During Superbowl Sunday, we caught a glimpse at Always’ #LikeAGirl commercial. Words like “groundbreaking,” “powerful,” and “important,” were used to describe the ad that asked men, women, and children to “run like a girl.” We saw older women, men, and one young boy running in a goofy, “sissy” manner, laughing along as they went. The tables were turned when young girls were asked what it meant to run, fight, and throw “like a girl.” The young girls ran as fast as they could, fought as hard as they could, and threw as well as any boy. The commercial ended with this statement: “Let’s make #LikeAGirl Mean Amazing Things.” Since then, Always and other companies have been producing commercials that make us focus on what it truly means to be a strong woman. Here are some of my favorite commercials that focus on female empowerment.
Chevy’s Mo’ne Davis: Throw Like A Girl- Mo’ne Davis wrote an open letter to the US, to tell us about her summer where she spent most days of the week playing sports with her family’s support. She tells viewers that she wants to be an inspiration to everyone as she throws baseballs at 70 miles per hour. Chevy celebrates her ability to “throw like a girl,” and so should we.
Dove’s Choose Beautiful- Dove is constantly celebrating real beauty. In this ad, Dove asks women to choose between doors that read “average” or “beautiful.” We watch as women from all over the world choose whether they want to walk into the “average” door or the “beautiful”one. Some women question as to whether they’ve made their decision based on what’s constantly thrown at them by the media. The end of the commercial asks women to #ChooseBeautiful. This commercial makes me question what our true beauty is. It brings up the subject of self-image and self-love. Would you #ChooseBeautiful?
Verison’s Inspire Her Mind– This commercial makes me think about the way that we speak to our little girls. We tend to treat them as delicate, rather than smart, or clever. We watch one little girl’s journey from being interested in science and technology, to passing the science fair flyer in her school in order to reapply her lip-gloss. Watch it, and be inspired to start thinking about other ways to talk to our girls.
American Express’ Mindy Kaling’s Journey: The Unlikely Leading Lady– We all laughed out loud during Mindy’s Nationwide commercial but this ad sheds another light on the funny lady. We watch as Mindy goes through her day while discussing what it was like to first arrive in Hollywood and be told that she wasn’t exactly “leading lady” material. Well, now she’s changing the definition, as she runs her own Fox TV show, The Mindy Project while inspiring women along the way.
