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VIDEO: What does 'run like a girl' even mean?

Why should that be a slur?

WHAT DO YOU think of when somebody says that you run like a girl? Or throw like a girl?

It has negative connotations, right?

But why?

When did it become a slur? Why is it still one?

Those are the questions that Proctor and Gamble are asking in its latest ad for its Always products.

Yes, it’s an American commercial so the company have produced it to sell its brand. But, we have to admit, they’ve done it well.

A studio was set up and a group of adults and teens were asked to act out what it means to do something “like a girl”.

This is one young woman, “running like a girl”.

blonde woman running like a girl

 

Here’s a man, “fighting like a girl”.

man fighting like a girl gif

 

But what do girls think of themselves and other girls?

Here’s one reaction when a young girl was asked to “run like a girl”.

girl running gif

She’s not holding back for any negative stereotype.

Nor is this girl, who is fighting like a girl.

PastedImage-58734

The ad ends with a message that all girls should keep running like girls, hitting like girls, throwing like girls and fighting like girls.

“Keep doing it ’cause it’s working. If somebody else says that running like a girl, or kicking like a girl, or shooting like a girl is something that you shouldn’t be doing, that’s their problem. Because if you’re still scoring, and you’re still getting to the ball on time, and you’re still being first, you’re doing it right. It doesn’t matter what they say.

I mean, yes, I kick like a girl, and I swim like a girl, and I walk like a girl, and I wake up in the morning like a girl because I am a girl. And that is not something that I should be ashamed of, so I’m going to do it, anyway. That’s what they should do.”

Here’s the full video.

 

Always / YouTube

via Business Insider

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37 Comments
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    Mute Jesus vs Mohammed
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    Jun 28th 2014, 4:35 PM

    Because girls do nearly everything worse than men. That is why men and women are separated in sports, because it wouldn’t be fair on the girlies

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    Mute Donncha Foley
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    Jun 28th 2014, 4:46 PM

    Troll like a ?

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    Mute Arthur Pewty
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    Jun 28th 2014, 4:46 PM

    troll, troll, troll your boat…

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    Mute Jesus vs Mohammed
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    Jun 28th 2014, 4:48 PM

    Do you have a better explanation as to why men and women are separated in all sports?

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    Mute Arthur Pewty
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    Jun 28th 2014, 5:01 PM

    men are by and large stronger than women. we have more upper body strength. even in male only competitions there are different weight groups. its not about doing something “worse” than someone else.

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    Mute Florence Nightingale
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    Jun 28th 2014, 5:01 PM

    @Jesus vs Mohammed

    “Because girls do nearly everything worse than men. That is why men and women are separated in sports, because it wouldn’t be fair on the girlies…”

    I don’t even know where to begin with this comment, I really don’t.

    You ask:
    “Do you have a better explanation as to why men and women are separated in all sports?”

    Men and women have different physical attributes. Not better or worse. Different. Which is why there is a divide between the genders when it comes to competitive sport.

    Women excel at the same sports that men excel at: long-distance running, gymnastics, swimming, sprinting, basketball, fencing, tennis. The list is endless. But because of the physical differences, competitive sports are divided, with notable exceptions, like mixed doubles in tennis.

    But saying: “”Because girls do nearly everything worse than men” is pretty dense and old-fashioned, in my opinion.

    If I’m not mistaken, it sounds like you’re conflating sports, which are divided by gender, with all activities that women do. And it’s simply not true that girls do nearly everything worse than men. It’s a myth. Something you should try to dispel yourself of.

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    Mute Jesus vs Mohammed
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    Jun 28th 2014, 5:13 PM

    If it is all about strength, then why is there a gender separation in snooker and bowling and darts and other non physical sports?

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    Mute Florence Nightingale
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    Jun 28th 2014, 5:25 PM

    @Jesus etc

    Probably because of the convention at the time that those sports were invented. Social norms back then meant that women were not allowed to play these sports. It had nothing to do with their physical prowess. It was a social thing. And unfortunately, the sports haven’t moved with the times.

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    Mute Jesus vs Mohammed
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    Jun 28th 2014, 5:27 PM

    In response to my own comment, I give up the trolling on this article. They are separated in these non physical sports because of a sexist patriarchy that would not permit them to play together because of ‘benevolent sexism’ which is just as bad as negative sexism. That video is excellent in higjlighting what sexism does to girls. The girl children are equally as capable and enthusiastic as the boys, but just look at the young woman pretending to run. It’s pathetic, and that is down to social conditioning

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    Mute voice of raisin
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    Jun 28th 2014, 6:01 PM

    Darts is not a sp

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    Mute voice of raisin
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    Jun 28th 2014, 6:01 PM

    * darts is not a sport

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    Mute Jesus vs Mohammed
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    Jun 28th 2014, 6:07 PM

    Why not? Sport is a loose term which can apply to any number of different games and activities

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    Mute Peter Carroll
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    Jun 28th 2014, 6:52 PM

    Any body on here fancy going a few rounds with Katy Taylor ????? Thought not because i sure as shit wouldnt

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    Mute Jesus vs Mohammed
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    Jun 28th 2014, 11:17 PM

    Definitely not, she’s a trained fighter

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    Mute David Bowman
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    Jun 29th 2014, 10:52 AM

    Exactly, it’s time to end gender separation in sport because there is absolutely zero evidence that men exhibit superior performance, they just perform ‘differently’. It would be so vindicating for women to stand victorious on the winners podium because of their different physical attributes, not in spite of them and show the world that it’s time to kill off these antiquated myths that running or jumping or fighting like a man produces measurably superior results. Across the board, whether you look at long distance running, swimming, bowling, snooker, darts, whatever. There is simply no statistical evidence that men perform better, it’s just down to old fashioned conventions that should have been scrapped years ago. Right?

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    Mute Niall o' Sullivan
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    Jun 28th 2014, 4:35 PM

    Surprise surprise. Marketing company wants to dispel myth. (they created enough of them in their time)

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    Mute Arthur Pewty
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    Jun 28th 2014, 4:43 PM

    woman often say to men “haha, you got beat by a girl”. i cant help but view it as a self put down from a womans point of view. just because someone is male doesnt mean they are automatically the default victor over a female. i know its a silly phrase but it just gets to me as i see these blatantly sexist issues than men and women have in different areas and situations and its about time we were just done with them.

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    Mute Niall o' Sullivan
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    Jun 28th 2014, 4:53 PM

    Over the last 10 to 15 years I’ve noticed a huge change in the amounts out walking and running for fitness and weight loss. There was a time it was predominately men, perhaps on a ratio of 5:1 to women.

    Nowadays, I see considerably more women than men out and about getting exercise on a daily basis. Just an observation

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    Mute Jesus vs Mohammed
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    Jun 28th 2014, 4:58 PM

    That’s because women are obsessed with their appearance. It’s good to a certain degree. it means they are more physically healthy due to this exercise, but they are also far more shallow. I only respect women that couldn’t give a toss about plastering their face in make-up every day

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    Mute Niall o' Sullivan
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    Jun 28th 2014, 5:01 PM

    I think it has more to do with the importance of exercise being stressed, and also, women feeling less self conscious about exercising in public.

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    Mute Arthur Pewty
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    Jun 28th 2014, 5:06 PM

    it doesnt seem like you respect women at all Jesus vs Mohammed

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    Mute Jesus vs Mohammed
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    Jun 28th 2014, 5:07 PM

    It’s because they have been socially conditioned to believe that their top priority in life is to be as attractive as possible to please men. It’s not right, but the by product of having more people exercising is a good thing i suppose

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    Mute Jesus vs Mohammed
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    Jun 28th 2014, 5:17 PM

    I don’t respect what they have been socially conditioned to become because of generations of a sexist patriarchy

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    Mute Treasa Réiltín
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    Jun 28th 2014, 8:41 PM

    I think its incorrect to imply women only exercise due to vanity. I will admit the majority of them do-but that’s the idiots you see in the gym waving dumbbells around in front of a mirror, not women who play sports, who you see running marathons or in football teams. Try telling Katie Taylor she boxes just to get skinny.

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    Mute Jesus vs Mohammed
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    Jun 28th 2014, 4:40 PM

    Has anyone ever seen 2 girls fight? It’s just hair pulling and scratching

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    Mute skeyes
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    Jun 28th 2014, 6:21 PM

    Tell that to Katie Taylor!

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    Mute Hippocrateeth
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    Jun 28th 2014, 4:41 PM

    In fairness, those videos of the little girl running and fighting are exactly what is meant by saying ‘run like a girl’ and ‘fight like a girl’.

    It’s grand like but it won’t win ya the Olympic sprint or a boxing match.

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    Mute Niall o' Sullivan
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    Jun 28th 2014, 4:49 PM

    Unless you happen to be Katie Taylor or Sonia O’ Sullivan.

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    Mute Hippocrateeth
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    Jun 28th 2014, 4:53 PM

    Yeah but in fairness, their opponents fight and run like girls…

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    Mute Niall o' Sullivan
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    Jun 28th 2014, 4:54 PM

    lol

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    Mute Arthur Pewty
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    Jun 28th 2014, 5:03 PM

    the video is lovely

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    Mute Dave Harris
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    Jun 28th 2014, 6:53 PM

    nothing wrong with running like a girl, if you’re a girl -
    if you’re a man running like a girl it looks a bit funny

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    Mute Keelan O'neill
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    Jun 28th 2014, 5:23 PM

    what about “moves like Jagger” or “walks like Rihanna”?

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    Mute Turlough Conway
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    Jun 30th 2014, 2:28 PM

    World record for the women’s marathon is 2:15 mins? Any guys posting here got within 20 mins of that?
    20 mins being almost 4 miles at that pace? No?
    Individual people run with different styles depending on their individual physical characteristics, how often they run etc.
    More women might naturally swing the arms more horizontally for more balance. But some men do this also.
    Any other difference is absolute nonsense.

    Great video. Giving the message to young girls that they are inferior is just wrong. Anybody who has seen this video has no excuse for passing that message on anymore.

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    Mute David Bowman
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    Jun 29th 2014, 11:48 AM

    Man to another man : “Good race, but you didn’t perform better than me, you just ran differently because you have different physical attributes to me”.
    Other man : “That’s ridiculous, I won because I ran faster.”

    Women to a man : “Good race, but you didn’t perform better than me, you just ran differently because you have different physical attributes to me”.
    Man : “eh…yeah, ok”

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    Mute David Bowman
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    Jun 29th 2014, 11:05 AM

    The essence of the two opposing arguments on this topic share some common ground. Women say that sports are separated because of the different physical attributes that men and women have, not because one gender performs better than the other. Men say yes, that’s why we perform better at sports, because of those different physical attributes that make us bigger, faster and stronger.

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    Mute Dermot Ryan
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    Jun 29th 2014, 3:14 AM

    I run by moving my legs like ! (Cork accent required)
    what’s wrong with me ….am I the first non-sex runner ?

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