OPINION Page 4 Wednesday, February 8, 1984 The Michigan Daily Look-alike contest is just frivolous fun By Gary Effman There are baby seals being clubbed to death in Canada, the desert snail darter remains on the verge of extinction, and Ronald Reagan will probably be elected president for another term come November. These are problems which need quick, concerned action and demand protest from responsible in- dividuals. Yet last week the Waukegee, Iowa Junior Scouts held a Lassie the dog look alike contest and a score of residents and their bulldogs, hounddogs, and lap- dogs marred the festivities with a meaningless protest concerning misrepresentation of the canine ideal. Over break, a Jimmy Durante lookalike contest was cancelled when a crowd of men from the "Men are More Than Sex Symbols Society" complained that it was wrong to socialize men into believing that "they must have large noses and say hach cha cha."' And in yet another ridculous social commen- tary, inspired by last weekends all-in- good-fun Marilyn Monroe look-alike shindig, 20 men and women proved that they could find no better way to im- prove the world than to complain about blonde hair and a dazzling smile. IT HAS often been said that one can never get enough of a good thing. And though active protest is, in fact, a good thing, there can simply be too much. The purpose of any act of public.protest is to cause others to think about an issue and hopefully to have them accept the message of that protest. Yet there is only so much new thought that a person can handle, especially in times like ours when new issues like the disposal of toxic wastes and the way to prevent muclear annihilation have become so overwhelming. The brain has a mechanism which filters out only the sensations and messages which are deemed pertinent. If it were not for such a mechanism, millions of impulses-such as the sound of our breathing, the way a chair we sit on feels, or the multitude of images our eyes are constantly perceiving-would short circuit our nervous system. This is a biological function and yet it has applications to social protest. If protest becomes too frequent and its content too menial, then the.truly wor- thwhile, important messages will become muddled in the masses. The sad consequence of such action is the breeding of the "not another stupid rally" attitude which is slowly begin- ning to characterize the beliefs of a large proportion of society. THE PROTEST at the Michigan Theater was just another one of those stupid rallies.- Marilyn Monroe was unquestionably a dazzingly beautiful woman. No, she is not the only beautiful woman, nor is she the epitome of the modern woman. But that was not even suggested by the sponsors at the Classic Film Theater or the 350 movie enthusiasts who came to see Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and The Seven Year it- ch. were going to be molded by the event. The crowd was not predominantly male, and those men who did attend were not salivating uncontrollably with lust in their eyes. The movies and the contest were simply comedies in which both males and females alike could find humor. Protest, at its best, is society's greatest hope to remedy its problems, Saturday night's protest did not serve this purpose. It was only successful in angering the enthusiastic crowd who only wished to see some very funny flicks and to avoid making a social commentary. Equal rights and opportunities for women are issues truly worthy of protest. Saturday night's protest was petty and merely insulted the in- telligence of the attendees who ap- peared to have clearly grasped the dif- ference between reality and a celluloid image. It would be better for everyone if protesters would take a minute to assess the magnitude of the issue being protested and the value of their objec- tions. Nuclear disarmament, military research on campus, the plight of the hungry... these are only -a few of the issues which must currently be debated and to which solutions must be found. Marilyn Monroe's image does not rank up there. Effman is a Daily sports writer. Daily Photo by DAN HABIB Marilyn Monroe look-alike contest-except maybe a lack of There wasn't much to protest at last Saturday night's qualified contestants. As for the look-alike contest, this too made no claim to making Marilyn Monroe the model of all womanhood. The contestants were all mature adults, and if one can still judge by a smile, were all having a wonderful time. If any group at the affair could be con- sidered the victims of societal miscon- ceptions about women, it would be the contestants. But as one contestant Marian Corbin stated, "I just like wat- ching movies. . . I'm as much for women's rights as anyone else." This brings up the all-important question, "Who were the protesters at- tempting to reach?" This was not a group of impressionable gradeschool children whose ideas of the female ideal Edited and managed by students at The University of Michigan LaBan ~~pI ONIA-1/ Eu Vol. XCIV-No. 107 420 Maynard St. Ann Arbor, MI48109 W'D BeTTeR COUNT iTAGdiN! I I4ROMiSiCD The U.6. AIIBMODOR The AilD WOULD Be DSThiBUTeD EQLUiTaBLY! k Editorials represent a majority opinion of the Daily's Editorial Board Laughing at Marilyn ArT 1 T ,"-,MEN r.--wr The Michigan Theater's Marilyn Monroe look-alike contest would at fir- st mention seem to perpetuate some negative stereotype for women in the '8os. But, in reality, it gave evidence that the sex roles prescribed for men and women in American society have definitely broadened. Comuplete sexual equality and the freedom to pursue any sex role, however, have hardly arrived. The more than 20 protesters who marched in front of the theater and handed out leaflets brought up some very legitimate concerns. But they were a bit too hasty in their judgement of the contest. They feared it would be used to exhibit Marilyn Monroe as the. feminine ideal - not a healthy idea, especially to a women's movement that has for many years been attem- pting to dispel the notion of the woman as a sex object. However, the contest's announcer specifically stated that the competition was "A satire on movie stars and star- dom" and "not on Marilyn Monroe the person." He said, "If this were a Marilyn Monroe be-alike contest we could have a neglected child up here, an exploited woman, a lost soul." In addition, a young man sporting a pink dress and blonde wig, won third place in the contest beating 14 other con- testants of mixed sex. Almost every contestant either mocked a typical Monroe screen image such as her soft voice, her air- headedness, and her often skimpy at- tire, or said something to the effect that she represents the oppression of women and sexist values. If there were any Monroe fans in the audience taking her to be the ideal woman, they would have easily seen the foolishness and stupidity she represented by observing the audien- ce's reactions and the contestant's ob- vious caricatures of her image. Nevertheless, the protesters' charge that such a contest could potentially promote the Monroe image was justified. None of the advertisements for the contest hinted that it would satirize Monroe's image. And women do face many obstacles to achieving equality with men. Women still make less than men, hold fewer positions of authority, and are not, taken as seriously as men, even by other women. But their protest was misdirected. The protesters lost some credibility by reacting so swiftly without considering the actual reality of the contest. There are many. more blatantly sexist practices and norms on this campus which should be protes- ted. Efforts focused on these practices would likely gain more supporters. In the '50s and even the '60s a woman's role in society was much less just. A Marilyn Monroe represented that society's view of women and her films perhaps portrayed this. But the Michigan Theater's Marilyn Monroe look-alike contest is a celebration of how far women have come. It is now possible to laugh at the "days when the Monroe image was the norm and rejoice that in the '80s most American women and men have a greater freedom to choose the role in society that best suits them. BUT E WE PULL OUT, T\oSE \MO WeeE ktLLED I&LL MVE D\ED tWi VAt4 ; / 331 70 2'59 _ idiz 'mow s On- LETTERS TO THE DAILY: Washington visits Ann Arbor To the Daily: My, but isn't it beginning to seem an awful lot like Washington around here. One begins to wonder who to believe and who to trust.wFirst MSA meets behind closed doors because Mary Rowland doesn't feel our elected representatives can speak hcnestly before us. Next the PSN is worried about security leaks. Now one must question the integrity of the Daily's editorial staff. In the editorial, "Cadets Take One and Run," (Daily, February 3), the Daily says it is, "hear- tening," to see students misrepresent themselves by taking two years of ROTC paid tuition and then dropping out of the program before they have to commit themselves. While legal (until recently), this behavior must surely be condemned as unethical. Yet the Daily excuses this activity because, although it is an abuse of the system, the svstem in this case is the question their integrity. I ask for clarification gentlemen. When is it appropriate to act unethically and when is it not? My, but isn't the behavior for which we so quickly condemn those in Washington becoming commonplace. - Scott T. Rickman February 3 Look-alike Contest discriminates To the Daily: The members of the QuAC (Queers Action Committee) strongly object to the staging of a Marilyn Monroe look-alike con- test. We feel that this event per- petuates a restrictive and stereotypical view of women and reinforces the oppressive view that a woman's worth is equal to her attractiveness to men. Specifically, this event measures women against a white, blond, heterosexual "sex symbol' and in so doing downgrades women of color, lesbians and gay men, and ultimately any of us who wish to free ourselves from stereotypical gender roles and behavioral norms. As lesbians and gay men, we feel it is necessary to take a stand against this espousal of restric- tive sex roles. Our liberty is at stake. - M. Adams Naomi Braine Greg Prokopowicz Cathreen Godre Diana DeVries February 6 -TEE'S No EftD REASN To KE TAE MIE I t EBAN© Letters and columns represent the opinions of the individual author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the attitudes or beliefs of the Daily. Lb l , BLOOM COUNTY by Berke Breathed