An Open Letter to Robin Thicke From a Longtime Fan Who Wants Nothing to Do With Him Anymore
Dear Robin Thicke,
How are you? I’m going to assume you’re pretty well, considering the popularity of "Blurred Lines." What a song, and what a crowd. Pharrell, T.I., and a gaggle of beautiful half-naked models frolicking around you as T.I. raps about giving “something big enough to tear your ass in two.” Well there’s an offer I can, and will refuse!
I’ve never really written fan mail which serves me well because this is NOT fan mail. I am writing to tell you that your song "Blurred Lines" does NOT empower women, as you recently stated on the Today show. Nor is it “a feminist movement in itself.” If you’re unclear about what feminism is, allow me to educate you. Feminism is a movement followed by people who are actively trying to create an equal place for women in society. I say "people" because this movement is not limited or isolated to women. It is entirely imperative that gender equality is pursued by both men AND women as we all actively engage with each other.
How on earth can we expect equality to move forward when we are consistently objectified? Minimizing our existence to one of a physical nature is entirely dehumanizing. I’ve got tits and an ass but I also have a brain that develops thoughts and feelings about the world around me- and it’s telling me that this song sucks.
"Blurred Lines" has caused a lot of controversy for being "rapey" and it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out why. You sing about knowing a girl "wants it," even if she hasn't made that claim. Are you trying to say that, if a girl hasn't provided consent to have sex with you, then that automatically means she wants it?
Or how about after T.I.'s Shakespearean-verse when you ask the woman to:
Do it like it hurt, like it hurt
What's that all about? Do WHAT like it hurts? I don't even want to know. Let's move on.
In May, GQ published an interview where you said the following about the music video:
“We tried to do everything that was taboo. Bestiality, drug injections, and everything that is completely derogatory towards women. Because all three of us are happily married with children, we were like, "We're the perfect guys to make fun of this." People say, "Hey, do you think this is degrading to women?" I'm like, "Of course it is. What a pleasure it is to degrade a woman. I've never gotten to do that before. I've always respected women." So we just wanted to turn it over on its head and make people go, "Women and their bodies are beautiful. Men are always gonna want to follow them around." After the video got banned on YouTube, my wife tweeted, "Violence is ugly. Nudity is beautiful. And the 'Blurred Lines' video makes me wanna..." You know. And that's the truth. Right now, with terrorism and poverty and Wall Street and Social Security having problems, nudity should not be the issue.”
Robin, of course they will always follow us around like a pack of hungry dogs if men, like YOU, continue to use your celebrity platform to denigrate women and treat us like we have no other place in the world than to satisfy the sexual appetite of a man.
But now, you’re singing a different tune. Quite literally, to be exact, because your music of old was great. "Magic?" Loved it! "Lost Without U?" Amazing. "Blurred Lines?" Negative. You’ve lost a longtime fan, Mr. Thicke, not only because of this song and the music video but because of your inconsistent explanation about what message you’re trying to send.
Whatever that message is- there doesn’t seem to be anything blurry about it.
Jaclyn Munson
