Are there any women here who have done something like this and would be willing to comment on it? Theoretically it sounds cool, but I'd be a bit anxious about personal safety.
I have no insight into whether women want this, but if they're amenable to the idea, imagine what the marketing engine behind something like the Susan G Komen foundation mixed with the home security industry could do with this.
Already, home security advertisements imply that you should buy their product if you don't want your wife to be raped. What if that could be extended to people's feeling of compassion for women in general? Imagine how much would be donated to buy these for Indian women after a rape scandal.
I always assume a company out to make money will eventually blur the lines of morality like that, but the complication comes from this device's implication that women are responsible for not being raped. I think people will be seriously, seriously fucked up by the fact that this thing exists. If someone is raped, how will she handle the idea that if she spent the money she could have prevented it? How will parents feel if the worst happens and they didn't buy this for their daughter? How will they feel if they did buy it but she wasn't wearing it? What about people who can't afford it? Think about what that could do to your self image! Or even worse, this only looks like it'd work on a woman who has a narrower waist than hips.
I can also see legal trouble. What about the first lawsuit against a college/concert venue/etc for bringing people together without providing these? What about someone claiming indemnity for providing them in an otherwise unsafe environment? And that's not even getting into the skydiving disclaimer the company selling 'em would have to use.
This has to be the craziest thing ever brought to market. I guess what I see happening is another pink ribbon, ostensibly nonprofit. I actually hope that happens, except this time the people behind it set an example of using 99% of funds to make the device cheap and widely distributed instead of 'losing' 80% of the money to 'administrative costs'.. though that still leaves the manufacturers and material suppliers in a morally complicated position wrt profits.
These seem like reasonable precautions that don't disproportionately affect womens' access to your time and expertise. They probably help some women feel more comfortable as well.
Does that sound healthy? Personally or socially? I'd worry about how that would affect my view of the real women around me and, in turn, my behaviors towards others.
I'm really curious to know if women are really going to use this. From the video, it looks really big and I'm guessing it's not light in weight either.
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