Let's get one thing out of the way: Asking a woman to rate her own hotness on a scale of one to 10 is wildly inappropriate. Fortunately, even though this type of blatant sexism was once a mainstay of red carpet and celebrity reporting culture, things are changing. Campaigns like #AskHerMore seek to reshape media conversation about women. Actresses including Reese Witherspoon and Julianne Moore, among many others, have taken their own stand on step and repeats, refusing to participate in ridiculous rituals that call women out for their looks instead of their accomplishments. Slowly but steadily, women are seeing the progress they deserve.
And, yet: Recently, Selena Gomez went on a radio program to discuss her birthday, her BFFs, and her ever-burgeoning career. The 22-year-old star wound up confessing where she thinks she falls on a scale of attractiveness. “I would say, like, [on] a premiere day, I would be a good nine," Gomez mused on the TJ Show. "And then on my every day I feel like a 6. Gosh that sounds so bad. I feel like a 6 or a 7.”
Here is a list of the problems with this, in no particular order: The fact that Selena Gomez — an insanely successful performer, musician, fashion designer, and actress with plenty of worthwhile things to discuss — was asked that question to begin with. The fact that someone would ask a young woman to self-reflect about her beauty and her body in a way that pits her against the beauty and bodies of all other women. The fact that we live in a culture that tells women that they are the most beautiful on days when there is a team of people to attend to every square inch of their skin — and that their "everyday" looks are only ever as good as average. And, of course, the fact that Gomez felt like she had to provide any sort of answer to this inane query.
Selena Gomez can't be summed up by a single digit on a sliding scale of hotness. She may be a superstar, but she's like every woman in that way. What's more: We all deserve better.
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