We all remember that one girl. She sat behind you in class, always wore a Twilight t-shirt, and made a disgusted face at you when you said you were Team Jacob. She was kind of annoying, but still undeserving of the constant ridicule for her interests that came from both the Internet and her classmates. Eventually, she grew out of it, got new interests, and realized how cringey she had been acting.
That girl still exists, but she’s taken on a new form: the ‘VSCO girl.’ (VSCO is an online app under the same premise of Instagram but without counting likes). The trend has been on the rise the last few months and doesn’t show any sign of slowing down. A ‘VSCO girl’ is characterized by a particular set of traits: a HydroFlask, an armful of scrunchies, an oversized t-shirt, and a messy bun. They’re stereotypical, and as much as we respect their ‘Save the Turtles’ rants, they’re a little irritating. But there’s another trait of ‘VSCO girls’ that social media has been ignoring: they’re often middle school to early high school age. But let’s take a step back for a minute.
Come on, who wasn’t cringey from ages 13-15? I, for one, regularly used One Direction pens and wore a My Chemical Romance t-shirt in public. So who am I to judge these children’s choices? They’re doing what they know how to: following trends, dressing comfortably, and expressing themselves creatively. I don’t think any of that warrants the online harassment that they’ve been receiving.
Being ‘VSCO’ isn’t the only trend that’s been dominating social media; it’s bullying girls who are. We saw it with Twilight, with One Direction, with ‘finsta’ culture. Anything that young girls like is immediately deemed awkward, not good, and deserving of being made fun of. Besides, we all take part in trends in one way or another, and there’s a reason that things become trends: HydroFlasks are pretty good quality, scrunchies are cute and handy, oversized t-shirts are incredibly comfortable. So, even though I’ve laughed at my fair share of ‘VSCO girl’ memes, I think it’s time that we stop bullying young girls for their interests and instead encourage them to express themselves.