Australia Wants Women In IT
Last year I was thinking about moving to Australia and getting an IT job down under. Unfortunately, the reason(s) for going disappeared and I found the bar to entry was just too high. Plus, it was going to be a complete nightmare to get my beautiful dog Alva over there. However, I really enjoyed my visits there and the people I met and the culture in general.
As a result of my new-found Aussie obsession, my Google News page is customized with all kinds of Australia-related content. I like to keep up on what is happening down there and I especially like to read their perspective on news related to the USA. Today all the planets must have aligned or something to deliver to me divine inspiration.
I was lured in by the headline in The Age “Making IT a ’sexy career choice’,” but I honestly wasn’t prepared for just how sexy Australia has made Information Technology. So the idea is to attract more females to the IT industry by helping to shed the myth that we are all pasty white, zit-covered, socially-awkward nerds with bad hair. Enter the IT Screen Goddess 15-month calendar.
These ladies are smart, sassy and on top of their game. I’m so glad this idea came to fruition and that someone is attempting to destigmatize the IT field for women. One thing I was not happy about is the grotesque censorship and prudishness offered by more than half of the web commenters regarding this effort. Many referred to it as “pornography” — which, for as much as I have looked at the images, I just cannot see the genitalia, penetration or smut regularly accepted as porn.
This is a really well done calendar and I think it looks great. I say “Good on ya!” to the organizers and the models and pray that they don’t listen to the narrow-minded detractors. We are approaching a very problematic epoch globally where people just cannot accept the human body in any way, shape or form. Shame on these fools for feeling the need to pervert everything instead of appreciating natural beauty.
I know it wouldn’t serve their cause very well, but this calendar may have convinced me to start job shopping in Oz again.
July 17th, 2006 at 9:48 am
I just don’t get what about that says “career choice” to a woman who has options. We don’t make our professions around what makes us look sexiest.
I’m not trying to censor or stop them, but I can’t say that pictures of scantily clad women is appealing to me. Isn’t it more appealing to those pasty guys?
July 20th, 2006 at 12:39 am
Hey Ruby –
While I definitely respect your personal feelings on this issue, I don’t think I agree with any of the points you raise. First of all, these days in most (if not all) First World countries, women have A LOT of options and quite frequently make choices based upon what would make them attractive to a potential mate. The same goes for men, I believe. If you don’t think people want to look “sexy” (both in their career and in life) then I have to question how “in touch” you are with the attitudes and values of college students today.
You mention that the pictures are not appealing to you. I find this quite understandable because as a married heterosexual woman with a well-developed IT career, you are about as far out of the target market for this calendar as one could be. Then your generalization that these images would only appeal to “pasty guys” is just patently absurd. There is a huge population of men and women (both gay and straight) out there that fully appreciate the female form and see it as natural and beautiful.
I could go on providing examples and explaining my position on this issue forever, but suffice it to say that I don’t think this calendar is doing any harm, nor hurting any of the women involved. Also keep in mind that European (and by extension, Australian) values related to sexuality are much more laid-back than what exists in predominantly Muslim and Christian countries.
July 20th, 2006 at 11:46 am
I like the calendar but of course the only image that most people see is the retake of American Beauty - stunning yes but not representative of the rest of the calendar, which does feature “real” women (not just size 0 anymore, represent!) and even talks a bit about how they are doing it for themselves in a male-dominated field.
However one could also point out (and I’m about to do so) that if you flip through any general “women’s” magazine (Cosmo, Harper’s Bazaar, etc) the ads in there for products that are targeted towards women mostly feature HOT NUDE CHICKS. So, it’s an example that’s been done before.
July 22nd, 2006 at 5:52 pm
Hello I’m Sonja Bernhardt - the innovator of the Screen Goddess IT Calendar. Thought I’d post a couple of comments: The underlying aim is to raise funds to then run ‘traditional’ projects such as visits to schools, role modeling, career expos, workshops etc - that’s where attracting more females in IT will occur. Totally agree with the original post re: the world is on a strange path re: bodies.
below are some words from media statements
The IT Goddess calendar has already stirred controversy even before the calendar was printed, with print and digital media stories as well as blogs springing up daily.
While its purpose is to promote IT study and careers for girls and women, has it sabotaged its own aims by merely pandering to and encouraging a view that women are just sex objects, not talented people who should be judged on their achievements?
Categorically I, Sonja Bernhardt the screen goddess innovator say no it has not.
Every woman in the calendar is an intelligent thinking person who is accomplished and made their own decision to participate based on their confidence and comfort levels combined with passion and pride for supporting ICT careers.
Remember the bottom line of this initiative is to raise much needed funds to run more intervention projects and programs to have a sustained impact on attracting retaining and promoting women into technology careers.
The facts are that to be a commercial success the calendar has to be visible, attractive, and popular - or it will raise neither awareness nor the money to invest in projects to encourage women into technology careers.
Movies and media are constantly focusing on actresses and models who are attractive and scantily dressed, and magazines for teenage girls devote pages to makeup and attracting boys. The “beautiful people” are, like it or not, seen as role models and women to admire. And it is not the media setting public taste - it is the interests of the public driving the media. And if that is what people want, is it better that the role models they see are limited to actresses and models - or should they see that a career in technology does not mean being a frumpy geek who can’t get a boyfriend, but can be interesting, challenging, exciting and glamorous?
Is there anything wrong with admiring beauty? It is people’s minds that drive achievement, but we are not disembodied brains, we are integrated beings of mind and body. It is part of human nature to admire beauty in other people, it is human nature to be sexual beings, it is human nature to enjoy sensuality, it is human nature to seek and esteem the best people can be in all things. And we do not despise human nature, we celebrate it.
On one of the most famous Screen Goddesses of them all, female novelist and philosopher Ayn Rand wrote that Marilyn Monroe projected “the joyous self-flaunting of a child or a kitten who is happy to display its own attractiveness as the best gift it can offer the world, and who expects to be admired for it, not hurt.” Our Screen Goddesses project that, and more. They are women who are accomplished in their careers, confident in themselves, proud of who they are, and not afraid to expose themselves to controversy in order to achieve their values. They are living embodiments of the principle that nothing in their sex prevents women from achieving their goals in any chosen field: without sacrificing their femininity, sensuality, or any other part of themselves.
thanks for taking the time to review and consider AND if you support our aims purchasing:-)
regards
Sonja
July 24th, 2006 at 9:11 pm
Wow. I’m quite honored to have the creator of the calendar seek out my weblog and take the time to comment on my post. Thanks, Sonja! And I definitely like your explanation on the whole matter. Much better than if I had tried to explain it.
August 8th, 2006 at 5:10 am
hello me again VERY late - sorry. we officially launch 11 August and announce some competitions that involve hidden and placed technology throughout the calendar. Only those who purchase can enter:-))) she says hinting…. maybe revisit http://www.itgoddess.info on 11 August to read more….have fun we did:-) Sonja
August 10th, 2006 at 11:57 pm
All Sonja did was post her press release (”below are some words from media statements”). So I don’t feel compelled to respond to that.
Dave, don’t assume that I’m a prude just because my taste is different than yours. I am actually a big fan of scantily-clad women, and boobs in particular… and I don’t mind looking at ‘em.
But just like women have a lot of career choices, as you said above, we also have a lot more social choices. We don’t have to “catch” men or participate in a selection process to determine which mate will best be able to defend us from invading hordes and wild animals.
ESPECIALLY if we’re inclined to be geeks (or geeks-to-be) we’re likely to have a lot of other goals in addition to wanting to feel sexually attractive, which of course, we do. But again, we can get that validation from other parts of our lives. The last thing I want to feel at work is that I am valued primarily for my looks. It’s bad enough having to work with nerds who can’t look you in the eye because they only stare at your chest when talking to you.
I may not be their target demographic now, but I certainly was 20 years ago. So I think it kind of might actually matter if this turns me off. But hey I’m not Australian, and apparently since I’m married now I don’t count anyway.
August 16th, 2006 at 10:43 pm
Quick note: proving it is much more than a flash cover - screen goddess IT calendar announced geek tech competitions - where placed and hidden technology are in each calendar image. more info on: http://itgoddess.info/competitions.htm
also goddess screen saver version now available….https://www.itgoddess.info/orders/
move beyond the flash “american beauty” cover and get into “Inspect for Gadgets” or “LaMarr Code” competitions.
January 22nd, 2008 at 6:15 pm
We;re at it again NEW initiative IT’s Million $ Babes - http://www.itmillion.com recognizing smart, sexy women who create and run multi million IT companies (Australian). CHeck us out….amazing things the women have created!