The Internet is in a 100% justified uproar right now over a new website of dubious veracity. The premise behind Code Babes is basic (also disgusting): the site teaches male users to code by having a traditionally attractive woman remove enough clothing to keep “things interesting.”
Yup, that’s right. “Code Babes” doesn’t refer to “babes” who code, although a website with that premise would also be grossly detrimental to women interested in the traditionally male-dominated tech field. Instead, it purports to offer three levels of “progressively enhanced web development training” for men. What are the levels called, you ask? Well, beginner is “virgin.” Let’s leave it at that.
Six different varieties of virgins are advertised, and each of them is willing to remove an unspecified amount of clothing to help the website’s members learn. Here’s the Code Babes promo video. Before watching, remove anything from your vicinity that you don’t want to break in post-viewing frustration (there’s probably no saving your brain).
Debates are raging about whether or not Code Babes is satirical. If the website actually offers its advertised services, then it’s perpetuating a rhetoric that is dangerous to both sexes (women are objects, men are drooling idiots), and I wouldn’t object to creating a Coding Castration website in response.
If it is satire, however, I’m pretty sure the Internet still has a right to have its panties in a twist. Even if the website isn’t “real,” the fact that a service like this seems believable is a reminder of how fucked up and frankly old-fashioned society still is. To reiterate: even if Code Babes is “just” a stunt, it should still illicit equal outrage. The website could be fake, but the level of conscious or unconscious ingrained sexism necessary to make its premise believable is very, very real.
If Code Babes is a stunt, then the merits of fabricating a website like that to make a point are debatable. If it is real, and men are actually using women’s bodies as a coding study motivator, then I’m sure I’m not the only person ready to pull a Lorena Bobbitt while screaming “I told you so!” Ever been called an uptight feminist? Ever called anyone else that? In light of this site, satire, whatever it is, I think the myth that women are overreacting or exaggerating the amount of objectification they experience on a daily basis should be immediately dispelled.
Now excuse me while I go withdraw from society.
(via Gizmodo, image via Code Babes)
