Photo by Robin Von Breton
During this year’s Girl Talk — Lick and Urban’s annual celebration of feminine power— one writer spoke of how a male friend asked her, “How come there isn’t a boy talk?” Originally thinking he was kidding, the writer laughed it off. But, giving it a second thought, she realized the insult of making a joke about his question and about the sanctity of such a beneficial, strengthening addition to the community. Initially, she feared that a boy talk would create an oppositional, male-focused event which would encourage the suppression and denigration of women’s voices. As Lick’s LWOW (The Lick Wilmerding Organization of Women) and Urban’s SWEAR (Students for Women’s Equality and Rights) have successfully used the Girl Talk platform to advance their mission of equality, she was afraid that instead of working with women against toxic masculinity, Boy Talk would serve as a barrier to Girl Talk’s goals.
In theory, a proper and safe Boy Talk that works in conjunction with Girl Talk should be considered. Since one of the main benefits of Girl Talk has been questioning toxic masculinity —the faulty adherence to the idea of what it means to be a man— a Boy Talk could prove useful to have men take initiative in dismantling the system of oppression.
While masculinity’s impact on society attempts to disempower women, men should take responsibility and join in the fight for equality.
One of the reasons girl talk has been so successful, is because of the months of careful planning that goes into each year’s performance. LWOW holds meetings all year to prepare for Girl Talk. If a helpful Boy Talk were to take place, equally exhaustive preparation would be necessary.
Alice Grimm, a member of Lick’s math department, notes, “The first assumption with a Boy Talk is that it is something oppositional to Girl Talk, something fighting against it. To be successful, the event would have to work hand-in-hand with Girl Talk… perhaps even work with some of its advisors for help.”
Annette Vergara-Tucker ‘19, one of the leaders of Girl Talk, agrees, Boy Talk “would definitely be valuable — a Guy Talk for feminism… it would have to be arranged by guys, and the advisors could definitely help.”
Dr. Willow Mintz, Lick’s counselor and the club advisor of LWOW, explains the process of developing each Girl Talk or any powerfully crafted, meaningful event. “An event is a culminating piece of work that a group of people have been working towards all year… I think that the work of Girl Talk has been invisible to the community, the performance Girl Talk is culminating event to a great deal of discussion and exploration and careful writing. Girl Talk is not just about the event, it’s about everything that goes into planning it…the event is an important piece, but it’s just one part of the whole piece.”
