belly-dance-rants:

I confused about the sexuality vs belly dance thing. Is it wrong for anyone to find belly dance erotic? Because it does emphasize the body,and its movement. Also,I love burlesque,and I think the style basically takes anything (I once saw a burlesque piece based on cooking) and makes it erotic and fun! Is it an insult if the person watching and doing it know that not all belly dance is sexually meant? -Anonymous

The reason why belly dancers really hate the fact that most see it as sexual is because it’s like belly dance = stripping. We get teased and asked if we will be taking our clothes off, if we’ll be using a pole, wonder why there are families at parties, things that are COMPLETELY the opposite of belly dance standards.

I don’t know if you are from the US, but here sexual women are seen as… morally corrupt. They shouldn’t expose their sexuality and if they do, they are the wild childs, the hookers, the whores, the bitches, the loose girls, the strippers, the porn stars. Basically, we are disgusting and undesirable if we are openly sexual.

Burlesque is border line for me, personally, but others it’s seen as empowering feminine fun. What we want people to see is an art form, not some sexual dance that is only for men. It can be sensual, yes, but sexual…? Mmm, no. We want people to see the hard work we put into this dance and not see it as something that just about ANYONE can do without proper training.

If someone were to see a sensual dance as erotic, I can see the connection there. But if it’s a fun shimmy-filled drum solo, that seems offensive to me to call it erotic.

To put it all to a short close, we are trying to get rid of the sexual stereotype and make it into an art form.

I’ve actually had to go to City Council and speak up about this subject.  They wanted all restaurants and nightclubs that had ever hired belly dancers of any style, latin dancers and traditional dancers to get a permit that’s the same as having adult entertainment.  They covered all dance forms but the debate ended up singled out against belly dancers because we moved in suggestive manners and exposed a great deal of flesh, according to one council member. 

It was actually a very enlightening and enjoyable afternoon to see dancers either in full costume or in suits.  For the most part, everyone was very eloquently spoken and stood up for their usual performance spots.  I spoke up for Azar’s at that time, not alone, but spoke up because it is also a little market and shop as well as a family restaurant that happens to have a dancer at 9pm every Saturday.  Or they did, it varies as far as I know now.  It wouldn’t be fair to risk them losing business because of a false adult label.

In the end, they didn’t force the businesses to get that label.  But I agree, it is a stigma that can be hard to shake and I think education is the best way to go about this.  Confront the notion and provide better information and allow people to make better informed decisions regarding it.  If someone finds it beautiful, that’s fantastic and well, if it makes for happy pants in someone else … let’s hope they’re tasteful about that reaction.