Sunday, November 19, 2006

Women of the world, raise your right hand.

Ad campaign by A Diamond Is Forever has been around for a while. It says:
Your left hand says 'we.' Your right hand says 'me.' Your left hand rocks the cradle. Your right hand rules the world. Women of the world, raise your right hand. A Diamond is Forever. The New Diamond Right Hand Ring. Romantic, Modern Vintage, Floral and Contemporary Styles at ADIAMONDISFOREVER.COM

How clever.

Far from being the rarest stones in nature and certainly not able to last forever (try burning that stone), diamonds are just another not-so-apt embodiment of some constructed ideology. The invention of engagement ring in the early twentieth century was a huge commercial success. Now that feminism is in, the diamond giants have to move along too. Hence the right hand ring campaign, and finally the corporations have sussessfully captured 90% of the world's affluent women. It is ironic that in this case feminism is being rubbed into the one of the most prominent symbols of capitalist exploitations. Diamond mining and cutting have often been associated with slavery for good reasons. A feminist would be an idiot to buy that ring from adiamondisforever to MAKE A STATEMENT. What kind of statement would come out of that?

All said, I would not hesitate to raise my right hand. But just not with a stone from de Beers or adiamondisforever. For decoration, my fingers would at the most have on them a blinding cubic zirconia from Icing for 5 bucks.