{"id":970,"date":"2016-08-10T11:08:33","date_gmt":"2016-08-10T16:08:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thesocietypages.org\/trot\/?p=970"},"modified":"2016-09-14T09:38:33","modified_gmt":"2016-09-14T14:38:33","slug":"the-wax-and-wane-of-body-hair-removal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thesocietypages.org\/trot\/2016\/08\/10\/the-wax-and-wane-of-body-hair-removal\/","title":{"rendered":"The Wax and Wane of Body Hair Removal"},"content":{"rendered":"

As a woman, summer means more than just bike rides and swimming\u00a0<\/span>at the lake. It also means deciding\u00a0whether or not to shave my body hair. In 2014, some declared that \u201c<\/span>the bush was back<\/span><\/a>,\u201d and in 2015 <\/span>armpit hair<\/a>\u00a0<\/span>had its moment in the spotlight as women sported photos of their hair on Twitter and Instagram. While the stigma of being a hairy lady does not seem to be <\/span>waxing<\/span><\/i>, it is certainly far from over.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Photo<\/a>
Photo by Luca Vanzella, Flickr CC<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
In the U.S., mass armpit hair removal began only after the introduction of the first <\/span>women\u2019s body razor<\/span><\/a> in 1915, and shaving pubic hair took off after the bikini was popularized in the late 1940s. Since the 1960s, women\u2019s <\/span>body hair<\/span><\/a> has come in and out of fashion. <\/span>For many women in countries like the US and the UK, removal of leg, underarm, and pubic hair is an everyday practice. A recent US <\/span>survey <\/span><\/a>shows that 84% of women surveyed engaged in some form of pubic hair removal. Women who choose not to shave these areas often face policing from family and friends that reinforces heterosexuality and homophobia. For instance, family and friends promote heteronormativity when they voice concerns over whether potential male partners would find unshaved women attractive. <\/span><\/h5>\n