You might have heard this word- Slut shaming. It is being practised around the globe since the early times which is the base of many problems. To begin with, let’s understand what is the true meaning of slut-shaming.
Slut shaming is the practice of disgracing women or girls who are perceived to violate the expectations of the society or regarding their sexual appearance. It also refers to effeminates who are considered as excess in the society as they don’t act a certain way which the other organs in the society except them to. Hetero men are not labelled under this practice as they are considered macho enough to do the same sexual acts and are of course applauded.
Women are punished or criticized for dressing in a certain way which is considered very provocative. If the person is a prostitute or a victim of rape or is even on birth control pills, she becomes a victim of slut shaming. The society blames the girl for being raped because of her mistakes like wearing too revealing clothes or acting in a sexually alluring manner.
The sound mentality of people say that women are presumed to be ‘sexy’ and ‘hot’ but there is a hairline border between being sexy and being slutty. If women don’t act in a certain way that falls under the acceptable norms of the society then there is a chance of them being labelled unfeminine. However, if you move according to their guidelines, there is always a risk of crossing that fine borderline.
Slut shaming is way more than just name-calling. It takes a different route altogether. For instance, if a person wants to take vengeance on someone then he might use the tactics of slut-shaming. He might post fake nudes of the person on social media or even publically harass that person. This in itself is very traumatizing and the victim may end up committing suicide.
There have been many cases where women are labelled under this practice. One of the very famous incidents is of a journalist who was slut-shamed because of a political and religious public opinion. She was sent numerous death threats by anonymous people. Fake porn videos were being circulated among the masses. She also received calls from strangers asking for her ‘service’ and ‘rates’. She was so scared of these strangers that she hardly used to step out of her house.
Many young girls are also a prey of slut shaming because they interact with a lot of men or have more credentials than those of men. Sometimes showing their power or intelligence backfires on them.
In most of the countries, women are conscious of their face colour, the reason being that men believe that women with a colour face are sexually prompt, and thus tend to harm the women with nuisance acts.
Even homosexual people are not on the loose. They are also the sitting targets of slut shame. Lesbians and gays are considered to be a humiliation in the society as people believe that they are sexually abnormal. Androgynous students are moreover bullied and called sluts than heterosexual students. Such negative encounters may lead these students to physical harm, loss of friends, mental trauma and social indignity. It is a notion that gay men tend to have sexual activities with people that result in causing HIV and Aids. This particular behaviour is judged as slutty. Homosexual men are bullied most of the times in public environments like name calling, sexual blaming.
In 2011, there was a protest called SlutWalk in Toronto which asked for an end to rape culture, victim blaming and slut shaming of sexual assault victims. This rally took place because of a policeman who stated that women should stop wearing slutty clothing. Many women came out for the first time and spoke about how they survived rape. This act was criticized and questioned.
Many movements took place worldwide where women wore boards of “I am not a slut but I like having consensual sex “, and “don’t teach me how to dress”. In South Africa after an incident where taxi drivers shamed a girl for wearing a short skirt and fingered her couldn’t remain behind the curtains.
Women protested on the streets by wearing miniskirts sending a message that men cannot harass women no matter the length of the dress and that it shouldn’t be considered as an invitation.
Women have long been subjected to sexual harassment. Slut Shaming is a practice which needs to be eradicated from its roots. Women and effeminates shouldn’t hide behind the curtains and start voicing their opinions in public. Each and every person has the liberty to conduct themselves the way they want in society without being judged.
An end to slut shaming by showing power is what is necessary.
