Why...
does slut-shaming continue to be an acceptable form of bullying in Western society?
The act of "slut-shaming" is obviously not a new phenomenon and has, in the past, existed as a form of justified harassment. Unfortunately, slut-shaming continues to be an acceptable form of bullying that can leave lasting effects in terms of how a female perceives herself and how others treat her. Many would like to believe that during the last century women in North America have attained equal rights to men and no longer require feminist agendas regarding women's lib.
“We’re suffering from a mass delusion that women in America have achieved equality…it’s a mirage of equality that we’ve been duped into believing is the real thing” (Valenti, 2010) Slut-shaming acts as a subtle tool to keep women oppressed.Through the media we are bombarded with massively conflicting images of women. We are left with a distorted view of sexuality and a reinforcement of the good girl/bad girl. “Women gain power by participating in this system which denigrates them…it enables girls who engage in slut-shaming to feel more virtuous, gaining them approval by the reigning powers (patriarchal hierarchy)”. (Chemaly, 2011) |
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