Have you ever girlbossed a bit too close to the sun?
Just as the “b-word” was reappropriated by those it sought to harm, "girlboss" is being reappropriated by the girlbosses. There are plenty of think pieces floating in the ether that preach “girlboss” is merely a term used to isolate women in the corporate world, promote white feminism and so on.
The term was originally popularized by notorious Nasty Gal founder Sophia Amoruso. For Amoruso, a girlboss was one who was in charge of their own life, not necessarily other people.
As written in a farewell letter on Girlboss.com, Amoruso clarified that “the intent wasn’t to be about being female bosses, it was like, ‘be the boss of your own life.’ I wrote (‘#Girlboss’) for women because that’s who shopped from me and I’m a woman.”
Over time, the word has evolved to have severe, negative connotations, and some view the moniker as an insult symbolizing hypocrisy, toxicity and false solidarity.
However, a research article published on behalf of the Association for Psychological Science proposes that “self-labeling with a derogatory group label may ironically weaken its stigmatizing force and even revalue it, transforming the very words designed to demean into expressions of self-respect.” Such reappropriation attempts to devalue an insulting label’s stigma and allow the self-labeler a feeling of power that can expand beyond themself.
I will say, I do think there is a distinct difference between “girlboss” and “girl boss.” Girlboss is hot, girlboss is a game and girlboss is fun. It is effectively one word and it is snappy. On the other hand, “girl boss” is a combination of words using “girl” as an adjective before the noun “boss,” and that is unnecessary.
A very amusing and tone-deaf (sorry) Refinery29 story declares the “girl-” prefix in girlboss is infantilizing because “if we weren’t so scared of women’s power we wouldn’t need to do this, to make it more palatable by rolling it in glitter and pinkwashing it.”
I’m sorry, but as an adult girl, I enjoy both glitter and the color pink. Please feel free to roll everything in glitter for my benefit.
Also, girlboss has evolved into a gender-neutral term. Don’t ask me to explain this — it is in the aura of the word. Non-binary people can be girlbosses if they want to. In a way, girlbosses are simply more powerful than a regular “boss.”
To be a girlboss is to always have the Michelle Obama-led “Hey Queen” motivational video on standby. You take mental health breaks when needed. You care about others.
I will admit when I first started using the word girlboss, it was reluctantly and ironically. My friends used the word so I thought, “Hey, why not. It’s silly!” But, I committed to the bit so strongly that it became a sincere part of my vocabulary. In the end, the word has almost become an inside joke amongst exhausted Zillennials and Gen Zers.
As a Black woman, it would be remiss of me to bypass the valid criticisms of “girlboss culture.” The Girl Boss golden era, from 2014 to 2019, according to Glamour, was not equal and mainly uplifted white women. Some who are weary of the reclamation of girlboss note the movement’s need for genuine diversity and inclusion.
To that, I say, I wholeheartedly agree! At this moment, I am exclusively discussing the word, not the culture or movement.
No, I will not purchase a Cricut machine to emblazon “#GIRLBOSS” across all of my physical belongings. But I will shout out my cool friends for following their dreams on their own terms and achieving what they put their minds to. Like, they are girlbosses. What else am I supposed to call them?
Sure, I could say, “Hey, you are smart, talented, charismatic, and will succeed in life.” However, “You are such a girlboss” conveys the same message. Why waste time saying a lot of words when few words do the trick, you know?
Besides, I can use the time I save saying fewer words to girlboss.
Dori Gray is a senior journalism major at Ohio University. Please note that the ideas expressed in this column do not reflect those of The Post. Want to chat with Dori? Tweet her @dorigraywrites.
