She's a Sexy Bitch

After thinking about this question for the majority of my weekend, I made some sort of a realization (I’m ashamed to admit it probably should have happened a while ago). I started thinking to myself, what is feminism? Do I believe in it? How does it affect my life? Do we still need it today? As a senior I have had many friends take this course and tell me their take on feminism, but I’ve never really thought it through myself. I’ve realized that the definition of feminism is different for every person- but it has the same message. Women should have equal rights as men do; they should be respected and acknowledged for who they are, not what they are. After a typical weekend at Wheaton, I can convincingly share with you that there is still a definite need for feminism in our society. I think that many women have become numb or accustomed to the way we are viewed in society and especially by men. Whether this is displayed by the way I danced to lyrics such as “girl, you’re a sexy bitch” with no shame; or watched a tv show with girls going out and partying while referring to themselves as “slores” (a rather clever combination of the words “slut” and “whore”), either way it has definitely become somewhat of a norm in today’s world to objectify women; especially normal for today’s youth. The sad thing is, is that many women are “guilty” of going against this belief themselves without thinking twice.