That women who don’t shave their legs and underarms are gross and unhygienic.
A couple of years ago I discovered that the hygiene argument for shaving was originally aimed at men with beards, and with right. Before modern hygiene standards, many men had overgrown beards with food crumbs and dirt caught in them - truly disgusting. So when razor companies wanted to expand their market, they managed to convince everyone that visible body hair on women is also gross, which coincided timing wise with women first starting to wear short skirts. Somehow today, it’s still acceptable for modern men to have beards and their hygiene is never questioned, only their poor sensitive skin from daily shaving or hiding a weak chin, whereas an unshaven woman remains gross.
Despite knowing this intellectually, and accepting that men don’t shave their underarms, I haven’t (yet) managed to stop shaving my underarms, not even in winter when no-one other than my husband (who doesn’t care) would know. I can’t stop feeling that it’s unhygienic and a trap for sweat.
I believed this for a really long time, too. Then I got divorced from a man who insisted I keep bare and grew out all of my body hair for the first time in my entire life.
It blew me away that I had never once allowed my body to be in it’s natural state before.
Now I keep my body hair for myself AND for other girls and women. I’m wearing shorts right now actually with my incredibly hairy legs on full display. I went on beach/pool vacation earlier this year and didn’t shave a single hair off first. Wore my bathing suit in full hairy glory. I wanted little girls and boys to see that women can be hairy like men are and normalize it.
Everyone should do with their body as they feel is right and comfortable for them. Even if you never quit shaving, I hope some of the negative connotations with not shaving fade for you a little bit.
Same done for smoking. When they wanted to have more consumers, they launched the idea of independent women connecting independence with smoking cigarettes like "lights of freedom ". It worked.
Same for many other objects.
Not speaking about toothpaste which is designed for men mouth pH. And many,many more. Even hormonal med for women just recently started to be adopted and tested on women ! Can you imagine this ? Hormonal cure for women based on men test!!!
That women who don’t shave their legs and underarms are gross and unhygienic.
A couple of years ago I discovered that the hygiene argument for shaving was originally aimed at men with beards, and with right. Before modern hygiene standards, many men had overgrown beards with food crumbs and dirt caught in them - truly disgusting. So when razor companies wanted to expand their market, they managed to convince everyone that visible body hair on women is also gross, which coincided timing wise with women first starting to wear short skirts. Somehow today, it’s still acceptable for modern men to have beards and their hygiene is never questioned, only their poor sensitive skin from daily shaving or hiding a weak chin, whereas an unshaven woman remains gross.
Despite knowing this intellectually, and accepting that men don’t shave their underarms, I haven’t (yet) managed to stop shaving my underarms, not even in winter when no-one other than my husband (who doesn’t care) would know. I can’t stop feeling that it’s unhygienic and a trap for sweat.
Edit: typo
I believed this for a really long time, too. Then I got divorced from a man who insisted I keep bare and grew out all of my body hair for the first time in my entire life.
It blew me away that I had never once allowed my body to be in it’s natural state before.
Now I keep my body hair for myself AND for other girls and women. I’m wearing shorts right now actually with my incredibly hairy legs on full display. I went on beach/pool vacation earlier this year and didn’t shave a single hair off first. Wore my bathing suit in full hairy glory. I wanted little girls and boys to see that women can be hairy like men are and normalize it.
Everyone should do with their body as they feel is right and comfortable for them. Even if you never quit shaving, I hope some of the negative connotations with not shaving fade for you a little bit.
Same done for smoking. When they wanted to have more consumers, they launched the idea of independent women connecting independence with smoking cigarettes like "lights of freedom ". It worked. Same for many other objects.
Not speaking about toothpaste which is designed for men mouth pH. And many,many more. Even hormonal med for women just recently started to be adopted and tested on women ! Can you imagine this ? Hormonal cure for women based on men test!!!