It’s Halloween season, so we all know what that means… debauchery, ridiculousness, and a plethora of parties. This is not to forget the costumes because they range from totally golden to slightly concerning. Regardless, I’m always entertained. This gets particularly interesting for the women in the world. No one said it better than Cady in Mean Girls, “In the regular world, Halloween is when children dress up in costumes and beg for candy. In Girl World, Halloween is the one night a year when a girl can dress like a total slut and no other girls can say anything about it.”
While this is somewhat true, there are tons of people who feel entitled because of this idea. Girls will slut-shame other girls in a heartbeat because of their choice of costume and this is never okay. Women who put down other women are just projecting their own insecurities onto someone else. We have to support each other and lift one another up to the highest pedestal. We already get so scrutinized by our society so we have to try to send each other love.
“Let women be free.” Photo contributed by DeMornay Harper.
Another entitled group around Halloween is the sleazy guy. Men that feel like it is their right to touch complete strangers or speak demeaning or sexualizing phrases because of how a woman is dressed are absolutely deranged. The idea that a man is somehow allowed to put their hands on a women’s body because of how they look promotes a culture that tries to justify rape. Rape is not justifiable. Under no circumstances can one say that someone is deserving of being violated in such an intimate way because of their appearance. I see men lash out at women all of the time because they didn’t get a good response for their attempt at a come-on. I’m sorry, but grabbing a complete strangers ass does not make someone want to talk to you. It makes them want to punch you in the face.
Let women be free. If they want to wear a skimpy Halloween costume because they feel sexy and confident in it, let them. It is not your place to put them down or judge them. It is definitely not your place to grab them or degrade them. It’s just a costume, at the end of the day. It doesn’t represent the person underneath’s character or worth. Be gracious to your fellow humans this season.
By Kimberly Clay Other Side Drive Executive Producer In the second installment of Philosophy Mixed, Kimberly Clay and Dr. Craig Hanks talk with Caroline Gnagy, author of Texas Jailhouse Music: A Prion Band History, and Dr. Flore Chevaillier, professor in the Texas State English department and author of The Body of Writing: an Erotics of Contemporary American Fiction (The Ohio State University Press, 2013) and Divergent Trajectories: Interviews with Innovative […]
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