I know I'm entering dangerous waters taking a pizza chain to task here. Pizza is perhaps the most loved food in this country, and the last thing I want is to besmirch its good name. But seriously...take a deep breath, then check out this pathetic commercial from Papa Murphy's.
...This is a joke, right? Right?
No, it's not (though it's eerily similar to an SNL parody commercial that aired not even a year ago). Someone — in all likelihood, many someones — thought this was a good idea. #MasculinitySoFragile, amirite?
It's hard to know where to start when a national ad is so mind-explodingly terrible. We've made some commendable strides as far as leveling the gender playing field in the last few years, but every so often (actually, way more than every so often), something like this comes along and sets everyone back a good half-century. This ad supports the not-even-remotely-true stereotype of feminine qualities being a sign of weakness in men, when, in the real world, most dads worth their salt would happily strap on a pair of fairy wings if their daughter (or, hell, their son!) asked them to. And it doesn't stop there: the ad goes ahead and buys into the equally ludicrous idea of women living in the kitchen and existing solely to serve "their" man.
Part of me thinks (or rather, hopes like hell) this was supposed to be satire, but if so, they failed. Hard. Though they try to smooth it over by declaring the pizza "not that bold" at the end, the damage has already been done. When men are shamed for being "feminine" (even if it means, you know, bonding with their children) and women are portrayed as one-note pizza vessels, we all — men, women, gender-non-conforming, whatever — lose. Is that really what you want to be known as, Papa Murphy's? The pizza company that serves up deeply regressive stereotypes alongside your (mediocre) product?
Should you need a pie in the future, I heartily suggest hitting up your local parlor. Papa Murphy's' behavior shouldn't be rewarded with your hard-earned dollar. Because, as they may or may not be aware, women work now.
