Slut shaming: a form of social stigma applied to people, especially women and girls, who are perceived to violate traditional expectations for sexual behaviors. In other words, slut shaming is when you’re walking around campus, see a girl who’s wearing particularly short shorts and think, “I can’t believe she’s wearing that. Her whole ass is out. What a slut.” Or you’re at a party, and you see another girl talking to multiple guys during the night. You turn to your friend, make a nasty face, and say, “That girl is such a slut.” But does it really matter to you? Do the clothing choices and social interactions of other women affect you in any way? Probably not.
The act of slut shaming is especially bad during Halloween. Oftentimes, girls dress in costumes that are revealing (and really cute, FYI) and get ridiculed for it. Although the costumes can seem a little impractical when you’re running around in the cold and freezing your butt off in a bunny costume, once you’re inside, you’re comfy and having the time of your life. All the girls dressed up in their costumes, from a cute animal to sexy librarian, are just trying to have a good time and really don’t care about your opinion of how you think they look.
When you compare Halloween costumes marketed towards men and women, it’s astonishing that slut shaming is even a thing, considering it’s nearly impossible to find a costume that’s considered socially acceptable as a woman. There’s the common example of a doctor costume, where the man’s costume is the typical scrubs, but the woman’s is a little nurse’s dress. It’s as if society wants women to wear to dress this way, but once a woman does it and is comfortable with how she looks, she gets shamed into thinking she’s a slut.
My main message: stop slut shaming! Let girls (and everyone, for that matter) wear what they want and mind your own business. Have a happy and safe Halloween!