During Discoveries Orientation week, first-year students attend a mandatory session dealing with the negative aspects of college: drug abuse, sexual assault, mental illness and the like. One of the major talking points in the session is the definition and importance of consent. During the presentation, a fellow student made audible comments about how men are punished too harshly for sexual assault and how it’s not sexual assault if both parties are drunk. These comments are shocking and offensive, but they are too common on our campus and in our larger society.
In a culture unquestionably dominated by men, women are too often put down and criticized on the basis of their gender alone. Blatant sexists like Rush Limbaugh earn universal condemnation with statements like Limbaugh’s about Georgetown student Sandra Fluke, whom he called a “slut” and “prostitute” for her belief that women deserve access to free birth control and other contraceptives. Unfortunately, less overt sexism is all too common in our daily lives and rarely receives the same attention.
Miley Cyrus’ VMA performance is shaping up to be a pop culture scandal on the level of Janet Jackson’s wardrobe malfunction. Critics from celebrities to students panned Cyrus’ performance as hyper-sexualized and inappropriate. Critics participated in slut-shaming Cyrus due to her expression of sexuality. In our culture, it was less acceptable for Cyrus to act sexually than for Robin Thicke to provide Cyrus with a soundtrack promoting archaic and objectifying views of women. It says a lot about our culture’s attitudes towards women that Cyrus was heavily criticized for expressing her sexuality on stage, while male artists write and perform songs with sexually explicit content and earn minimal criticism in comparison.
It is these subtle acts of sexism that pose the greatest problem. Overtly sexist statements rightfully earn condemnation, and it is time that more subtle comments earn the same scorn. It may seem that I’m being hypersensitive and finding sexism where there is none, but women often face misogyny for making the same observations as I. When a famously feminist teacher lectured her class about doing schoolwork at the end of our senior year of high school, my friends attacked her feminism in response. Even though her views had no connection to her lecture, they pronounced that she “hated boys” and spouted her feminist views too much in class. Not only do women face misogyny regularly, but they are also assailed with sexist comments when they call out the offenders. It may seem like this doesn’t happen that often or that some women are too radically feminist, but this is just another aspect of the sexism that women face daily. Accusing outspoken women of hating men is just another way to discredit women and reinforce men’s authority over women.
It’s time for men to not only become aware of and stop making these sexist comments, but also for men to actively support the feminist cause. There’s nothing manly or cool about degrading women or supporting those that do. Chauvinism and sexism are just signs of insecurity, and any man comfortable in his masculinity shouldn’t need to degrade women to feel better about himself. It is our responsibility as fellow students and friends to stand up for each other, and this means that we should step up when we hear our friends or others making sexist or demeaning comments.
If you’re afraid your friends will judge you for standing up to them, they’re probably not the kind of people you want to hang out with to begin with. And if you find yourself being called out for sexist comments, take a moment to consider what you said before dismissing criticisms at face value. If you’re constantly explaining how you’re not really a sexist, there’s a good chance you may be one. It’s time for men to become allies of women and take a stand against sexism in our community. A community in which members are not valued equally is no community at all, and we can improve our community greatly by treating each other with the respect and appreciation we all deserve.
