Sunday, August 12, 2012

The Madonna and the Whore, and, Evading Pussy

I found this AP item interesting for what it couldn't bring itself to say: pussy. Associated Press | The Register-Guard | Eugene, Oregon Not at first anyway,

Madonna, as in pop culture icon, and whore, as in, that's what Madonna is. Those words can be uttered. But pussy, that might be offensive!

The item is about a tweet from a "Russian deputy premier" that condemned Madonna (the performer, not the Madonna) for supporting, as the AP release put it "...the jailed members of a Russian punk band..."
That "Russian punk band" is called PUSSY RIOT. Say it. PUSSY. As in: vagina. Twat. And so on.

The parallels to the Madonna and the whore iconography are obvious. A woman -- Madonna -- takes on the persona of the Madonna/whore mythic cliche. And she dares to support other whores, who themselves dared perform -- in your face, bourgeois! -- anti-Madonna sentiments. Actually, Pussy Riot prayed to Mary: ""Virgin Mary, drive Putin away!" they evoked. Further insult to the Madonna, these "whores" take back names and labels and own it. Pussy Riot.

Parked in the seventh paragraph, the name of the group: Pussy Riot, is written. Pussy Riot appears again in the ninth paragraph. 7 and 9, two powerful numbers in esoteric tradition, not to mention three, the number of members on trial. The three members of Pussy Riot have been in jail for five months and are accused of acts that amount to religious hate crimes. The women face up to three years in prison.

Madonna -- the musician, not the BVM -- is once again about symbols. (Remember her recent swastika provocation in France.) From the AP item:
Madonna, who performed in Moscow and St. Petersburg as part of her world tour, expressed her support for Pussy Riot at Tuesday's concert in Moscow, saying she'd "pray for them." She then turned her bare back, with "Pussy Riot" written on it and donned a ski mask similar to those worn by the band.


Pussy Riot has international support, including of course from fellow musicians. Here's just one link I found while surfing.

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