LESLEY GORE —YOU DON'T OWN ME

50 years later ... Why are women flocking to
"Fifty Shades of Grey"?

     By Antoinette Rainone
     Follow your dreams! Pursue your passions! Find your wings! 
     These are the mantras I've been writing about since beginning this blog a little over a year ago. 
     What's the one thing, though, that would hinder you from pursuing your life's fulfillment? 
     Being owned by another human being. 
     You cannot find your wings if they are being clipped and controlled by another person. If you allow someone to own you, guess what? You are living that person's dream for you. And it's never a pleasant dream.
     I was filled with fifty shades of dismay this past Valentine's Day Weekend. Variety magazine reported that "Fifty Shades of Grey" sizzled at the weekend box office — to the tune of $94.4 million from more than 3,600 locations over the three-day period — setting new records for a Valentine's/Presidents Day holiday opener of all time. 
     Why were so many modern women gathering their gal pals to watch a "sexy, romantic" movie about a serial stalker who controls a young, impressionable female victim? 
     Sixties singing icon Lesley Gore was a teenager when she belted out her anthem to empower women,  "You Don't Own Me." In 1964, she was ahead of her time, but women caught up quickly. However, judging by the masses at the box office, millions of real women — beyond the fictional character of Anastasia — seem to have slipped back. 
      Sadly, and somewhat fortuitously, Lesley Gore died from lung cancer on President's Day — the very weekend "Fifty Shades of Grey" broke box-office records. The two polarizing themes for women — YOU OWN ME ("Shades") and YOU DON'T OWN ME (Lesley) came to a head. The timing of Lesley's death coinciding with a movie glamorizing an abusive relationship seems to emphasize how far we've ... not come ... in 50 years.
     The majority of women did not recognize the relationship they were viewing was NOT about a "consenting couple" exploring a sexual fantasy. Rather, this "couple" consists of a serial stalker and an impressionable college student engaged in a disturbing, abusive relationship, complete with mind control that extends to every area of the very young woman's life. 
     Oh, I get the fantasy part of the plot. I get that women were placing themselves in the role of having a prince charming with his own multibillion-dollar company whisk them off into the clouds for a private helicopter ride. 
     Oh, the allure... The fantasy...
     The landing. Ouch. 
     The landing is a rude awakening to what awaits. A "Red Room of Pain" is the place where "prince charming" hurts her, and hurts her badly. But the pain goes beyond the room, as Mr. Grey controls Anastasia in every single aspect of her life. Abusers control their victims — and they are experts at hiding the abuse. That's how they con them.
     When one of my colleagues read the plot of the movie in detail, she proclaimed: "Wow. I never realized the plot contained all of this non-sexual abuse, and the movie reviews really didn't go into much of this. No wonder groups are protesting that it represents violence against women!"
     Bottom line: There is nothing sexy or romantic about abuse.
     All of us are susceptible to people whose aim is to control us. Why? Because controllers come into our lives initially portraying themselves as caring, lovely individuals. But they are con artists, and it's never long before they strategically start spinning their manipulative ways. 
     We all need to heed the characteristics of an abuser. The "real" Mr. Greys in the world employ these (well, almost) 50 Shades of Decay:
     Mind controller
     Manipulator
     Master of persuasion
     Charmer
     Powerful
     Charismatic
     Lures with gifts
     Lures with promises
     Uses loving words like "protect" and "provide"
     Stalker
     Controls aspects of another person's life
     Back-stabber who take allies 
     Twister of facts who convinces allies everything is your fault
     Compulsive liar
     Blamer
     Plays the victim by spinning the truth
     Master of coercion
     Criticizer who keeps his power by convincing victim she's the one at fault
     Seducer who emotionally seduces others into his subtle controls and lies
     Taker who plays the role of giving love, when in reality the abuser is all about taking, not giving
     Guilt inducer who knows how to play on the victim's heart to get his way
     Thief — through lies and cons, he gets close enough to steal one's heart and soul
     Narcissist who controls at the expense of others
     Jealous
     Convinces it's about love, but really it's about control
     Name caller — to confuse, convince and control his pray, he will call her demeaning names such as "selfish" or "self centered."
     Pretender — pretends to be caring and loving, but it's a cover for someone who only takes control.
     Focus shifter — know how to take a victim's focus off his controlling and cruel acting-out by shifting focus elsewhere, like a perfected magic act.
     Evil doer — abuse is conscious and evil, period. 

     Another colleague of mine, a survivor of an abusive partner, clarifies:
     "Even using the word romantic must be prefaced to communicate that not all abusive men use such 'romantic' behaviors. There are different styles of abusers. The common thread is the controlling manipulator whose behaviors purposely cycle to create confusion to control the victim. The pretend 'vulnerable or kind' behaviors return a false hope to the victim who believes that this good side, with her love or help, will win over his bad side. She doesn't know her mind is being controlled to keep her in a state of confusion and hope. The longer this cycle continues and the more she loses touch with what is real, she will even defend his abuse. This is known as Stockholm Syndrome."
     Anastasia leaves Mr. Grey at the end of the movie. Some rationalize this as "empowering for women." That might have been true if it weren't for the fact that the movie sequel is already in the works. This means Anastasia goes back to her abuser in round 2 — sadly, a common occurrence within abusive relationships. So much for the empowerment theory.

     Lesley's lyrics are all about NOT ALLOWING SOMEONE TO CONTROL YOU. Fifty years later, they ring truer than ever. 
      
      YOU DON'T OWN ME
      I'm not just one of your many toys...
      And don't tell me what to do
      Don't tell me what to say...
      Don't try to change me in any way
      Don't tie me down 'cause I'd never stay...
      I'm young and I love to be young
      I'm free and I love to be free
      To live my life the way I want...
      To live

     If you think you are in a relationship where you are the victim of control, seek help. It's never too late to break free and regain your true self. 
      
     Be free to find your wings. ...To live.

    

FOR THIS NEW YEAR, 

MAKE INTERNAL RESOLUTIONS

BY ANTOINETTE RAINONE
      I began this blog in November 2013 to invite you to share a journey with me ... a journey to find your wings ... to discover your life's dreams no matter how young or old you are. The more I write, the more I realize the true meaning of finding your wings.
      Finding your wings is not something external, like how to land a dream job, or how to change careers in mid-life, or how to check off all the awesome to-dos on your bucket list. 
      Finding your wings is an internal journey.    
      I thought about this internal journey this past Christmas when Pope Francis met with Vatican employees. He asked them to do 10 things — very much like New Year’s resolutions.

      Pope Francis' Top Ten Resolutions for 2015:
     – “Take care of your spiritual life, your relationship with God, because this is the backbone of everything we do and everything we are.”
     – “Take care of your family life, giving your children and loved ones not just money, but most of all your time, attention and love.”
     – “Take care of your relationships with others, transforming your faith into life and your words into good works, especially on behalf of the needy.”
     – “Be careful how you speak, purify your tongue of offensive words, vulgarity and worldly decadence.”
     – “Heal wounds of the heart with the oil of forgiveness, forgiving those who have hurt us and medicating the wounds we have caused others.”
     – “Look after your work, doing it with enthusiasm, humility, competence, passion and with a spirit that knows how to thank the Lord.”
     – “Be careful of envy, lust, hatred and negative feelings that devour our interior peace and transform us into destroyed and destructive people.”
     – “Watch out for anger that can lead to vengeance; for laziness that leads to existential euthanasia; for pointing the finger at others, which leads to pride; and for complaining continually, which leads to desperation.”
     – “Take care of brothers and sisters who are weaker … the elderly, the sick, the hungry, the homeless and strangers, because we will be judged on this.”

      As we journey into this brand-new year, let everyone of us look within ourselves and concentrate on becoming a better person. Let us especially work on healing the wounds of the heart. If we don't have forgiveness in our hearts, the bitterness will create a toxicity within that will hinder us from doing all the great things we were destined to do in this life. 
    FORGIVE, AND YOU WILL BE FORGIVEN!   
    Remember, as we take care of our spiritual life and our relationship with God — “the backbone of everything we do and everything we are” — all our dreams will fall into place.

Find Your Wings ... at any age. Happy New Year!