![]() ![]() On a larger level, this speaks to the “new normal” of the media – acting both as a mouthpiece to advocate for the marginalized and vulnerable, while simultaneously casting a harsh spotlight and exploiting the personal, intimate lives of celebrities for monetary gain. While the media has certainly put the spotlight on the #FreeBritney movement, they were also responsible for - and continue to be responsible for - depriving her of any sense of privacy, hypersexualizing her body and identity, and subjecting her to unequal gender standards as a young female entertainer. ![]() Given the complex, multifaceted nature of her life under this conservatorship, it is crucial to analyze the factors culminating in this legal agreement, examine what her current decision-making abilities look like, and learn how present social media movements seek to liberate her. This, of course, begs the question: Who, or what, are we freeing Britney from? Why is she not free in the first place, and what can we do to help her escape her plight? Spears’s life and her conservatorship have recently undergone revitalized scrutiny thanks to the New York Times documentary “Framing Britney Spears.” Following the release of the documentary, the #FreeBritney movement, which advocates for Britney’s legal liberation from her father and renewal of her ability to make personal, professional, and financial decisions for herself, has taken the world by storm. Finally, there seems to be a clear financial stake in Britney’s monetary assets: With a net worth of over $60 million, there is a compelling incentive for her father to continue to manage her financial interests and estate. In addition, Spears’ father has always insisted that the conservatorship is in the best interest of his daughter, but Britney’s actions seem to speak otherwise, given that she requested the courts remove him as conservator multiple times over the years and within the last two weeks declared her intent to end her conservatorship to a Los Angeles Superior Court judge in a hearing that provided no concrete resolution. First, a conservatorship often serves as a last resort for significantly older persons, and as a 39-year-old woman, Spears is a particularly young candidate. ![]() According to the California Court Systems, “A conservatorship is a court case where a judge appoints a responsible person or organization (called the “conservator”) to care for another adult (called the “conservatee”) who cannot care for himself or herself or manage his or her own finances.” This means Spears is supposedly unable to spend her own money, see her two sons, leave her house, drive a car, or even receive unapproved visitors without explicit consent and permission from her father.īritney’s extremely high-profile conservatorship is unusual for several reasons. Soon after, she checked into a rehabilitation center, and her life has not been the same since: Following the events of 2007, her mental health deteriorated in her conservatorship under her father, Jamie Spears. This drama came to a head in 2007, with the infamous photos of Britney shaving her head and using an umbrella to shatter the car windows of paparazzi. The crazed and hungry paparazzi tracked her every movement, vying for the perfect photo op to fuel the tabloids and press. Being thrusted into the limelight often meant invasive, personal questioning from a media that hadn’t, and still hasn’t, treated female celebrities equitably. These halcyon days soon came to a screeching halt after a cascade of troubling and trying events unraveled. From there, she continued to shatter records and became platinum-certified on several of her albums. From the very inception of her career in the late 90s, Britney Jean Spears dominated the music scene with her first hit, “…Baby One More Time,” topping the charts for 32 weeks and remaining today as one of the most popular singles ever sold. It was Britney’s world, and we were just living in it. ![]()
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