Rarely a day goes by when I do not hear someone criticizing a member of the Kardashian family:

"Kim is such a slut. Just because she made a sex tape doesn't mean she deserves to be famous."
"The only reason any of those whores are famous is because of Bruce/Robert/other male figure."

Both of these statements are horrifically sexist (as well as transphobic in the case of the second), and both were spoken by men I know. Men are not the only people degrading the Kardashian family, though.

"The Kardashians are what is wrong with America. They are superficial, fake ass bitches who care about nothing except getting rich."

This was said by a woman.

I have a problem with these statements. I have a big problem with these statements. And here's why: Not only do all of these opinions include derogatory language toward women, but none of them include any true criticisms of the Kardashian's behavior. So let's go through some of the most common criticisms of the Kardashian's:

Kim made a sex tape.

So what? That does not affect anyone except the people who have watched it. "Think about the children!" I hear people say all the time. But unless these people are sitting their children down and showing them the video, I do not see a problem with a grown woman and man in a consensual sexual relationship creating something to be used for their enjoyment; what I do have a problem with is the fact that it was leaked--most likely by her boyfriend at the time--and that people have been using her sexual autonomy against her for over a decade. The tape was leaked over 13 years ago, and people still use it against Kim Kardashian. It seems like people cannot help but hate women who own their sexuality. She has stated multiple times that she no longer even thinks of the incident, which only proves how much of a queen she is.

They're all sluts.

This is problematic for a number of reasons. I have a couple questions for people who use this as a criticism against these powerful women: What exactly does "slut" mean? How many people does a woman have to have sex with to be a slut? How do you know how many people each of the Kardashian's have had sex with? Why is it your business? Would you call a man in the same position a slut? I also have the answers: "Slut" is a derogatory term used to police women's behavior. Women who have autonomy over their sexuality are either called sluts or prudes--no matter whether the women are sexually active or not. Contrastingly, men are lauded for high sexual activity. They have pressure put upon them to be "players." The dichotomy between how men and women are supposed to engage in sex is heteronormative and a direct affect of the patriarchy--which hurts all genders. But in the end, a person's sexual activity is none of your business, whether they are a celebrity or not.

They're only famous because of [insert a man's name here].

No. Just no. Kim Kardashian and her sisters, Khloe and Kourtney, worked their butts off to get where they are. They did not ride on the coattails of a man. This is a classic criticism against almost every famous woman in history; Ginger Rogers was only even mentioned as a great dancer because she danced with Fred Astaire; Miley Cyrus is only famous because of Billy Ray; most recently, Katinka Hosszu's husband was given credit for her world-record breaking swim at the 2016 Olympics. Maybe these women were helped a bit by the notoriety of the men in their lives, but they would not have become as sensational and incredible as they undoubtedly are if they were not themselves talented and worthy of the fame. The Kardashian women have created an entire empire out of nothing. They have multiple television shows, clothing lines, perfume lines, makeup lines, and every single media company in existence following their every move. No one without business and marketing skills could accomplish such a feat. There is no way Robert Kardashian made these women household names.

The Kardashians are what is wrong with America.

Really? This is what people say when they legitimately have no logical reason to hate the Kardashian family. Racism isn't what's wrong with America? Sexism isn't what's wrong with America? Capitalism isn't what's wrong with America? What about sexual assault, police brutality, conversion therapy, homelessness? You are seriously trying to tell me the Kardashians are the epitome of what is wrong in America today. I do understand where people are coming from when they say these things, though. It is fashionable to hate the Kardashians. It is fashionable to hate popular women in the media. It has always been fashionable to hate powerful women--especially women who so blatantly revel in what we have socially constructed the female gender to be. Why, if we have put all women into a box, are we criticizing these women for fitting into that box so well? Because femininity is a bad thing in our culture. Women are allowed to have masculine traits; the masculine traits women have may even earn them for respect. Men, on the other hand, are not allowed to have feminine traits, or they are bullied for being weak or gay. So the Kardashians are not what is wrong with America. The Kardashians are a fight against what is wrong with America: the harmful gender roles we impose on each other from before we are even born.

I love the Kardashians. I think they have incredible marketing and business skills to have made their existence into a global phenomena. Kim and Khloe have encouraged women who are not naturally thin to love their bodies. They have shown the world that curvy girls are sexy. Kim is part of an inter-racial power couple--something which still is not common amongst people of power. Kourtney continually proves herself to be an amazing sister--from keeping her sisters grounded to supporting her step sisters in all of their endeavors. They often speak out against injustices they see in the media, including sexism and racism. These women are constantly berated by sexist remarks without substance, and yet they have managed to become some of the most culturally powerful people in the world. Nobody will ever be able to tear the Kardashians down, and it is so important for our female-identifying children to have role models like that. That is why I love the Kardashians.