What Made Women Remove Body Hair?

Brut India

Body hair is natural... unless it is seen on women. Then it needs to be removed.  Here's a look at how women's body hair removal became a "necessity".

Transcript

00:00He has hair on his hands and feet. Why don't you get it waxed?

00:30Let's get started.

00:59Let's start with the same old hair removal cream.

01:25Underarm hair starts to come off around the invention of fashion photography.

01:55Underarm hair starts to come off around the invention of fashion photography.

02:25Underarm hair starts to come off around the invention of fashion photography.

02:50I dreaded every time I have to make the appointment because it is excruciating pain.

02:55It leaves me very irritated for a couple of days after I get that rashy red feeling.

03:01Sometimes because it gets really hot it burns my skin and I start to bleed.

03:20I dreaded every time I have to make the appointment because it gets really hot it burns my skin and I start to bleed.

03:50I dreaded every time I have to make the appointment because it gets really hot it burns my skin and I start to bleed.

04:20The Chinese government got involved with that.

04:43They were completely infuriated by this.

04:46It upsets people when women, you know, grow out their body hair in ways that I think has

04:50enormous political potential and revolutionary potential.

04:55It makes a visible statement, but it also, it symbolizes a sort of, you know, huge rejection

05:02of traditional gender norm.

05:32When we watch that happen to celebrities, it's a very subtle but clear message to everyone

05:57that they don't actually have that freedom, right?

05:59That when you, even people with tons of, let's say, power and money and fame, when

06:04they step outside of like these sort of, you know, gender norms or, you know, bodily hygiene

06:11norms, whatever we want to call them, that they will be punished too.

06:14And so it shows everyone that on some level they better stay in line or there's going

06:19to be social punishment.

06:29Something about hair is deeply emotional and it really accesses people's very emotional

06:47ideas about proper, quote unquote, gender roles and the ways that people should and

06:52shouldn't behave with their bodies.

06:54And so in that regard, it feels like, you know, at least in my experience, that hair

06:59has opportunity to be powerful and revolutionary in ways that we wouldn't necessarily expect,

07:05but I absolutely think it's there.

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