***NOTE: if you have not watched all of season 2 of Fuller House, there may be some spoilers.
I grew up watching the excellent sitcom, Full House. I was so excited to see Fuller House coming out on Netflix. Last season, I binge-watched every episode in the course of one weekend (and have no shame about it either). Season two came out on Netflix a little over a week ago, and you best believe I have finished it already (again, not ashamed). It has been so much fun to watch and a good escape from the stress of day-to-day life.
As a domestic and sexual violence advocate, I am always thrilled when there are hints of content to de-stigmatize male privilege in a movie, tv show, song, book, or any other form of entertainment. So, it may come as no surprise how proud and excited I felt to hear this kind of language during one of the episodes of Fuller House.
**Last chance, spoilers are about to happen. This is not a drill.
During one of the episodes, Ramona, a middle school girl, experiences a crush on a boy in her class. He kissed her, but then came to a party with another girl. Naturally, Ramona was disappointed and decided he was not worth the heartache. Eventually, the boy came back around and said he would like to spend more time with her. When she told him she was not interested because of the party incident, he got mad. He created a video to embarrass her and sent it to all of his friends. Later in the episode, she said "what did I do [to deserve this]?" and was told it was because she "dissed him in front of his friends." She then responded, "just because someone says no to you it doesn't give you the right to be a bully".
This is such an important lesson on a few things. The first is on consent. I have heard many clients talk about the "punishment" they could have faced for saying no to something their abuser wanted them to do, say, or act. This is scary because the possibilities of revenge online (like making an embarrassing video or revenge porn) are endless. Nobody has the right to belittle someone else for being told no.
The next point is about male privilege. This is a classic example of men not wanting to be embarrassed in front of their buddies - especially by a girl. It becomes a serious threat to the social hierarchy.
This episode of Fuller House addressed both of the points in a non-threatening way. We, as a society, have a lengthy history of inequality between men and women. This issue still persists today with women making an average of 80 cents on the dollar compared to men. Fuller House did a great job at directing some attention to both of these issues. We have a long way to go, but little things like this go a long way in making the world a more equal place.
