The Telegraph has a bizarre story about a series of Mother’s Day cards inspired by Andrew Tate. No one seems to be able to agree on what point is being made, or by whom. Here’s an excerpt:
A series of Mother’s Day cards with messages such as “You belong behind the kitchen sink” inspired by Andrew Tate have been condemned for trivialising misogyny.
The cards are intended by the publishers to satirise sexist attitudes and language promoted by social influences such as Tate.
Messages on the cards include “Mum you are one in a million But you’re still a b—-”, “Love you loads but women are entitled and lazy” and “Women are inherently manipulative”.
Another states: “You crazed crying low life, happy mother’s day.”
The cards are being sold through card website Thortful from £3.49.
Eliza Hatch, who worked on the cards, said: “Some of the quotes are from famous misogynists like Donald Trump and Andrew Tate. I’ve also had 100s of submissions from my community of what has been said to them which were quite shocking. We picked the ones that would be most shocking for a Mother’s Day card.
“There’s this idea that insulting someone’s mum is the highest form of insult and having that real contrast by putting those statements on a Mother’s Day card is powerful.”
Pip Heywood, managing director of Thortful, said: “We’ve taken a really bold step in putting real-life offensive phrases on something that is normally bought for Mother’s Day to highlight what is a continuing problem for women. We’re careful how we market the cards and they even have a stamp on them making it clear they are part of a campaign against misogynism.”
Yet the allegedly feminist message isn’t landing, with others claiming the cards are simply misogynistic.
But critics have said the cards appear to treat sexism as a joke.
Virginia Crosbie, a Conservative member of the Women and Enterprise and Women in Parliament All Party Parliamentary Groups, told the Telegraph: “What is appalling about the sale of these cards is how it is misogynistic behaviour dressed up as a joke. But I am not laughing and it’s not OK.”
The MP for Ynys Môn added: “Every day women must put up with comments like these and worse. Making this sort of cheap discrimination part of a business model for Mother’s Day is just offensive on so many levels.”
Heather Binning of the Women’s Rights Network (WMN) said: “These cards are crass, unfunny and downright mean to the very women we should be celebrating this weekend.
“If you don’t get on with your mother then don’t send a card at all. But to send something like this is to latch onto the current misogynistic trend that it’s ‘ok to hate women’ or it’s ‘just a joke’ to be unkind to us.”
Someone wrote to me to suggest I might be behind the cards, which is an outrageous claim. If I made them they would be much better written, and the satirical target would be clear.
Though one could also make a set of totally innocent Tate-inspired Mother’s Day cards, perhaps with a funny picture of Tate and a message like “Happy Mother’s Day, mum. I’ll make you a cup of Top T”. That’s just off the top of my head, but please don’t steal it as I am launching production soon.
Worth reading in full.
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