" Hey man can you believe what a big bitch that whore is, she does not want to talk to me anymore."
Among the most common words that women, teens and even girls get called. Starting at such a young age, girls get called "bitch" for anything they do. It can be as simple as not saying "hi." This word is thrown around so much that being a bitch means so many different things. Teenage girls fear being called a bitch, even grown women do. With the rise of bitch being used so often, internalized misogyny grows even more. Teenage girls will call other girls bitches in order to appeal to men. Although it would seem that one word can not hold as much power, in reality it leads to girls having to watch their actions in order to avoid being called bitch. This word is nothing but demeaning; I refrain from calling anyone a bitch.
Following with even a greater threat to girls is being called a whore or slut. A couple of months ago, I had a conversation with an 11-year-old boy in the sixth grade. He had always mentioned to me he had a lot of girlfriends. I asked him what had occurred between his most recent girlfriend and him. He said, "we broke up because she is a whore." Initially, I was amazing this little child an 11-year-old girl is already being referred to as a whore, while on the flip side the 11-year-old boy is being praised for being a player. The only difference between what both of them were doing was their gender.
From such a young age girls began to fear their sexuality. It is impressed in their minds that they can not be sexual in any way. Their sexuality can only be used to please men. When in reality girls should be embracing their sexuality and own it. The word whore or slut can be empowering if used in the correct context. For example, the hashtag created on twitter #supportyourlocalhoe and #prove. These hashtags are empowering. Both hashtags are about allowing women to embrace themselves. The whole you do you thing.
At the end of the day, it is all about embracing one's sexuality regardless of external factors. Go and #supportyourlocalhoe.
