Isn't this the woman who created the phrase "girl power"?

Oh noes! I loved her! Loved loved loved!

WHYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY?!

You mean a woman who built her entire career on training 10 year old girls to hyper-sexualize themselves in the name of self-empowerment isn't actually a feminist? Mon dieux!

I think the male manager of the band created the whole "girl power" thing in order to sell them. It was probably the same guy who thought it would be cool to have a song about sleeping with all of your friends if a guy is going to date you;) (only slightly being sarcastic).

I wonder what lesbians will make of that statement, because it doesn't seem to be too nice to them either.

Isn't this the woman who created the phrase "girl power"?

Yep... but it always was sort of a wonder bra, cute shoes, sex-everything-up thing. With the Spice Girls, it seemed to me like there was really a fine line between promoting actual liberation and the same old stereotypical femininity repackaged as "girl power."

I loathed the Spice Girls when they first became popular for misappropriating feminism to sell merchandise.
Celebrating our femininity and softness? What does she even mean by that? Wearing dresses and raising children? I celebrate my femininity every day by being myself. Isn't that what feminism is all about? And the hair on my legs is wonderfully soft from not shaving. :)

I wasn't aware that fighting for one's rights and, in some cases, one's life was supposed to be glamorous. Thanks for enlightening me there, Shallow Spice.

Geri is ignorant and, as a feminist and a lesbian, I have no use for her.

I do own the first 2 Spice Girls albums and the movie. I always liked Mel C better anyway.

I'm aligned with wealhtheow. "Unglamorous" is not a relevant critique of a social movement.

As for "rebranding," no thanks. Keep the corporate monoculture mindfuckspeak off my feminism.

I am not at all offended that this woman chooses to distance herself from feminism. Rather, I applaud it. I am, after all, all about the chioces ;)

Hmm, and taxes = godless Communism, and going to church means you're a Nazi. *yawn* Dumb people bore me.

For what it's worth, a friend of mine ran into her in a hotel in London and said she looks like ten miles of bad road. So whatever she's doing to celebrate her femininity, I don't think it's working.

Hey, hey, hey...there were a LOT of things wrong with the Spice Girls, but if you own their albums (which I do, shut up), you'll find a whole crapload of positive messages in there. In their photos, the women are jumping around, being active and rambunctious, and taking up a whole mess of space. There are also quotes splashed all throughout that say things like "silence is golden but shouting is fun." I forget some of the other ones, but I remember repeatedly pouring over the liner notes of these albums when I was a kid and loving how strong and confident they seemed (I was about 12-14 when the whole Spice Girls thing was happening) and actually feeling really empowered - a completely different feeling than usual when it comes to pop culture directed at teen girls.

Again, I know these are really superficial pros, and the list of cons is extensive (the mass marketing of an ideology, the consumerism, the sexualization, etc.), but you have to admit there was something a LOT more powerful and encouraging about the Spice Girls at face value (in their prime) than the majority of music marketed to young girls.

And yes. I did dress up like them, put on the albums, and dance around in my room like a maniac while singing along. I always pretended I was in their music video for "Say You'll Be There" where they were, like, superfuturistic fighters with cool ninja star thingies doing karate kicks. And I was Ginger Spice, thankyouverymuch.

Does she criticize the American civil rights movement for its lack of flair and consumer appeal? Insinuate that the ecological movement is too unsexy? Lacks that je ne sais quoi? Suggest slapping a coat of lipstick on Mohandas Gandhi?

Puh-leeze.

Funnily enough, I've repeatedly heard rumours that she herself is a lesbian, or at least bi.

Don't forget that this is also the woman who said she would do anything to be famous.

For what it's worth, a friend of mine ran into her in a hotel in London and said she looks like ten miles of bad road. So whatever she's doing to celebrate her femininity, I don't think it's working.

Can we not go down this path, again?

Criticizing what she looks like isn't the same as criticizing what she is saying.

I'm with SoyMilkConspiracy. I was around the same age when the Spice Girls came out, and you know what? I felt great about myself jumping around and feeling like I could do anything when I had the music on. Yes, there were plenty of negatives. But at such a young and awkward age, I was quite grateful to have something like this that made me feel good and confident about myself, and helped me to further investigate what feminism really was. Which might be why I ditched the Spice scene by the time the movie came out, but nonetheless, they did do some good.

Oh geez, all of my horrible music demons are coming out of the closet this week. I swear I don't just listen to horrible pop music...

Aaaanyway, all that said, it just makes me that much more sad to read Geri's statement. :(

Oh, hell.

Even though I was older than the target demographic, I loved the Spice Girls. I loved their goofy pop music, and I loved the movie, and I thought they actually gave all kinds of positive messages to girls--that they should value their friendships and bonds with other girls, that they could and should pursue a multitude of interests. And I recognized the stage of feminism they represented--it was a stage I myself passed through when I was a teenager, the time when you hike your skirt up too short on purpose, and try to be as outrageous as possible. And I liked Ginger best.

And their movie was funny. In fact, I own that movie and watch it from time to time.

I'm feel quite let down.

@roymac: my friend didn't say she looked ugly, just tired, used-up, wretched. More unhappy than ugly, to the extent that the two are different. I wasn't going for the ad hominem, just saying that her feminism-rejecting life doesn't seem to be working for her.

Bah, now I'm going to have to sell my tickets on craigslist and burn my copy of Spice World.

But seriously, what do you expect? All the women in the group had roles that played up to feminine stereotypes. It's a shame that Geri said that, and all those young girls (or grown up grrls) will read that and perhaps shape ideas around it, but she was never my favorite Spice Girl anyways.

Bah, now I'm going to have to sell my tickets on craigslist and burn my copy of Spice World.

But seriously, what do you expect? All the women in the group had roles that played up to feminine stereotypes. It's a shame that Geri said that, and all those young girls (or grown up grrls) will read that and perhaps shape ideas around it.

Oh well, Ginger wasn't my favorite Spice Girl anyways.

Sporty and Scary played up to feminine stereotypes?

Focking Bitch!

I hate all who go around spreading MISinformation about feminism.

The worse part is that for each lie spelled out by a famous celebrity, there will have to be 1000000 truths spelled out by REAL FEMINISTS to counteract their effect.

Feminism should celebrate our "femininity and softness"? How about celebrating our right to be whoever the fuck we are?

I was 11 when the Spice Girls were really popular. My friends were all way into it but I wasn't. I hated the short, tight dresses they wore (tomboy!) and I thought they acted dumb, plus I didn't like their music (I was into ska, Monique Powell from Save Ferris was my idol). Anyway, all I'm saying is that this doesn't surprise me much, since I never got why they were supposed to be so girl-empowering in the first place.

Why do people say things without thinking? Does she honestly think the rest of the world is either scary-hairy lesbians or Posh Spice?

well, we can clearly see her strong commitment to "girl power," that is if it is the power against all odds to maintain the cult of the feminine even though it passed out of credible discourse over a hundred years ago.

Not to mention that bra burning is an urban legend.

And, as a lesbian feminist, I find nothing wrong with being either.

Some people still don't get that not all feminists are lesbians and some of us really *like* our bras.

I'm a little surprised; it's not the habit of this blog to take quotes out of context for the express purpose of laughing gleefully at the person stupid enough to utter such a statement, but that seems to be exactly what is happening here.

If you actually read the article, you'll find that the woman who wrote it uses a tone that is absolutely dripping with condescension for Halliwell; she's affectionately dismissive of Halliwell's passion for the UN work that she does, sounding for all the world like a moral superior sent to gently educate an ignorant child and feign interest in the child's passions and pursuits. You know, the way men have treated women for generations. Frankly, I found that far more offensive than anything Halliwell had to say.

When asked about whether or not she's a feminist, THIS was Halliwell's answer:

... What, she asks quickly, do I mean by feminism? Well, I tell her, for me feminism is about the fact that women still aren't treated equally, which raises issues of justice. OK, concedes Halliwell, maybe she is a feminist: but she has a few distinct caveats. One objection seems to be that she fears feminism will emasculate and demoralise men: but her bigger problem is its image. "It's about labelling. For me feminism is bra-burning lesbianism. It's very unglamorous. I'd like to see it rebranded. We need to see a celebration of our femininity and softness."

Gasp! The woman has a problem with the image of feminism in spite of the fact that she holds several feminist ideals dear to her heart. I think someone on this blog wrote a book recently that was meant to be an outreach to such women... I can't remember who it was... Jessica something or other...

But really, it's so much more fun to take the quote out of context and laugh at the stoopid spice grrrl.

Worse, Halliwell goes on to basically say, "yeah, you're going to twist that so the headline is "Geri Halliwell thinks feminists are all bra-burners."

And, oh look, she did. And here we are helping her so that we can gleefully hand out an Anti-Feminist title to the woman who, in the same article said, "...I've really learned how important it is to empower women. Because what I saw in Zambia was that it's about educating women and supporting women, and through that you enable not only women, but whole societies, to thrive and improve."

Ugh.

Living in my ultra-liberal world, sometimes I forget that feminism is still considered by some a four-letter word. And Andrea is right. I also noticed the inconsistencies between the quote and what she was actually there to speak about. Context could, very well, be an issue. As a Spice Girl, Geri was always outspoken, but not always as articulate, making for some interesting statements. Statements that turned out later to mean something other than what actually came out of her mouth. I know the feeling. Anyway, whatever she meant by her statement on feminism, she is correct in that there is a problem with the label “feminist�. As we all know, that image she described does more to reflect the fears of those threatened by feminism than it does actual feminists.

That aside, I feel the need to also comment on some of the anti Spice sentiments here.

The Spice Girls had a huge influence on me growing up. I never had a shortage of strong, smart and just all around incredible female role models during my childhood. I’m so grateful for them. However, I’d say I was just as grateful to the Spice Girls. They were a major part of my life for years to come. They appealed to my love of music and my budding sense of self.

While the Spice personas were just a marketing ploy based on punched up personality traits, they really represented something real to me at the time. Part of what was so appealing about the group was that each member was so “different� from the next. I always was (and still pretty much am) a tomboy. The message I got from that was it took all kinds. If a girl wanted to wear leopard print pants or a tracksuit everyday she could and no one could stand in her way. That was part of “girl power�. The Spice Girls didn’t make dressing more “feminine� or sexual appeal to me. It was, in fact the opposite. Sure, I’ll admit I dressed up like my favorite Spice, once…for Halloween.

“Girl power� was another brilliant advertising catch phrase, but unlike other slogans it had practical applications. It gave girls like me growing up a mantra, something to fall back on. When I would get teased by my older cousins for never wearing a dress or was hassled for wanting to join the boys on the playground in football, a simple “it’s girl power� was all I needed. It was a boost to my confidence and a way to justify being myself. Everyone who has attended grade school knows that it’s not easy being “different�. Thanks to the Spice Girls, it was a little bit easier for me.

All the feminist criticism the Spice Girls receive is certainly warranted, but they did so much for girls growing up during that time. I credit them with starting me on the path to become the socially conscious, feminist progressive I am today. They presented an over-simplified and incomplete image of female empowerment, but that was about all I could really understand when I had yet to become a member of the double digits club. It was a starting point and it didn’t hinder me from expanding further. Look, here I am! I’m an avid Feministing reader with a minor in women’s studies. Sure, I probably wouldn’t be too far off that without them, but it would have taken me a lot longer and it would have been that much more difficult. It was because of them that I also recognized there was a community of women. It wasn’t just that I could do it, but we could do it. That sense of solidarity I began to develop at such an early age would start to open doors to a whole new world of understanding.

While I can’t say that the Spice Girls had the same effect on everyone, I can say for certain that I was not the only one. Surely that means something.

Sorry, kind of a tangent... I find something that people don't often mention about the Spice Girls is how racially problematic the group was. The only woman of color in the gang was the 'scary' Spice Girl, for pete's sake. They dressed her up in animal print and gor her to snarl at the camera, clearly representing her as the wild 'tribal' one. She was black, she was sexy, and she was SCARY.
Hmph.

Actually, meegs, I remember that coming up in interviews with the Spice Girls back when they were popular. Obviously, that doesn't make it OK (their response was that she swore a lot and had a pierced tongue, which...), but interviewers were bringing it up as an issue even then.

I will admit that I am guilty of not reading the whole of the original article. I feel particularly bad about this since just last night I was having a conversation with the boyfriend about James Watson's recent gaffe (BF is a total science nerd) and how his poorly worded comment was misconstrued and is now a mar on the face of evolutionary scientists. This is the same type of situation, I think. Ms. Halliwell probably could have worded her statement differently and it's disappointing that her misconception of feminism in it's current state could be adopted by young girls, leading to a perpetuation of the "I'm not a feminist, but..." line.

On the other hand, I guess if a little girl reads this article and thinks "This woman wants to empower girls but it's not seen as cool right now. I'll make it cool!" or whatever little girls think, then that is fantastic.

However, I don't know how many little girls read The Guardian. I don't know much about little girls in this day and age anyway. Alright, thanks for bearing with me, I'll shut up now!

If nothing else, I have to give the Spice Girls props for having pro-condom lyrics ("Be a little bit wiser baby / put it on, put it on..."). Don't hear that one a lot in pop music.

James Watson's recent gaffe... his poorly worded comment was misconstrued...

Misconstrued? How the bloody hell could one construe what Watson said in any way that WASN'T wholly abominable? Sorry to thread creep here, but seriously - there is no situation, context, or intent that would have made what he said acceptable. Poorly worded, maybe, but the only way to word it so it could be construed differently would be to say something else entirely.

I was another fan during the years from 12-14 of the Spice girls. Me and my friends would have competitions over who was best, Hanson, or the Spice Girls. I also loved Alanis Morisette, No Doubt ("I'm Just a Girl" was one of my favorites) and Natalie Imbruglia. It seemed like they had alot more focus on female singers during the later 90's, and the songs seemed to be more unapologetically feminist.
However, I think Halliwells been around long enough and had more experience with the media to know that she should be more articulate. Does anyone think they still hold onto their pro-female ideals anymore? Look at Posh Spice, talk about emaciated!

The thing that bothers me about women in music is that, for some reason, women aren't allowed to sing about anything other than love, as if that was the whole of their experience. I like love songs sometimes, mind you, and I know variations on the love song are the most common kind of pop song period, but still, it's insanely gender based bull.

As a consequence, pretty much the only women in my CD collection are Ani DiFranco and Amanda Palmer (Dresden Dolls), since I can't stand whole CDs of petty love songs.

Worse than limiting female singers to love songs, the love philosophy of these songs are always really shitty and sexist. None of the lyrics would work with the gendered pronouns reversed. (always a bad sign)

In the heyday of the Spice Girls, there were a lot of female artists that carried off "girl power" more authentically -- Alanis Morisette and No Doubt, as Gopher mentioned, and even TLC. The Spice Girls, at the time, were touting "strength and courage and a Wonderbra."

This was back when (OK, maybe a little before) Destiny's Child was singing songs like "Survivor" and "Bootylicious" (A response to comments about Beyonce's voluptuousness).

But soon after, the women of pop seemed to go back into the bedroom, and Destiny's Child brought us "Cater 2 U" and "I need a Soldier."

I may be a little out of touch with the teenybopper tunes these days, but who are the reigning women in pop music? Britney Spears? Fergie?! I'll take strength and courage and a Wonderbra any day.

Thats why I love punk so much. I listen to Tsunami Bomb, Otep, My Ruin, and The Distillers, among others. The Distillers wrote a song titled, "Seneca Falls" which is about Susan B.'s and Elizabeth Cady Stantons Womens Rights Convention which took place at Seneca Falls.

Whatever happened to "Girl Power"?

I was never overly fond of the Spice Girls, but had respect for Ms. Halliwell's UN Work. From my understanding, she tries to encourage birth control and family planning in the (heavily catholic and large-family loving) Phillipines. Whatever she might think, she IS a feminist.

I'll take strength and courage and a Wonderbra any day.

Yep. A girl could do a lot worse.

The thing that bothers me about women in music is that, for some reason, women aren't allowed to sing about anything other than love, as if that was the whole of their experience.

There's also some anti-love songs (for lack of a better term): "I Will Survive," "You Don't Own Me," "These Boots were Made for Walkin" and the like.

Andrea, put in context, it pretty much reads the same to me. I'm not sure what you thought was different, other than her fear that feminism will emasculate and demoralize men...which is stupid. For all the reasons constantly cited on this site. And, she didn't say she wished feminism was seen differently, she said it should be rebranded to celebrate femininity and softness. Not the same thing.