Nipples. We all have ‘em. Baby cows love them, infants love them, your boyfriend probably loves them, we all love them. You know who doesn’t love them? The media. But do they actually hate women’s nipples, or are they just trying to uphold certain laws that have been in place since before dinosaurs roamed the Earth? Who knows? One thing is for certain, however, if you ever want to look around and find a place where inequality in the U.S. is blatantly obvious, take a look at the nipples (only men’s though!).
It’s very interesting to think that when we are all little babies, crawling and walking around in our diapers, female or male nipples don’t matter. We were all babies! Guys’ and girls’ nipples look identical when you are 5 months old. However, as soon as babies are brought to a swimming pool or brought outside on a hot summer day, the obvious difference between nipples becomes apparent. Girls are in their cute little 1 or 2 piece swimsuits while boys are in just their swim trunks. When does this change occur?
Some people just get grossed out by the word nipple. Nipple, nipple, nipple. The funny thing is, is that nipples, just like eyes and ears, are found in the biological makeup of all humans. However, you don’t see girls covering up their eyes and guys covering up their ears because it’s more socially acceptable. Nope, just with nipples.
Okay, I get it, there is one important distinction between guys’ and girls’ nipples. That’s the fact that women have to breast feed, and guys don’t. Because of this, evolution (thanks, you’re cool) blessed women with BOOBS so that way we can feed our children when they pop out the womb. Now, one might think that the idea of a nipple sitting on top of a mountain is the same as a nipple sitting on top of a plateau, but apparently not.
There’s a lot of argument and protest out there from so many groups, whom I love. Free The Nipple is definitely one of the most popular. They try and increase awareness about the fact that nipples aren’t anything scary that people need to be protected from. There have been countless “slut” walks that women do topless to demonstrate the social inequality between men and women just in the terms of the nipple. The best part is, it’s not just the social stir that gives rise to awareness, but it’s also people realizing how uncomfortable it seems to see a woman topless as compared to a man.
The sexualization of women is obvious in modern society, that much is pretty clear. Just like every other social injustice, it takes time and persistence for acceptance. Gay marriage was not legalized over night. It’s so important that women and men alike advocate for equality, not just for the workplace, but for the nipples as well. The nipple stands as a symbol of sexualization, but how many people think man boobs are sexual? Things have got to change. Get a grip, America, and start realizing that a nipple is just a nipple no matter where ya put it.
