Happy Valentine’s Day, followers! I hope that you get some time today to spend with your loved ones, whether that be with a significant other, family members or a quality day to spend pampering yourself.
I really hope that this will not include spending your money supporting the romanticization of relationship abuse. At this point, I probably don’t even have to name the film I’m talking about, but I am breaking my posting schedule today to voice my support for the #50ShadesisAbuse awareness campaign. As this topic has already been discussed at length, I will simply post links to some of the best arguments I’ve found against the film, and why you should not support the continued popularity of the material if you value the lives of battered and abused individuals.
Please consider donating what money you would spend on the film today on the battered women’s shelters, anti-domestic violence organizations, or anti-sex trafficking organization of your choice. I personally donate to SafeHouse Denver regularly. If you weren’t planning on seeing the film in the first place, consider donating anyways (even just the price of a movie ticket) because these kinds of places and organizations could use every bit of help they can get!
Fifty Shades of Abuse Blog– A chapter-by-chapter analysis of the book, pointing out specific instances of abuse and why it is classified as abuse
End Sexual Exploitation- The origin of the #50dollarsnot50shades campaign, that urges you to donate 10, 20, or 50 dollars to local shelters/organizations, complete with a helpful list of places that could use your money to help women in real life ’50shades’ relationships.
A Tumblr Post That Superimposes Actual Quotes From the Book Over The Movie Poster– I read these out loud to my wonderful significant other, and he immediately made gagging noises.
50 Shades Is Abuse Twitter Campaign
The Academy of Women’s Health: An insightful post from an organization made up of physicians, nurses, and other health professions about how 50 Shades romanticizes sexual violence and emotional abuse against women.
As a recovering victim of both sexual and emotional abuse, I ask you to please not support media that directly supports the perpetuation of those vicious cycles today. This poet, this woman, does not condone it. I beg you to join the boycott, and send the message to today’s media that today’s society will not pay for its own degradation.
Spend this Valentine’s Day cherishing the ones you love in a healthy way, and standing up to create a society in which every woman and every man gets that chance, instead of being tricked into accepting abuse as the only love they will ever know. #50ShadesisAbuse
The Amber of the Moment 