Sean Bratches, Formula 1 managing director of commercial operations, acknowledged that the organization will be firing the grid girls for the 2018 season onward for the F1 races. This move is being done to be more progressive after feminists attacked the motorsports organization for not firing the models that walk out onto the track in branded fashion.
According to the Associated Press, Bratches explained…
“We feel this custom does not resonate with our brand values and clearly is at odds with modern day societal norms. We don’t believe the practice is appropriate or relevant to Formula One and its fans, old and new, across the world.”
“Over the last year we have looked at a number of areas which we felt needed updating so as to be more in tune with our vision,”
This change also applies to the Formula 2 races as well.
The motorsports organization received praise from the feminist organization, Women’s Sport Trust, which had previously targeted the organization after they successfully managed to get the models fired from the Professional Darts Corporation events.
Thank you @F1 for deciding to stop using grid girls. Another sport making a clear choice about what they want to stand for:
“We feel this custom does not resonate with our brand values and clearly is at odds with modern day societal norms.” https://t.co/Rrwxf5VcjY— Women’s Sport Trust (@WomenSportTrust) January 31, 2018
As is typical with this sort of news, many of the models were not at all pleased with being out of a job due to the chatterings and pesterings by feminist organizations.
On the #GridGirl hashtag there are various grid girls who are complaining about being out of work thanks to the feminists.
I love my job. I’m respected, paid well & proud to represent the team I’m working for. It’s not right for anyone, let alone ‘feminists’ to judge our job when quite frankly they are putting so many women out of work. Where is the equality & empowerment here? #GridGirls #F1 pic.twitter.com/ookyjB1A8Q
— Lucy Stokes (@LucyStokes_) January 31, 2018
I couldn’t love my job more ❤️ @MacToolsUK @wixracinguk @AdamMorgan33 @DunlopLive #Btcc #promoandproud #gridgirls pic.twitter.com/YgwdOUNbzH
— Mimi griffin (@Mimigriffin2) January 31, 2018
Get me on @thismorning so I can defend us #gridgirls
Because of these feminists, they’ve have cost us our jobs! I have been a grid girl for 8 years and I have Never felt uncomfortable! I love my job, if I didn’t I wouldn’t do it! Noone forces us to do this! This is our choice! pic.twitter.com/PUWcyB5BeG— Lauren-Jade (@laurenjadepope) January 31, 2018
So the inevitable has happened, F1 gridgirls have been banned. Ridiculous that women who say they are “fighting for women’s rights” are saying what others should and shouldn’t do, stopping us from doing a job we love and are proud to do. PC gone mad #Gridgirls
— Rebecca Cooper (@rebeccageldard) January 31, 2018
One of these images is of a feminist. One is of women who should be banned because they objectify women and encourage young girls to become ‘decorative’ #beyonce #gridgirls pic.twitter.com/TCrsqNSsAk
— Nancy von Short (@macchinaclub) January 31, 2018
As one feminist explained, this whole movement is part of a bigger picture; if women lose their jobs so that men can no longer ogle at women or desire them, then it’s fine for hundreds of women to be out of work to deprive men of that satisfaction.
It’s part of a bigger picture of eradicating woman from being held up as things to be paraded & ogled at. And that world is one I would rather my children grew up in. I’m sorry for you & your job but I’m not sorry that the world will be better when this type of job does not exist
— Emma Hill (Taylor) (@girlfromSW12) January 31, 2018
Many women who work in the model industry decided to sign a petition to help get their jobs back. Some of them depended on modeling and being walk-on girls or grid girls to make a living.
The original petition over on Change.org has garnered more than 38,000 signatures as of the writing of this article.
