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Women sitting in underwear with laptops and other mobile devices
Dear Kate’s advertising campaign showed high-level women in tech posing in the brand’s underwear. Photograph: dearkates.com
Dear Kate’s advertising campaign showed high-level women in tech posing in the brand’s underwear. Photograph: dearkates.com

‘Clothing doesn’t protect women from disrespect’

This article is more than 9 years old
Julie Sygiel

‘Why must a woman choose to be recognised for either her brain or her body, not both?’ Lingerie brand Dear Kate, which used female coders to model its latest collection, answers critics who called its campaign sexist

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Sitting at a table typing on their computers, our models for the Ada Collection at Dear Kate were actually working while being photographed for our latest lookbook. Consistent with our previous lookbooks, we featured women who we admire because of who they are and what they do, not only how they look. While we have received a tremendous amount of positive feedback on the Ada campaign, not everyone agrees that women in technology were an appropriate choice as models.

As an underwear company, it is necessary to show women wearing our products. In an industry where models are traditionally shown lounging with their mouths in sexy pouts, we show the opposite. At Dear Kate, we show women who aren’t waiting for someone else to call the shots. They are making things happen on their own, which makes sense given that our line is much more than just pretty underwear.

Critics of the campaign have suggested that perhaps their male tech colleagues will not take our models seriously now that the men have been privy to photos of the women in underwear. Some critics have questioned whether male leaders in tech would pose in their underwear. As Rediff.com wrote, “Last time we checked the prime minister of Great Britain was rather keen to hear what David Beckham had to say about tackling the threat of long-term hunger that affects millions of children across the world, despite his numerous appearances in underwear campaigns.” Shouldn’t women also be taken seriously, regardless of what we are wearing? Clothes have no bearing on a woman’s intelligence or her capability to excel in the field of technology.

To answer the critics who assert that our campaign hurts the fight for women to be seen as more than sex objects, let me say this: no amount of clothing can protect women from disrespect. I will never forget the conversation I had with one of my good friends who is Muslim about her decision to stop wearing a hijab. She unveiled because covering her hair and wearing conservative garments did not stop men from looking her up and down, creating a feeling of violation. She realised that no amount of clothing ensures respect from others. Respect must be inherent. Mutual respect between men and women is key to a prosperous, happy society where we support one another, and that includes respecting someone’s decision to wear whatever he or she chooses.

The thought I have been most surprised by since the Ada launched is the striking difference in values placed on women’s bodies. They seem to vary by career. I wager that many of our critics would have preferred that we hire supermodels because that would have been “appropriate” behaviour. Why is it that there is a supposedly higher price to pay for women in tech if they show “excessive” skin? If critics are comfortable with the notion of models in underwear, then it is a double standard to single out women in technology. It implies that a woman must choose to be recognised for her body or her brain, never both. This awkward separation leads to shaming of women who try to fit into both categories and limits our ability to appreciate women as multi-dimensional.

Respect means not making assumptions about someone’s intelligence based on superficialities. The first step toward an equal world, where women are not judged on their appearance more harshly than men, is to behave as if it is already here. To do otherwise keeps us in the present, which is why must push forward, embrace mutual respect between all people, and thus create the future we desire.

Julie Sygiel is founder and CEO at Dear Kate.

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