6 Ways Parents Can Discourage Slut-Shaming

slut-shaming

Shaming girls for their sexual proclivities starts young — super young actually. For every articulate 13-year-old who makes a YouTube video addressing slut-shaming, there are probably hundreds of girls and boys, and even adults,  who actively partake in the trend without thinking twice about it. And just so we’re all clear on our definitions, slut-shaming is defined as:

…the idea of shaming and/or attacking a woman or a girl for being sexual, having one or more sexual partners, acknowledging sexual feelings, and/or acting on sexual feelings.

This happens often in everything from real life crimes to TV shows and it is unfortunately being transmitted to our kids. Small comments about the wardrobe of a girl in their class to a peer pursuing her first boyfriend are just a couple of scenarios in which slut-shaming can occur, in both parents and kids. But if we want to instill boys and girls with a genuine respect for women that isn’t rife with double standards and sexual shame, parents need to address the complicated terrain of slut-bashing regardless of if they have sons or daughters. So even if you don’t allow the word “slut” in your house, make sure that you’re also sticking to following rules.

[ITPGallery]

(photo: sandrafoo.com)

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