Girls oh Girls...

Happy 93rd anniversary of Women's Right to vote in the USA.  

So the debate on Facebook, started by my mother, is about the term Girls.  When is it appropriate to call someone a girl?   There are my girls, the women I hang with and lord knows where I would be without my girls.   By the way, thank you each and every one of you.    If I had girls children there would be my girls, however only boys here; that is a good use of the word girls.

Let's call it out folks. We are not talking about my girl friends or children or a ethnic or cultural use of the word.  We are talking about when full grown lady/women are being called a girl due to conscious or unconscious lack of respect.  The girls at the office, my girl, would you girls...  The same girls that would be pregnant and lifting a Culligan bottle into its tank while the Dr. in question was busy reading a research journal.  

This use of terminology to control the image of people, that may work for and with a person, has not been something that is exclusive to men, although it has been more prevalent.    When I have encounter this in my job history, it generally surprised me, offended me and was out of line.  As I generally remarked negatively, when it was used, it was not repeated in my presence. 

Emotional Unintelligent 20's answer "Last time I checked I have had my period for at least XX number of years so I am not a or your girl."

Emotionally Intelligent 40's answer "While one always wants to look younger, and I appreciate that you feel I have aged well, I would no longer consider myself a girl and would prefer to be known as your worthy team mate and work associate." 

More often I would see someone else being termed my girls or the girls, referring to a work house of effective multitasking women that generally were keeping many business going.  This army of efficient women were amazing, and without which, the man in question, would be shaking his head in terminal frustration.  

In tribute to those women and the women of 93 years ago that worked diligently to give us these rights, to the women who kept the movement alive and to those that need to take it into the future I give you two clips:

Who remembers the movie 9 to 5 without seeing Dolly Parton, Jane Fonda, and Lily Tomlin take on their boss for just such behavior.   Or this clip, turning a rooster into a hen.  http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=zRaeKaL1Rhw

Then there is Mary Poppins classic of our sisters fighting the fight across the sea.  http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=zRaeKaL1Rhw 

Keep it real ya' all.