Breaking from their Drinks
Women shouldn’t go on Spring Break because they “can’t handle their drink”
This week, the co-founder of Vice magazine caused a stir in an interview with Fox News when he stated that young women should not go on Spring Break because they “can’t hold their booze as well as men.”
Gavin McInnes added further fuel to his fire by labelling parents as irresponsible if they let their daughters go on Spring Break. He claimed that gender equality is a “stupid lie” which makes women only “more vulnerable” than men.
These statements were made on a right-wing talk show on Fox. They came after video footage of spring breakers, mainly featuring images of almost nude women dancing in the sun. McInnes said that allowing any child to go on Spring Break makes you a “fairly bad” parent, but letting a daughter go is terrible as “they can’t even hold their booze as well as men.”
The tradition of Spring Break as taken off in recent years, made easier and more affordable by advances in travel and budget deals. Thousands of university students migrate south to Florida, South Carolina to party; some even make the occasion international and leave the land of the free to relax in Mexico or the Bahamas.
It’s a fun way to unwind with friends, similar to the British trend of travelling to Spain’s Magaluf, Greece’s Zante or Cyprus’ Ayia Napa. However, concerns are being raised over the problem of binge drinking, also found among British revellers. The American College of Health claims that the average males drinks 18 drinks a day on Spring Break, while women drink 10.
McInnes stated that “women are not as strong as men” and therefore cannot drink as much, or cope so well. Sean Hannity agreed with him, stating that his daughter would attend Spring Break “over [his] dead body.”
Now, obviously, I have a few qualms with this. Generally, women cannot drink as much as men for a variety of different reasons, namely biological differences, and also societal pressures which deem it unacceptable for women to drink in excess whereas the same is not always applied to men. However, this is not a reason so prevent a young woman from going on Spring Break, an experience which is fast becoming a modern rite of passage.
My major disagreement with McInnes is his damning verdict upon parents who let their offspring go on such a trip. Once a son or daughter is of legal age then there is very little that a parent can do to control their behaviour, what they do, or where they go. I believe that parents do have their children’s best interest at heart, however, once they are at college or university, the behaviour of a child has very little reflection on a parent. The child is now an adult and therefore to take the responsibility of their actions away from them and to place is on the parent is unfounded and archaic.
Parents have the right to attempt to dissuade their son or daughter from attending Spring Break, they have the right to withdraw or refuse to fund the trip. However, if the son or daughter has worked and saved money for the trip then there is no reason why they should not spend their money how they please.
We’ve all seen or been the girl that got it wrong on a night out. Everyone has at one time or another. That’s fine, it’s all part of growing and university life, everything is about learning. Equally, we’ve seen boys being carried home and not making it out. McInnes, Spring Break is not about holding booze. It’s about knowing your own limits and being comfortable with how much you are drinking. If you don’t know, then you’ll probably learn, everyone does and that’s fine. There are far greater problems facing America then worrying about how much barely legal bikini-clad women are drinking in the Sunshine state.
Madeleine is a final year student at the University of Exeter studying BA English with proficiency in French who has developed her writing and editing through her involvement with Her Campus Exeter. In her free time, Madeleine loves discovering new music in preparation for the UK festival season and searching for opportunities which can broaden her horizons, most recently this was volunteering as a teacher in Beijing, China, where she was immersed in Chinese culture and tradition. There are few things in this world that bring Madeleine more joy than glitter, velvet and sequins and her ideal dinner party guests would be Queen Elizabeth I, George Orwell and Taylor Swift. Currently, with graduation looming, Madeleine is exploring the idea of taking time out to travel the world on a shoe string before embarking upon a career in international humanitarian aid.
