Girl Power

  Growing up in the late 90s and early 2000s, I remember hearing and seeing the phrase “girl power” and never thinking of its meaning beyond the fact that girls were more fun and that boys had cooties. Reading Angela McRobbie's article “Young Women and Consumer Culture An Intervention”, really made me reflect on the marketing and the consumption of “girl power”. As Robbie states: "Commercial values now occupy a critical place in the formation of the categories of youthful femininity... Companies draw on the language of 'Girl Power' as though to bestow on their products a sense of dynamism, modernity, and innovation” (p. 2 and 3). McRobbie's idea of consumable goods having the “girl power” message to bestow dynamism, modernity and innovation can be seen in key 1990s girl culture.

    Lisa Frank stationary was the must have brand of school supplies for an elementary school aged girl in the late 1990s. This brand of stationary used bright purples, pinks and blues and had images of butterflies, rainbows, unicorns and anything else deemed “girly”. Some of these folders and pencils had peace signs and aliens in hippie garb, which created a psychedelic mood. Lisa Frank also had “girl power” backpacks. Perhaps these “girl power” themed backpacks were designed in order to create a sense of modernity within the 1960s inspired artwork.


                               

   The Spice Girls were very important to most young girls in the late nineties and early 2000s. In their 1996 song “Wannabe”, the Spice Girls advocate for “girl power”. They believe that female friendships should come before any boy. These lyrics include “If you wanna be my lover, you gotta get with my friends, Make it last forever, friendship never ends”. The Spice Girls' stance that girls come before boys signals to women to stick together and emulate “girl power”. The Spice Girls continued to spread the “Girl Power” message in their book “Girl Power!”. Perhaps it is my 1990s bias, but I disagree slightly with McRobbie, and view that the Spice Girls were innovative. The Spice Girls' music and personas were definitely innovative and created an impact on the young girls on the late 1990s. Perhaps their “Girl Power” message wasn't modern, but it was presented to a group of women to whom it was modern and innovative. A six year old does not understand feminism, but she does understand putting her female friendships first.

                                                     

   While we do not know the true intentions of the Spice Girls and Lisa Frank producers, it is true that both of these aspects of 1990s girl culture were consumable goods.

  

** It is interesting that eleven years later, another all female pop group released a “Girl Power” song. The Cheetah Girls, a Disney Channel group, released their song “Girl Power” in 2007. This song would have reached a younger generation that was not familiar with Spice Girls. It seems as though the “Girl Power” message is here to stay.