In today's world we go from talking about feminism, female empowerment, fighting stupid dress codes, women making their own choices, feeling great and kicking butt to freaking out when Taylor Swift is seen kissing some dude weeks after a break-up, and all of a sudden she is “moving too fast” and “back at it again with her serial dating ways?”
We currently live in a society that has blossomed a new feminist movement. A movement that has raised awareness against things like slut-shaming, rape culture, and unequal pay. So this Taylor Swift incident really sparked some doubts, because how people reacted to this event has enforced a ridiculous double standard that is quite infuriating.
How can we go around telling women that they have the power to decide for themselves and then go right back to “poking fun” at Taylor Swift for dating someone new after a breakup? Taylor is an accomplished woman who deserves more than unoriginal, badly worded, and sexist “jokes.” She even wrote a song about this and everyone still fell into the slut-shaming vortex. It's counter-intuitive as heck and it needs to stop.
By openly criticizing a woman for kissing someone, we are showing the younger generation of women that there could be social implications in regards to dating someone and, God forbid, kissing someone. It also teaches the younger generation that it's OK to harass people on the Internet when they do something you don’t like.
Everyone thinks that Taylor Swift just jumps from one guy to the next and then writes songs about it, but in reality she has dated only seven people in the last eight years. Let that sink in and think about how many relationships people in their teens and 20s normally go through. It’s absolutely ridiculous how everything that is preached about female independence gets thrown out the window the moment something changes in Taylor Swift’s romantic life.
Do you ever stop to think that women, Taylor Swift included, are worth far more than who we date? Did you know that we work hard every single day to make sure we are not swept aside just because we have a vagina? Did you know that we are told we can’t achieve what we want because of gender roles set in place a long time ago say that women are fragile and over-emotional?
It may come as a shock to you, but women actually accomplish things. We go to college, we run companies, we become doctors, we build empires, we create music, we are Olympic champions, we are mothers, we are leaders, we are strong, and we do it all with impeccable winged eyeliner, and in high heels. We also don’t need your opinion.
Slut-shaming is just the first step into falling in the pattern of underestimating women, and assuming that we cannot make wise choices for ourselves is a mistake. In the end there is absolutely nothing wrong with Taylor Swift sitting on a beach, having a good time, kissing a hot dude. It does not cause physical harm, and it’s not illegal. So it costs you absolutely nothing to stop criticizing and shaming women, including Taylor Swift, just because they don’t fit your standard as to what is acceptable behavior for a woman and to mind your own business.
