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women

Lifestyle

The 100 Most Beautiful Women – The NEW List Project

New List Project
New List Project

When we search the most beautiful women in the world, names pop up like Angelina Jolie, Kate Upton, Blake Lively, Olivia Wilde, etc. Yes, these women are absolutely stunning – they seem to have reached a level of perfection that is beyond our grasp.

But there’s a problem…

When these lists say “beautiful,” they mean symmetrical faces, large breasts, big eyes, straight, white teeth, smooth skin, and perfect curves. When they say “beautiful,” they are perpetuating society’s convoluted idea of physical beauty equating inner beauty.

We all know that this is incorrect. Your physical appearance has nothing to do with all of the amazing qualities that make you, YOU.

So how do we redefine beauty?

How do we redefine beauty so that it reflects our inner qualities and is not dependent on our physical features?

I have had the immense privilege of recently meeting Chelsie Price – the founder of Proud and Pretty in Pink. I’ve been so inspired by their mission to empower young women by educating them about body image. For more about how much I adore PPP (I could go on forever!), check out my other post here.

Anyways, I’ve gotten to know Chelsie and have been following her blog for a while now. She has been working tirelessly on an incredibly inspiring new project as of late. The mission of this project is to create a list of women who have inner beauty.

newlist3So what does this look like?

Chelsie has set out on a mission to list 100 women who are beautiful by this definition. To be beautiful, you must act beautifully. Exemplifying these traits shows your inner strength and character – what beauty should be based on. Ignoring physical standards of beauty is freeing and empowering. This new list will highlight women who have changed to world for the better and strive to help others.

newlist4Chelsie needs YOUR help to create this list. It is a massive task she has set out to accomplish, but it cannot be done alone. We need the input of women of all backgrounds to tell us who they think are the most beautiful women in the world by using this new definition.

To nominate someone, please email Chelsie at cprincea@gmail.com with the following information:

  1. The full name of the woman you’re nominating
  2. Your full name and contact info
  3. The reason why this woman falls under the new definition of beauty
  4. The woman’s contact info (if you have it!)

Please only include women who are living. There are so many incredible women out there, so we want to recognize the ones doing great things right here and now.

Thank you so much for your support of this amazing project. For more information, please check out Chelsie’s posts here and here.

newlist

Lifestyle

Proud and Pretty in Pink

Proud and Pretty in Pink Body Image Workshop

Confident Women are Changing the World Proud and Pretty in Pink

The organization Proud and Pretty in Pink aims to tackle two of the most prevalent issues for adolescent and young adult women: sexual health education and body image awareness. The organization strives to inspire, educate, and empower women.

Created by founder Chelsie Mogan-Prince with her sister Chandra Mogan, Proud and Pretty in Pink aims to tackle these issues head-on. They work to help women overcome these unrealistic expectations of beauty and learn about sexual health in a comfortable setting. They host programs and workshops with schools, sports teams, sororities, churches, etc.

“Sometimes it doesn’t matter how many times girls hear how beautiful they are or that they’re good enough.  We have to inspire the self hate out of them.  We have to open their eyes and impact their minds.  We are prepared to do just that.”
– Chelsie Mogan-Prince
Proud and Pretty in Pink Founders Chelsie Morgan-Prince (right) and Chandra Morgan (left)

The lovely Proud and Pretty in Pink founders Chelsie Mogan-Prince (right) and Chandra Mogan (left)

Proud and Pretty in Pink has an event coming up in Culver City, California on March 16th from 11am-3pm focusing on body image. They have celebrity guests from Team True Beauty – Shantel VanSanten of “One Tree Hill,” Angelique Cabral of “Enlisted,” and Laura Linda Bradley of “Dancing with the Stars.”

Unfortunately, I will be unable to attend the event. From talking with Chelsie and seeing the success of their previous workshops, I highly encourage anybody from middle school through college to attend. Get your tickets soon though (buy them here!), because they only have 60 tickets for sale and are expecting to sell out. Tickets are just $25 and you will receive a cute t-shirt and swag bag as well! For more information about the event, check out the video below or their blog.  I can guarantee each woman who attends this workshop will feel significantly more confident in herself.

Chelsie and Chandra’s dedication to this cause is so evident in everything they have done. If you’re unable to attend the event, you should consider having Proud and Pretty in Pink come speak with your organization. They clearly love what they do and would provide an incredibly enriching experience for all those who attend.

Here’s a quick video about the Body Image Workshop:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AdlMBmeJ-bo&list=UUaoxfVf5EDgMumk-ehoxf5g&feature=c4-overview]

Whether you’ve struggled with body image or sexual health or not, it is undeniable that an education about both is crucial to the future of women. As women in today’s society, our idea of beauty is so warped. Bombarded with images of unrealistically “perfect” women in the media everyday, the feeling of inadequacy constantly nags at us. 

This expectation of beauty is to unattainable, yet so many of us go through extreme lengths to try to achieve it. Our insecurities manifest themselves in different ways – from developing eating disorders to depression to dressing differently to loading up on makeup. Regardless of our awareness of it, this ridiculous misrepresentation of beauty affects all of us. Proud and Pretty in Pink strives to empower women to feel confident with their natural beauty.

In terms of sexual health, many women have been woefully neglected in this area of education. Whether they have been taught the “abstinence only” method or maybe their mom simply refused to discuss it, so many women lack basic knowledge about their own bodies. From preventing STDs to understanding puberty to knowing the risks of unprotected sex, education about these issues is crucial for living a healthy life.

I love that Proud and Pretty in Pink are working towards helping women feel beautiful in their own skin and empowering them to take control of their lives. I can’t wait to see where this organization goes from here!

Proud and Pretty in Pink quote

Contact Proud and Pretty in Pink:

Check out their website here.

Connect on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook

Email them info@proudandprettyinpink.com

Email Chelsie Chelsie@proudandprettyinpink.com

I did not receive any compensation for this post. All opinions are my own.

Lifestyle

Miss Representation Film Screening

miss_rep

Chapman’s chapter of Alpha Phi, Panhellenic as a whole, and the organization I Am That Girl hosted a screening of the incredibly empowering and thought-provoking documentary “Miss Representation” this afternoon. Absolutely elated, filled with joy, and bursting to share what I had learned with others, I quickly texted one of my closest friends to go watch it. The conversation goes something like this:

Me: “Hey! Go watch the documentary ‘Miss Representation’ it’s amazing!”

Him: “It’s about women empowerment?”

Me: “Yep!”

Him: “I’m not a lady so I’m not inspired.”

This reaction epitomizes the issue the documentary addresses – gender equality pertains to our entire society.

For those of you unfamiliar with the documentary, it essentially addresses all of the major gender issues in today’s society. From unequal pay to the lack of female CEOs to the media’s incredibly biased coverage of women to the sexual objectification of women in rap/hip-hop videos, this film covers it all. Not only is it a call to action, it’s a call back to reality. It asks the questions, “Why are we okay with what is happening?” “When will somebody take a stand?” “How is this STILL an issue?”

“Miss Representation” explores the effect mainstream media has on the under-representation of women in America – especially those in influential positions. It challenges the limiting image of women the media portrays. It illustrates how difficult it is as young women to be strong, independent, and powerful when all we see are conflicting images in the media. Watch the trailer for the film here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6gkIiV6konY

I left the screening of this documentary buzzing with excitement and encouragement. I suddenly began re-thinking all of my life choices and reconsidering my career path. As somebody studying public relations and advertising as well as marketing, I have always been highly aware of the issue of women being objectified and misrepresented in the media. However, I had never taken the time to consider how this would effect my future career choice. I need to find a way to channel my passion and expertise into something productive and beneficial to society. As Katie Couric (a personal role model of mine) eloquently describes, “the media can be an instrument of change, it can maintain the status quo and reflect the views of the society or it can, hopefully, awaken people and change minds. I think it depends on who’s piloting the plane.” We see this every day whether we watch E! News as our guilty pleasure, scan BBC’s website each morning, scroll through Twitter while waiting in line at the pharmacy, or listen to the radio at work: the media has the power to influence society in incredibly destructive and beneficial ways. This documentary highlights the destructive tendency the media has to destroy our self-worth and diminish our role in society. I know that I must find a way to channel my skills into something that turns this theory on its head and further empowers women (and all under-represented people!). I’m not sure what that is yet, but I know now that is my new focus and anchoring point.

Another aspect of this documentary that really hit home was the concept of women perpetuating these negative images and feelings towards women in our society. We constantly compete against one another to fit men’s ideal and further ourselves. What we don’t realize is that by consistently putting each other down, it sends a message to men that it is acceptable to think of women this way. Instead of competing against each other, we need to be encouraging mentors and role models to each other – lifting our peers higher. The only way any change will happen is if we all work together to be the best versions of ourselves possible.

A girl in our discussion offered up the simple first step of avoiding the word “bitch” for a week. This word often describes assertive women in power such as Hillary Clinton or Condoleezza Rice – dehumanizing them and diminishing their power. If we work on eliminating that word from our vocabulary, we will be less likely to contribute to this problem. If we also stand up to people we hear perpetuating these negative terms and tearing down women, we will also show our solidarity – making us stronger as a whole.

Another simple way we can help each other is to seek out female mentors. We can learn so much from each other, why not take advantage of it? Instead of feeling competitive with the woman who has a better internship than you and then talking badly behind her back, ask her out to coffee and seek advice on how she was able to get such a great internship. It’s so simple, yet we rarely do it.

Overall, I was so impressed and inspired by “Miss Representation.” I need to take a step back myself and really pay attention to what I’m doing to help resolve this issue. I also need to figure out how my career path can benefit society more and how I can direct my life into a more positive path.

I feel incredibly blessed to be part of a community that appreciates these messages and encourages participation in social justice movements. I can’t wait to see where we go from here!

For more information:

http://film.missrepresentation.org/

@RepresentPledge