard Advertisement on the highway; “Get Ripped for Marassi”, it says. Now let that sink in for a minute with all its meanings…
“So when you bring the “it” place, which people so desperately want to be a part of, and combine it with a stereotypical “it” body classification, where does that leave us?”
Let’s take a moment to break it down. Boasting beautiful waters and atmospherically perfect collision of morning calmness and nightlife, Marassi has been one of the “it” places to be for almost 3 summers now. So when you bring the “it” place, which people so desperately want to be a part of, and combine it with a stereotypical “it” body classification, where does that leave us? As if objectifying women wasn’t bad enough, we’re bringing men to the game.
As people are creating petitions and campaigns against unrealistic “ideal body” images promoted within the media, finding ways to help those with low self-esteem and researching solutions, we are moving backwards…and happily, may we add.
“As if objectifying women wasn’t bad enough, we’re bringing men to the game.”
It’s just one ad, though. No big deal. What could the harm possibly be? What people may not see is that all it takes is one single ad to open Pandora’s Box. In a society where problems are endless, where we are behind in technology, in equality, in our educational and health systems and much more, we cannot afford assuaging the self-esteem of our next generation; they are the ones who are meant to build our future. Why give them the weight of more problems? Why make them feel inadequate just to promote a summer destination?
As an end-note, making people feel as though they are welcome regardless of body size, shape, or color will lead to a much greater success and attraction. However, if your point is to attract a certain audience to satisfy a superficial quota, at any cost, we guarantee the results won’t be in your benefit.