BLARGH.

[apocalypsos]

I turned on the TV just in time to see an ABC News report on purity balls.

*scrubs eyeballs with bleach*

The creepiest was the guy who said that if your daughter is not a virgin on her wedding day, then what are you giving away when she gets married?

Ick. I don't think my skin is going to stop crawling anytime soon.

Comments

[zhiverny6.livejournal.com]

Huh. I thought "purity balls" would mean kind of the opposite, as in "We've been obsessing over girls' virginity for years; now we're going to require it of boys." I figured it was a contraption of some sort, like a male chastity belt, or possibly a pledge. "Behold! No one can touch my Balls of Purity!"

I'm trying to be open-minded, but the imagery of girls pledging their virginity to their dads is creeping me out. I'm all for letting kids grow up before they become sexual creatures, but this is... not that.

I was berated once at a wedding, repeatedly, by a complete stranger for refusing to take part in a "daddy-daughter" dance. (I'd twisted my ankle, but felt no need to explain this to her because, lady, who the hell are you?) As the night wore on, and she kept coming by, I started thinking of all the people who've been abused, or just have profoundly messed up relationships with their parents, and are bullied into these things. Some rituals are not for everyone.