Recently I read an article shared by a friend on Facebook. This article was written by a source that has been notorious for saying things that offend and degrade women, at least from the articles I have seen. Normally, I read the article to try and see what the author’s reasoning is for their views since not everyone has to have the same ideas. However, after reading this article, I was so disgusted with what I read that I had to respond. This is not to say that this article is the worst thing I have ever read nor is it the worst article that the site, Total Frat Move, has published.
The article in question (link at the bottom of this article!) is titled, Why Girls Should Stop Wearing High-Waisted Bikinis, and is written by someone called “The Therapist.” In the article, the author discusses “the fashion faux pas that is sweeping the female population:” high-waisted bikinis. He believes that the high-waisted bikini is matronly and difficult to pull off if you’re not a celebrity (because clearly all non-celebrities have terrible bodies). In addition to this, he argues that “your ass disappears in these things.”
As someone who is a strong believer in body positivity and plain old respect for others and their decisions that honestly do not affect you, I felt an obligation to write a response to this. This is not to say that this author is not entitled to his views, but I am also entitled to voice mine, just as every other person can speak on this. With that, here are the top five reasons why girls should wear whatever they want!
1. It is no one’s business!
Whatever your style is, it is your personal style, and it makes you happy. What others think of your choice in outfit or bikini is not relevant, as long as you are comfortable in what you’re wearing. Whether it is your outfit choices, your bodily decisions (i.e. sex, tattoos, etc.), or even your drinking/dietary habits, as long as no one is put in danger by your actions, then it should not matter to anyone else. In the words of Olive from the movie Easy A, “it is nobody’s god damn business.”
2. Women do not dress for men.
For some reason, this simple concept is ignored by a good amount of the population. Do men think of how to attract women as they put on their basketball shorts or Hanes tee shirts? Neither do women. We do not think “Oh no! This bikini is slightly more comfortable for me, and it does not show every inch of my body. How will a man find me attractive now?!” I know my thought process is usually, “Do I think I look good? Am I comfortable? Will I be hot/cold later? Is it going to rain? Do I match?” Nowhere in a woman’s thought process is the question of catching a man’s attention, especially since newsflash: NOT EVERY WOMAN IS ATTRACTED TO MEN! In addition to that, not everyone is trying to get your sexual attention “The Therapist.”
3. Everyone is built differently.
Not every woman looks the same. Some of us have more cake than others, while some have more boobage, while others have neither. Some women have voluptuous curves, and others are less curvaceous. The beauty of this difference in body type is that everyone’s body is beautiful, so just because a woman is not thin like Taylor Swift does not mean that a woman with a different body type cannot rock a style.
4. Nothing is exclusive to celebrities.
Style is not exclusive to the Hollywood elite. Any woman can be as sexy as she wants if she so desires to. Whether or not you can masturbate to it later is honestly irrelevant. How she feels in her bikini is what really matters. You do not need loads of money to feel good in your body.
5. Supply and Demand, baby!
In addition all of these reasons, it is important to note why specialty clothing pieces, like high-waisted items were created. High-waisted clothing items (i.e. pants, shorts, bikinis) were created to fulfill a need in the market. I noticed these items came about after a long period when most of what was created by the fashion industry were things like low-rider jeans, and shorts that were so short that they were basically underwear on some.
Many women did not feel comfortable (because remember, what is important is how she feels in it) in clothes that revealed so much of the abdomen and lower back. I have to admit that I was one of those women craving something that made me feel comfortable and covered, so I am glad that there are finally styles of pants, shorts and bikinis that I feel sexy in.
Although there are many more reasons as to why not just girls, but everyone should wear whatever they want, these are the key reasons. I focused on women specifically in this, because women were the only ones targeted in the original article. If you’re interested in looking at the article that this is in response to, here is the link: http://totalfratmove.com/why-girls-should-stop-wearing-high-waisted-bikinis/
