"The Dress"

THE DRESS, SALVATION ARMY STYLE





NOW. I have a lot to say about this one. On the one hand,(and I am going to just say that it is the biggest aspect of my thoughts right now) I think that this is a beautiful way to point out that abuse is going on, and women are just going with it.


On the other hand, I also feel like there are a lot of reasons that women to tend to stay in abusive situations, and it isn't the easiest to get out of them. A lot of this is due to how society and the government still tend to view these things. There are a lot of different reasons for staying that outweigh a beating here and there for a lot of women. In some instances, it is safer for them to stay, rather than have to literally give up everything in their life (family, friends, job), just for them to have to run from their abusive ex, who is likely to find them anyway. If you don't have documentation of abuse, it is very difficult to be able to get a restraining order, which in the long run is really just a piece of paper that doesn't protect you all that much. If you manage to get out, there are some resources to help you, but giving up everything in your old life is something that is assumed you will be ok with dealing with. Asking for help after staying in that situation for a long time makes a lot of people look down on you, though that logic has never flown well with me either.

I understand the point of the ad being to not let that be the standard. I do. However, to do it in a way that shames victims for their choices while abused..... I don't know. Maybe I am just not seeing this from a good frame of mind, since I have been awake far too long at this point.

Either way, I do enjoy that an ad made me think about something a lot more serious and important than a product, and about a social issue.