Girlhood (It’s Complicated)

In partnership with the Smithsonian National Museum of American History. The history of girlhood is not what people think; it is complicated.

For more information check out the online exhibition:
https://americanhistory.si.edu/girlhood

Smithsonian video content may be used for non-commercial, educational purposes consistent with the Smithsonian’s Terms of Use for content with usage conditions, https://www.si.edu/termsofuse/

Girlhood: Being Schooled

In school, girls are taught to fit in. This video looks at how in classrooms, on the playground, at lunch, and even in the bathroom, girls learn how to behave, what to wear, what to say, and what to study.

Girlhood: Hey, Where’s My Girlhood?

Girls built America. This video explores how girls’ work gave other women leisure time, made industries more profitable, sparked a consumer revolution, and reshaped labor laws.

Girlhood: Zine Scene

Girls have used zines, among other forms of self-expression, to redefine fashion and body image, reject consumer culture, and express anger—something girls were not supposed to be.

Girlhood: Body Talk

Americans talk about girls’ bodies a lot. They have for more than a century. Why? Because girls’ bodies are often treated like community property.

Girlhood: Girl Culture

Girls produce culture. This video examines how girls have taken cues taken cues from style icons in movies and music as well as each others and used fashion to transform themselves, markets, and ideas about gender and growing up.