Image by Getty Images via @daylife
Slut is a colourful English word - short and powerful with lots
of history.
It sounds great when you say it out loud.
It can be said as a joke by friends who know and trust each
other.
Usually, however, it implies misery, poverty, neediness and an
absolute lack of self respect in a girl
or woman.
Toronto's annual Slut Walk came into existence after a
police officer told a group of women they could avoid rape by not dressing like
sluts.
I agree with the argument of the organizers of the protest
that clothes do not cause rape, (women in burkas have been raped).
But I don't think
this issue is overly important and I don't like the goal of reclaiming the word
slut.
The word is what it is and it does a great job of being what
it is.
It is a warning, particularly to young girls.
Keeps them in the nest a little longer.
Young feminists need to drop the Slut Walk and address the
critical issues that face women today.
Note:
The only English word that comes close to describing a man
with a similar lifestyle is 'womanizer'.
Hardly in the same league as slut.
5 comments:
I think young feminists are determined to reclaim "slut" the way they've reclaimed "bitch." Reclaiming is a controversial tactic, but it's certainly worked for us in the GLBTQ community. All those old hateful words have now been completely neutralized as weapons.
On another matter, I hope your dad is doing better? You've all been in my thoughts.
And terrible news about Jack Layton, eh? So sad.
Yes, I was quite sad to hear that Jack is gone. A great Canadian.
For me the Slut Walk just isn't up there with the fact that 600 Aboriginal women go missing every year in Canada, some women in this world can't vote and some suffer from genital mutilation.
I see the value of reclaiming some words. I understand what you are saying about the GLBTQ (Q?) community. But a slut isn't anything anyone would or should 'come out' as.
My father is doing okay. It's a day by day thing. Thanks for asking and thanks for your comment, Debra.
Glad to hear your father is hanging in there. "Q," by the way, stands for both "queer" and "questioning." We are nothing if not as inclusive as possible, eh.
Well I hope you come back here, if not, I'll leave a note in your blog in Sept after your holiday. I understand the Q standing for 'questioning' but I don't understand why Q would stand for 'queer'. Isn't that the same as gay or lesbian?
Did you hear/read Jack's letter to Canadians? sigh.
Thanks for the update on your dad. I was wondering.
Synonyms for "womanizer": stickman, player, Casanova, Don Juan, Romeo, gigolo, heartbreaker, ladies' man, lady-killer, rake, skirt chaser, stud, wolf.
Interesting that most of these have a somewhat positive connotation, while slut is definitely negative.
Post a Comment