This week, Sweden rolled out a new word for female masturbation, klittra, a portmanteau that combines the words clitoris and glitter. And we have some feelings about it. And questions!
Like, 1) Is it really necessary to girlify the word? 2) Was the original not sufficient? 3) Does Sweden have the world’s most fluid dictionary? (Remember, this is the country that gave us the third, gender neutral pronoun ‘hen’.) 4) Why glitter? Does the act of self-pleasuring really need to be bedazzled? 5) And is glitter really the first thing the Swedish Association for Sexuality Education thinks of when discussing it?
It's a cringe-y word to say the least, and one that brings back shiny, pink memories of other things that have gotten gendered in the name of appealing to women.
Lady Hammers
Because tools look best when they match our outfits?
Lady razors
Seems redundant, considering roughly 30% of us are using the ones made for men.
Women’s tea
It’s got orange peels, cinnamon pieces, fennel, licorice roots, cardamom and more — all things that men are apparently allergic to.
Pink hunting gear
Because the game and wildlife need to know what gender you are, of course.
Lady guitars
And because this one isn’t feminine enough, it’s called Daisy and has glitter!
Lady cigarettes
Saved this one for last, because the press copy sums it up so eloquently: ‘Women were and will be always appreciated! This is the main cause why SPS Cigaronne manufactured Lady Cigarettes. Tobacco product so waited by the women, Lady Cigs, was created especially for ladies who have their own preferences and efforts to achieve their desires. The pack design and filter of this brand are also special and amazing. The predominant colors of Lady Cigs packs are Pink and Green, depending on the women characters.’
Kenya Hunt is the Editor-in-Chief of ELLE UK. Her career spans working for some of the world's most influential women’s titles on both sides of the Atlantic from her post-graduate days as an Assistant Editor at the seminal magazine, Jane, to her time as Deputy Editor of Grazia UK and ELLE UK. As the founder of R.O.O.M. Mentoring, she advocates for greater diversity within the fashion industry by providing a supportive network for some of the many talented aspiring designers, journalists and image makers of colour London has to offer. In 2021, she was recognised by The British Fashion Council for her work and given a Global Leader Of Change Award at its annual Fashion Awards. An American based in London, she lives south of the river with her husband and two sons. Her critically-acclaimed book, Girl: Essays on Black Womanhood (HarperCollins/HQ), is out now.
