Slut is defined by dictionary.com as a woman who has many casual sexual partners; or, a word commonly used to offend and bully women based by the judgement of the perpetrator.
Despite the fact that a woman’s sexuality is her business alone, slut-shaming, or criticizing a woman on her sexual activity, is a serious problem impacting our society. The same society that has adopted the idea that a woman is a slut because of the way she dresses and that her attire means she desires or is inviting sexual contact. The word “slut” has also become a loose term that is used to label girls who are simply confident in their own skin.
In some ways, slut-shaming is introduced to young women as early as elementary school when they are told that they cannot wear tank tops, show their bra straps or have bottoms that exceed the length of where their fingertips fall.
Slut-shaming or slut-bashing is defined by the Finally, A Feminism 101 Blog as “The idea of shaming and/or attacking a woman or a girl for being sexual, having one or more sexual partners, acknowledging sexual feelings and/or acting on sexual feelings.”
Photo Editor / Tim Smith
According to a nationally representative 2011 survey from the American Association of University Women, more than a fourth of all girls and 13 percent of boys in middle and high school have experienced “being sent unwelcome sexual comments, jokes or pictures or having someone post them about or of [them]” online.
This trend continues and even worsens in college. According to an internal survey at the University of Michigan, about 20 percent of college women say that they have been “touched, kissed or penetrated without their consent.”
In campus settings, slut-shaming also coincides with rape culture, another ideology our society has adopted. Rape culture, as defined by the Women Against Violence Against Women, is “the way in which society blames victims of sexual assault and normalized male sexual violence.” Rape culture and slut-shaming are similar because they both put the blame of the action on the female rather than the male because “they were asking for it,” because they were inebriated or because of the way they were dressed.
“Put Molly all in her champagne, she ain’t even know it. I took her home and I enjoyed that, she ain’t even know it.” These are the words that rap artist Rick Ross preaches to his listeners, blatantly encouraging this rape culture. These lyrics are normal among the hundreds of others that praise men for disrespecting and degrading women.
Some students here at Keene State said they are guilty of slut-shaming.
Photo Editor / Tim Smith
KSC Senior Ieysha Williams said, “I think that we are so quick to judge women on who they slept with and how many people we think they sleep with. I think women judge other women the worst because it’s easier for us to label a girl a slut than to actually talk to her just because of the clothes she is wearing.” Williams said it is sad that our culture has come to that.
KSC Junior Wes Kroninger said that, as a male, he feels there is definitely a double standard when it comes to sex. “I feel bad for girls because it’s like we shame them for having sex with guys, but when guys have sex with multiple girls they are praised for it,” Kroninger said.
KSC Junior Bianca Streep said slut-shaming is a way to put down those who are sexually active. “If a girl is having sex with a guy, he is still having sex with her, so why is it that when the two are participating in the same act, the girl is the one whose singled out?” Streep said.
Several activists have recognized the problem with slut-shaming and protested the stereotyping by establishing “SlutWalks” or rallies of individuals of all genders marching to put an end to slut-shaming and rape culture. SlutWalks were first introduced in 2011 and can be found all over the world.
Alexandra Enayat can be contacted at aenayat@kscequinox.com