For most tourists, going through Wall Street and seeing that bronze bull is the highlight of their New York vacations. But on the eve of "International Women's Day," feminists noted a welcome addition to the way-too-agressive-and-capitalistic bull -- a darling little girl facing him down. According to the Village Voice, "news outlets and social media seized on the mysterious appearance of a statue of a defiant young girl staring down the famous Charging Bull statue."
Yay, womyn! Down with Wall Street! Now this is certainly something all feminists can get behind, right? Not according to the Village Voice:
It's a compelling visual, cribbing in no small part from the famous ballerina-on-bull image from the call for action that helped spark Occupy Wall Street. That gloss on the image resonated deeply in a year when organizers of an international women's strike are striving to return International Women's Day to its radical roots, and the boardroom feminism of Sheryl Sandberg's Lean In movement is finding itself supplanted by an intersectional feminism that prioritizes the struggles of women who have more pressing challenges than achieving the top rung of the corporate ladder.
The statue was accompanied by a strikingly thorough press barrage, with write-ups in the Wall Street Journal, DNAInfo, Mashable, Business Insider, and other outlets. The sculptor of the piece, Kristen Visbal, told the Journal she considers the sculpture "a piece that every woman can and should relate to," but the accompanying plaque sent a somewhat narrower message, praising the power of "women in leadership."
Heh. Instapundit put it succinctly:
“As it turns out, the statue of the little girl symbolically defying Wall Street was installed by… Wall Street itself. And not just any financial company, but State Street Global Advisors, the worlds third-largest asset manager, with $2.4 trillion under management.”
The patriarchy strikes back!
Photo Credit: Twitter
