Car Decals and Feminism

I feel like I should start this post off by saying, "you know what really grinds my gears?"

This is just a really glorified rant that I would normally post to Facebook because that's how people deal with frustration these days. But hey, that's the way this cookie is going to crumble today. 

A few weeks ago I saw something that really irked me and I haven't been able to stop thinking about it. I was on my way back from lunch to the office and a woman's car in front of me had a vanity plate that read "OILBOO"

I'm thinking, "WTF is an oilboo?"

Oh wait. Then I see the humongous decal on the back window. It was hot pink and read, "OIL FIELD WIFEY" and was surrounded by flowers or hearts or something. 

Oilboo as in "Oil-boo", like "boo" as a pet name you give your spouse. Okay then. So this woman is extremely proud that her husband is working in the oil fields.

Being in the military I see a lot of women with those stickers on their car saying how proud they are to be an "army wife" or something like that. I get it and I'm not trying to say they shouldn't put those stickers on their car or be proud of their spouse, but lets be real here. My husband doesn't have an "army husband" sticker on his car. They don't sell those stickers at the Exchange. They exist but I've never seen one on a car. EVER. 

You know why that is? It's certainly not for a lack of female service members! It's because we are taught that the husbands job is more important than the wife's job. We are taught that a woman is defined by her husbands career because she will never have a job as good or as important. 

It's normal to be proud of your spouse and their job. It's also much more of a "lifestyle" to be in the military, but it's really no different from most other jobs. There are tons of jobs where one spouse is gone for long periods. There are tons of jobs that require you to move every few years. There are tons of jobs that are dangerous and you could end up getting killed while doing it.

Until I see a sticker that says, "I'm proud of my SAHM" just as often as a "Proud Army Wife" sticker I will maintain that they are completely and totally sexist.