Misogynist men annoy me because they believe the things that leave their mouths. I was on Facebook last night and some guy commented on how girls display themselves on social media. He went on to say that girls get harassed, followed, and stalked by creepy guys because we put ourselves out there. If we didn’t display our assets to the world, we wouldn’t have to worry about men violating our personal space. Sounds a lot like rape culture, doesn’t it?
It’s hard for girls to consistently be confident with their bodies, without judgment. When a heavier woman uploads a picture of herself in a bikini she is “disgusting”. People make comments about her stretch marks, her cellulite, her “fat rolls, as if she doesn’t have the right to love her body because of those things. When a skinny girl posts pictures of herself it’s a different kind of backlash. She’s called a whore, she’s showing off, or she’s being a slut. Read the comment section of those posts, “eat a burger” usually pops up. People will judge her by saying she’s seeking attention, or has “self-esteem issues”. Let’s say if she did have issues with her self-esteem, people make it seem as if uploading that picture and getting likes will permanently help that situation. As if her uploading a selfie to help her feel good about herself is hurting them in any way.
Let’s say a girl does upload pictures because she wants attention, so what? Why do you care? Your negative comments will do nothing but upset people. Why not keep it to yourself? Where’s the support for their self-love?
This unfortunately goes for girls as well. A lot of girls want to be liked, which is perfectly normal. It’s a human characteristic. We want to have a place we feel loved, and accepted. People love validation; it's psychologically proven that we do most things for approval. Some people will go and say they don’t, but almost all of us subconsciously want to be liked no matter how much we say we “don’t care”. Let’s face it, it’s nice being center of attention occasionally.
However, what bothers me is when girls degrade themselves, give up their rights, and hurt others just to impress the majority. That’s not something encourage. The whole “Hey I’m a girl but I think feminists are crazy!” type of girls. The girls who go along with, and sometimes even encourage misogynist behaviors. Girls who slut shame, girls who judge other girls for not being a stay at home mother, or for not playing her “role as a female” as if there is such thing.
I’m in love with the idea of women being a pack, and being there for each other. I’m so sick and tired of seeing girls who don’t respect themselves. Of course, I’m not going to force anyone to be a feminist, but I guess I don’t see why anyone wouldn’t want equal rights for everyone. Some girls point at radical feminists, and use them as an excuse to not be feminist. That’s insane to me, those “kill all men” feminists isn’t what feminists are about. That's like saying ISIS is what Islam is about, or the Westboro Baptist church is what Christianity is about. Those radical feminists are doing nothing but hurting the feminist movement. Don’t use them as an excuse to brush away this beautiful movement. Don’t use them as an excuse for society to deprive you from your rights.
