Obamas Really Not Promoting Feminist Values With Their Kids

Don’t get me wrong, I adore the Obamas and their kids. I follow them with the religious fervor that I think many Americans do their favorite celebrities. But I’m kind of concerned about some of Sasha’s and Malia’s cultural tastes: first there were the Jonas Brothers, who played a cameo role in the kids’ first White House sleepover (I’m sure there wasn’t any preteen infighting at all at Sidwell Friends to get that invite…), and now Gawker says that Us Weekly said Malia is reading Twilight.

I mean, gah! The Jonas Brothers are famous for their purity rings, a tactic used by promoters of abstinence-only sex ed. (I’m sure I don’t need to tell anyone that teenage sex rates aren’t affected by abstinence-only, and pregnancy rates go up, since kids don’t learn about contraception—not to mention that it’s not exactly in the best interests of modern sex-positive feminism.) And Twilight, as I’ve had occasion to remark before, is a scary piece of chastity propaganda that subliminally indicates that girls Malia’s and Sasha’s age shouldn’t grow up to be strong feminist women.

I don’t mean to pen a polemic, but honestly! It’s great that President Obama (I’m never going to tire of that phrase!) signed that fair pay act and that he’s taken an unwaving pro-choice stance despite his other concessions to the religious right, but maybe he and Michelle could help their daughters withstand the pressure of the anti-feminist teen culture too?