A man becomes fixated on a young female university student. He immediately becomes possessive, sulking when she so much as talks to other men, and attempts to isolate her from her friends. He shows up unannounced at her place of work. He traces her mobile phone to find her on a night out drinking with friends. He knows where she lives. He is controlling and emotionally manipulative. He proceeds to have sex with her, despite her refusal and continued protestation. (There’s a word for that.) The young woman reports feeling “abused”.

On the face of it, this scenario does not appear to be incredibly romantic, although it is one that unfortunately resonates with too many women.

But it’s the premise of the widely popular Fifty Shades of Grey book and film trilogy, the story of Anastacia Steele and Christian Grey.

The popularity of Fifty Shades of Grey is a testament to how far we have yet to come in working to end men’s violence against women.

Collective Shout has the privilege of working with young people in schools around the country, teaching media literacy and examining the depiction of women in media and popular culture. We have seen firsthand how the popularity of Fifty Shades of Grey has left teenage girls confused about sex and relationships, wondering if male violence can be a sign of affection, or if stalking means he really loves you?

When women are continually depicted as passive victims or objects of sexual recreation in media, advertising and popular culture, it impacts the way we perceive them, our attitudes and beliefs, and serves to both normalise violence and inequality and downplay the harms.

In response, dozens of groups have joined together to call for the public to boycott the film and to donate the money they would have spent on tickets to a women’s refuge or domestic violence service.

These services are where women like Anastacia end up. They do such important work and are often underfunded and in need of financial assistance.

– Caitlin Roper

Read more: Why you should boycott the Fifty Shades Darker movie

Photo Source: Sydney Morning Herald