We live in a society where a woman is degraded and called a slut if she has multiple sex partners. We still have the constant belief that being in a monogamous relationship should be normative. Yet, it is perfectly fine if men have sex with various different women. A man is praised if he has sex with multiple partners and is called a stud. There is a belief that if a woman doesn’t have sex, she is viewed as a prude. It’s just confusing that we will judge a woman if she has multiple sex partners and judge her if she doesn’t have any at all. It’s unacceptable that there is a double standard when it comes to this.

The number of sexual partners that a woman has shouldn’t define her. If a woman doesn’t have multiple sex partners, that doesn’t mean that she is a prude. Some women just want to wait for the right partner because that may be something that is connected to their spirituality. Men shouldn’t be ridiculed if they don’t have multiple sex partners. Just like women, some men are connected to their spirituality and want to wait for the right partner that they want to give away something important to.

Whenever I was in high school, there was a dress code that said you can’t have clothing that reveals your shoulder. My school made sure this rule was enforced on girls but never called out guys whenever they wore cut off shirts that obviously didn’t cover their shoulder. I highly doubt guys were staring at me in high school and thinking, “Oh, my goodness! Look at her shoulder! That shoulder is very attractive and will distract me from my learning experience.” We still hold on to the belief that a woman’s body should be completely covered and that she should not show any cleavage or show off her curves in a dress. We also shouldn’t degrade a woman if she is conservative in the way that the dresses. Sometimes women who do wear clothes that cover their body, might be because of their culture or religion. A woman should be able to wear whatever makes her feel comfortable.

Some people say that if a woman wears revealing clothing that she is “wanting it” or just trying to get attention. This also applies to some in cases of rape. In these very sensitive cases, some people have the nerve to say, “But look at what she was wearing! She did that to herself.” That shouldn’t be a justification for someone who is clearly the victim in this case. If I’m in a dress that show my beautiful curves and I’m out with my friends, I’m wearing that dress for me, myself, and I. A woman should be able to wear what makes her feel good and gives her confidence without judgment. I see many girls who feel comfortable in what they are wearing, and it makes me happy knowing that they are confident in who they are.

There has been an argument that men are stronger in mathematics and science compared to women. We have women today who are some of the most intelligent and outstanding astronauts, scientists and mathematicians that we've ever seen. There are several women in our history, who have made contributions to math and science. Marie Curie conducted pioneering research on radioactivity and was the first woman to win a Nobel Prize. Mae C. Jemison was the first African-American woman in space and served on the board of directors of the World Sickle Cell Foundation. Some men aren’t strong in the math and science but are strong in English and writing. John Green is a famous author who is known for some of his work such as “The Fault in Our Stars” and “Paper Towns” that have romance and beautiful stories.

There shouldn’t be a double standard for men and women when it comes to the way we live our lives. Just like Sheryl Sandberg said, “It’s time to drop the double standard. Gender should neither magnify nor excuse rude and dismissive treatment. We should expect professional behavior and even kindness from everyone.”