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Someone fixed that sexist girls' magazine cover

Someone fixed that sexist girls' magazine cover

When Matt Frye, a father of three daughters from Kansas, shared a photo highlighting the sexist messaging on Girl's Life magazine earlier this month, many people were outraged.

The photo, of Girl's Life and Boy's life magazines side-by-side, went viral with many criticising the editors for their choice of content.

While Boy's Life encouraged its readers to "explore your future", Girl's Life included "100+ ways to SLAY on your first day" and "wake up pretty".

Katherine Young, a graphic designer, was so outraged by the images she redesigned the cover to give it a more empowering message. She told Mic:

I put the cover together in less than 10 minutes. I thought about all the things in a girl's life that could make her well-rounded and that is where the titles came from.

The designer made a number of alterations including changing the cover model for an image of Olivia Hallisey, the 17-year-old winner of the 2015 Google Science Fair, replacing the phrase "100+ ways to slay" to "100+ ways to help others in your community" and encouraging young women to be "best.you.ever" and get their "dream career".

Young's cover, which first appeared on her personal blog, has since been shared on social media more than 17,000 times.

A spokesperson for Girl's Life told Mic: "We are so proud of every page in every single issue. Girls' Life serves a dynamic audience of 2.16 million tween and teen girls who have a variety of passions.

That's why every issue is packed with a rich blend of content centered on friends, family, fun, fashion, community, crushes, crafts, cooking, confidence, futures, fun, fashion, role models, style, self-esteem and more. This meaningful mix is why we've won dozens of awards for our high-quality editorial and outstanding photography — and why we've been the #1 magazine for tweens and young teen girls since 1994.

However Ms Young thinks that more needs to be done. "We have to do better. These messages are harmful to girls and boys alike," she said.

Girls need to be taught that they are more than a pretty face and boys need to be taught that, too.

More: 11 of the worst sex tips women's magazines have given their readers

More: This fake front cover nails the underlying problem with most women's magazines

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