What outcomes do these talks deliver?

Students have self-reported the following outcomes:

• feeling strong and powerful

• feeling a sense of hope

• resisting self harming behaviours

• feeling connective rather than competitive or alone

• feeling their value beyond being eye candy

• readiness to adopt mindfulness practices

• LGBTQ resilience in the face of bigotry and hate

• resisting “dieting” to claim a healthy diet

• turning the corner on body loathing and shaming

• seeing themselves as leaders

• feeling love for and loved by their school and peers

• leaving unhealthy relationships

• feeling confident to challenge herd mentality

• feeling free from gender stereotypes

• feeling motivated to change inner dialogues

• shutting down social media

• finding the courage to speak up when something feels off

Why do you split students into two groups?

Research shows that culturally prescribed gender roles are embedded deeply and early. Because of the intentionally provocative nature of these talks, stereotypical behaviours by youth in all-gender audiences often reinforce—rather than interrupt—the narratives we seek to dismantle. For example, when we show the photo of a near-naked Miley Cyrus twerking against Robin Thicke during her VMA awards show performance, or the cover of a Sports Illustrated swimsuit magazine, boys often are disruptive, cheering, and shouting. Even if the behaviours of cisgendered boys is addressed in the next breath, the safe space has already been compromised, and the energy and momentum of the talk is diverted into managing boys’ reactions, which naturally takes away from the vital conversation we wish to have about the ways women are represented in popular and social media. Similarly, because boys are so conditioned to perform masculinity, even among themselves, they are reticent to open up about the pressures they face. They feel less self-conscious without young women present.

Hyper sexualization of women in celebrity media is a tricky topic to unpack. This is because it involves challenging norms many young women have adopted in response to the ways in which they are economically groomed to ascribe to their own empowerment. As social media broadcasts amped up and increasingly-sexualized gender stereotypes, with stars participating in the persuasion, young women often adopt those stereotypes as their own personal aesthetic. Self-objectification, however, leads to disastrous mental and sexual health outcomes for adolescent girls. Given this landscape, even without boys present, the intersection between self-objectification, personal worth, and mental health, is an activating topic that requires courage, sensitivity, and safety. We find that putting all students together significantly reduces the depth and safety available as we explore theses topics.

We recognize that many members of the LGBTQIA2S+ community do not identify as boy or girl. In response, for 10 years, Brie has piloted all-genders applications of this material. Over and over, young women have spoken to their fears of speaking up in the company of young men.

We are currently seeking an LGBTQIA2S+ presenter. If you are a rainbow student and you would like to offer a discussion about LGBTQIA2S+ representations in popular and social media and mental health at your school during these assemblies, we would be happy to brainstorm ideas for that content with you.

If non-binary students choose to participate in our assemblies, they are welcome to choose which talk they attend. While our masculine-oriented and feminine-oriented talks reflect different experiences, both talks touch on similar issues including body image, mental health, and social media. Both talks include LGBTQIA2S+ positive representations and role models; both talks challenge social construction of gender, helping us all move the needle towards the more progressive and inclusive world that serves all beings.