The labeling of women as “crazy” has become an increasingly troubling commonality, and it can take any number of contradictory forms. The crazy ex-girlfriend is likely the most prevalent. I have been judged by this label along with my best friends, my family members, my classmates, and strangers, and I have seen this phrase uttered by men and women alike. But it seems that any woman can fall victim to this word: the slut, the prude, the student, the mother. What’s worse is that this archetype has become accepted and its damage is not being questioned.
Presumably, this problem stems from the association of women with stronger or more animated emoticons. Now, I don’t intend to present any statistics or research delving into how emotional women are compared to men, which they may or may not be. But what needs to be understood is that this word has been ripped out of context and thrust into the public spotlight to be scorned and ridiculed. By comparing emotional to crazy, we are not only demonizing and stereotyping women, but we are invalidating the gravity of mental and emotional disorders.
This is what I have discovered in my experience: if a woman texts her ex after a breakup and wants to talk, she is called crazy for not letting go. If a woman asks a past hookup why he/she/they never called after sex, she is called crazy for being too clingy. If a woman leaves her significant other because she is in a dysfunctional or harmful relationship, she is called crazy for jumping to conclusions. If a woman cries over hurtful comments that were made to her, she is called crazy for being too sensitive.
???????Like???????
It is bizarre and frustrating how one small word can contribute to such vast stereotyping and problematic relationships. I hear the term “crazy bitch” every day and wonder why people are so blind as to continue to use it. Women are being degraded. Somehow, putting down another human because you think she fits a false description makes the accuser feel all the more powerful. This is, purely and simply, the work of societal misogyny.
To the women who make these comments: this is not feminist behavior. To anyone else who make these comments: this is not feminist behavior. This is not to say that the score must be evened by putting this label on men for the sake of equality or revenge; no sex should have to endure being called “crazy” because that is not feminist behavior. And we should all be feminists.