The Student News Site of Simmons University

The Simmons Voice

The Student News Site of Simmons University

The Simmons Voice

The Student News Site of Simmons University

The Simmons Voice

Editorial

“You all got to stop calling each other sluts and whores. It just makes it okay for guys to call you sluts and whores.” – Tina Fey, “Mean Girls”

 

Have truer words ever been spoken? Perhaps this message is slightly outdated, as many feminists seek to reclaim derogatory terms for females, but we think the message is still applicable.

Stop using these terms to put down other women and trans people. This language is a tool of the patriarchy used to keep women classified as second-class citizens.

If the previous sentence sounds like a line from a conspiracy theory, consider this: Women who dressed up as Miley Cyrus at the VMAs for Halloween were dubbed “slutty.” Men who dressed up as Miley Cyrus were deemed hilarious, and even brave.

See the difference? Women’s bodies have been degraded to sex objects and baby vessels, while men can do pretty much whatever they want with their bodies and still be in the clear in society’s eyes – unless they want to alter their gender.

This has got to stop. If a woman wants to be a provocatively-dressed cat for Halloween, she should go for it. Good for her for being confident enough in her body to put it out there.

The media has trained us to believe that women’s bodies are nothing if not sexual, through advertisements for beer, hot pockets, and vodka. This is not the case. Showing a little midriff doesn’t make you a sex maniac. And even if you were, so what?

If it’s not your personal style to dress in revealing clothing, that’s your own business. If it is someone else’s style, then that’s their business. It’s as simple as that.

We’re not saying it will be easy, but stop calling women these terms as a way to put them down. You don’t see anyone calling Red Sox player Mike Napoli a whore when he waltzed around Boston, drunk and shirtless.

But if a woman did it, she would probably lose her job and get an offer to star in a pornographic film.

Leave a Comment
More to Discover

Comments (0)

All The Simmons Voice Picks Reader Picks Sort: Newest

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *