Slut. Whore. Skank. Hoe. What do those five words have in common? I’ll give you a hint: it’s not their sexual connotation, it’s not that they’re all one syllable–it’s the fact that these words aren’t used to describe a  male. These words are derogatory terms aimed at females who are believed to engage in sexual activity.

If a female has sex she’s a “slut;” if a male has sex he’s a “player.” This is what we call a double standard. The talking, gossiping, and easy access to social media is lessening the perceived effects behind words like these, making us believe that it really isn’t a big deal to use them.

Blogger Leora Tanenbaum from The Huffington post shares her thoughts on “slut shaming:”

“Slut-shaming is sexist because only girls and women are called to task for their sexuality, whether real or imagined; boys and men are congratulated for the exact same behavior. This is the essence of the sexual double standard: Boys will be boys, and girls will be sluts.”

In 2004, Mark Waters’ Mean Girls became a best selling movie. We all know the story of Cady moving to the suburbs and learning that being in the “it” crowd isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. We all know Regina George’s famous line: “Boo you whore.”  This line–one thousands of teenage boys and girls have heard–lessened the connotation of the word “whore,” changing it to being something that’s socially acceptable.

Whore: a woman who engages in sexual acts for money;  prostitute;  also:  a promiscuous or immoral woman.

Boo you whore: a term of endearment.

“I don’t think (Boo you whore) is a kind way to be endearing; there’s always going to be an underlying truth, or meaning,” said AVHS school psychologist Michelle Thompson.

Even though, these words are being said among friends jokingly or through conversation like it’s no big deal, the words still hold a meaning, a meaning that goes back to the supposedly promiscuous behavior of women.

On March 7th, Kim Kardashian posted a nude selfie on social media, captioned “When you’re like I have nothing to wear LOL.”

In response to her selfie, Melbourne artist Lushsux recreated her selfie on a three story building. The day after he painted it, it was defaced with the word “SLUT”.

Regardless of how you feel about Kim’s nude selfie, spray painting over a mural–which was  painted to encourage the power of being confident in the female body–is a case of public slut shaming.

“In a way,” said Lawrence Arboleda, who writes for  The Inquisitor, “ the vandalism and slut-shaming committed against the Kardashian-inspired mural art adds another layer of meaning and context.  What better way to symbolize slut-shaming than the defaced version of the work itself?”

Slut shaming is bullying. There are emotional and social effects that are just as real and as harmful as other types of bullying, so why aren’t we talking about it and raising awareness of it, too?

According to the LA Times, about a third of all students who have experienced said harassment described it as “having someone make unwelcome sexual comments, jokes, or gestures to or about you.”

But our society doesn’t think of slut shaming as sexual assault, nor a form of bullying. Instead, it’s a joke. A joke that sexualizes the female body.  A joke that glorifies women as objects of sex. A joke that’s “no big deal.”

The simple act of sexulaizing someone for how they dress, act, or who they are perceived to be opens the door to physical sexual assault.

“Slut-shaming has been used as justification for violence itself,” said Shira Tarrant, who writes for In These Times.  “Before his mass-murder rampage in Isla Vista, California, in May 2014, Elliot Rodger ranted that ‘blond sorority sluts’ must die and vowed on what he termed ‘the day of retribution,’ that he would enter the ‘hottest sorority house’ of the University of California, Santa Barbara and ‘slaughter every single spoiled, stuck-up, blond slut’ he saw inside there.”

Slut shaming is becoming one of the most common forms of bullying among young teens…and just like any other form of bullying, it needs to stop.

One of the many ways we can stop slut shaming is to stop throwing around terms like “slut,” “whore,” or “skank” to friends or strangers. Because these words are common banter around friend groups, they are being perceived as less harmful than they really are; it’s showing others who witness this that it’s okay to say these words…or at least that it’s socially acceptable to say them without ramifications.

This is what it boils down to:  calling girls negative sexualized names is creating a huge social image issue. Referring to someone as “slut” or “whore” is demeaning to not just those who are being called that, but all other females because they are being taught that they’re only good for one thing:  sex.
In order to put an end to slut shaming, we must stop using these words as insults or even in everyday conversations.

The only way to show the public how to stop slut shaming is to lead by example.