The Effects of Slut-Shaming
Shaming others, whether it was public humiliation in the medieval town square or criticism in the local paper, has been a phenomena since the beginning of time. In the age of Twitter, Instagram and Facebook, the act of "shaming" others now occurs on a crueler online platform. And women are frequently the target.
This so-called slut shaming has developed into a culturally accepted trend. Instead of the town square, people now turn to social media sites to share photos, videos and critical comments intended to shame women and girls. In the 21st century shaming has turned into a complete Internet bash. Whether it’s TMZ finding pictures of celebrities and writing mean captions or Twitter accounts devoted to unflattering photos, shaming is shaming and it is wrong. It has always been wrong. But now, with the ability to connect to the entire world with the click of a button, we chastise each other and anybody with a Wifi connection has access to it; they can add to it, comment on it, and share it.
It doesn’t have to be this way. Women do not have to stand for the constant criticism on the internet for their looks, their weight, or their sexual choices. In the age of revitalized feminism, it's quite ironic that the shaming is often coming from girls talking down to other girls. We can stand together to end the cyber-shaming. It leads to broken spirits, hurt feelings and tragic endings. Women need to lead by example and stop using labels to hurt our friends, our rivals, and ourselves. Slut, whore, and skank are words that pack a punch, whether we know it or not. In a world where women are fighting for equality, it’s about time we stop tearing down our own to build ourselves up.. We must stop hiding behind Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook, and start to build each other up with terms of endearment.
Brianna Powell is a sophomore at Metea Valley High School in wonderful world of Chicagoland. She is a writing enthusiast with a passion for the pen. She's also a features journalist for her school paper, The Stampede and a High School Ambassador for Her Campus. She has aspirations to be a journalist for a major magazine publication in the future. When not writing, she can be found talking to walls at Speech tournaments, playing on the lacrosse field, and eating Ben and Jerry's Cinnamon Buns ice cream while binge watching Scandal on Netflix.
