Let me start off with a disclaimer by saying I am in no way telling you “don’t vote for Trump” or trying to change your mind as to who you’re voting for. What I am trying to do instead is point out the vulgar things the Republican candidate has said to/against women throughout this entire election. If you still want to vote for him because you like a policy of his or think he can do no wrong, that is what you’re entitled to as an American citizen who is eligble to vote this November. It doesn’t constitute the things that he’s said to be allowed, either. Much like women should be calling out say, a boss or a guy friend for saying these things, it is extremely important to call out the indecent statements said by Donald Trump. If we allow him to continue saying the comments he has been, we are perpetuating this talk and showing other men (and even other women!) it is okay to say these things about women. With all this being said, let’s jump right in.
On Megyn Kelly, after the first Republican debate: “You could see there was blood coming out of her eyes. Blood coming out of her wherever.”
It’s not that Trump began saying misogynist comments at the start of his Republican nomination. In fact, one of the earliest and most viral comments towards a woman was directed towards reporter Megyn Kelly, during one of the early Republican debates. Trump didn’t like the way she had phrased her questions towards him. In return, he claimed it was because she was menstruating. How much longer do we have to endure derogatory comments about our periods? We might make fun of the Playtex commercials where girls are prancing around in white dresses while riding the crimson wave, but girls have been able to carry on their jobs/activities/life even when their cramps are ripping them apart. Trump is using our periods to penalize our bodies, claiming we can’t get the job done because of PMS. It’s an argument I’m sure every women has heard at one point or another- boys use PMS as a way to knock us down or judge us when they don’t agree or react the same way as we do. It is our body, not our downfall.
On Carly Fiorina: “Look at that face… Would anyone vote for that?”
Trump carries on to say, “Can you imagine that, the face of our next next president? I mean, she’s a woman, and I’m not supposed to say bad things, but really, folks, come on. Are we serious?” But really, Donald Trump, are you serious? The Republican candidate constantly brings his arguments down to appearance, especially against women. He’s also been known to continuously use the phrase “ugly both inside and out” in his tweets. It’s clear he is mostly focusing on the outside part. We can’t forget all of the allegations about things like the “Trump Rule,” forcing the women in the Miss USA pageants to parade in front of him so he could pick out the women he thought were the most attractive. When will we be able to be judged more on our brains, our humor, our friendliness, our compassion, anything other than our looks? It doesn’t just start with Trump, however. Advertisements and magazines constantly tell us what we should wear and what we should look like. They fit what society expects women to look like, what Trump expects women to look like. It seems like when a women gets in Trump’s way or disagrees with him in any way, his attack is to call her ugly. It’s not the way we should be speaking to each other.
On abortion: “Some form of punishment for women.”
Again, another disclaimer: I’m not giving my stance on the topic of abortion, nor am I trying to sway you one way or another. Regardless of what your thoughts are on abortion, the scariest thing is that Trump believes women should be punished for getting abortions. This statement, along with his plan to get rid of funding for Planned Parenthood, goes past the attacks on women for periods and appearances. We are talking about our reproductive rights. Planned Parenthood does more than abortions, too. They supply birth control, test for STIs, provide sex education and do breast and cervical cancer screenings. If Planned Parenthood loses their funding, we lose a major resource for our health. Why should a 70-year-old man decide what us women should be doing with our bodies?
On Hillary Clinton: “Nasty woman”, “Lacks the stamina”, “Can’t satsify her husband? Can’t satisfy America”, “Crooked Hillary”
I understand during an election it is necessary to do a fair share of mudslinging, but it’s difficult to tell if Trump is bashing his opponent because she is just that, his opponent, or if it’s because she’s a woman. I want to reiterate that I am not saying “vote for Hillary,” but because Trump is constantly making sexist comments against her, it is relevant (a political battle is not what I’m interested in). But as Trump continues to bash against Hillary because she is a woman, people everywhere will continue to bash women for the same reasons. By saying she lacks the stamina to become President, he is implying since she is a woman she isn’t fit for the job. Why can’t a woman be President? Why has it taken us this long to get a female as a major political candidate? It doesn’t take too many Barbie doll commercials to tell us girls can do anything- and it’s true! We are not here to satisfy our husbands, we are here to satisfy our minds and our beings doing anything we want to do!
On those who have stepped forward with accusations of Trump sexually assaulting them, during third debate: “They’re liars… Totally false… I didn’t even apologize to my wife, who’s sitting right here, because I didn’t do anything.”
Finally, sexual assault is not an easy topic to talk about for most women (and especially men). When Donald Trump, during the third debate, called the women who were brave enough to step forward accusing him of sexually assaulting them, liars and made up by Clinton’s campaign, I had to walk out of the room. Just as much as foreign policies and gun control are important topics in the American society, sexual assault deserves to be right up there with them. His comments created national controversy. By saying these women were liars for talking about something so mentally and physically ruinous, he is perpetuating the rape culture we live in. Trump says he wants to sue the women coming forward with these allegations because they are frauds. This creates the idea that when women want to come forward about being sexually assaulted, they will be ridiculed or (on an extreme level) sued for false statements. It is already so difficult for women to get help because we are met time and time again with questions like, “what were you wearing?” or “were you consuming alcohol?” How are we supposed to find help if a major political leader, who could be become President, calls us liars? But this doesn’t just effect us- when perpetrators hear this talk about not having to apologize or being able to get away sexual assault, it allows them to think they should continue sexually assaulting women. Plus, it’s even more difficult for men to come forward about sexual assault (which is an entirely different topic for another time). By brushing this under the rug, it will continue happening. Are we just going to keep seeing the Brock Turners of the country getting shorter prison time?
In conclusion, Donald Trump, do you really?