By Mandisa Shields, St. Joseph High School, Brooklyn, NY

We all do it. We all make comments about the girl whose shirt is too tight or whose skirt is too short. But when do we leave the realm of harsh comments and cross into bullying — or worse — slut shaming?

Slut shaming is a cruel phenomenon in which people degrade or mock a woman for having, or being rumored to have, too much sex.

Junior Ashley Rosa feels that slut shaming is so widespread because, “It’s become common ground to call someone a slut.”

That’s true, everywhere we turn we’re bombarded with slut shaming, whether it’s on T.V., on Facebook, or amidst a conversation with friends.

Although a girl may be ridiculed for actually being promiscuous, usually, slut shaming derives from rumors and jealousy. Some girls gossip about, condemn and essentially bully each other because they are insecure or immature.

Senior Stephanie Octavius said that she was ridiculed for having a lot of male friends.

Junior Tamara Torres says that some girls invite ridicule by their behavior.

“If you do those types of things of course it’s gonna get around!” she said.

Others, like one SJHS freshman, think that it isn’t a big deal. “It makes me upset… but it isn’t a big deal because they’re just words,” she says.

She’s right, they are just words and words can’t hurt you. right? Wrong. We have to take into consideration that this person may be facing other troubles. We don’t realize that the girl we’re making fun of could be facing abuse or major self-esteem issues.

For someone with this mound of problems, having their name added to a “smut list” or being labeled as a “slut” may be the the last snowflake that starts an avalanche.
If the effects of slut shaming on us girls as individuals aren’t moving enough for you, consider the impact it has on us girls as a whole.

Think of the organs in your body, if most of your organs spontaneously collapse, you’ll probably die. It’s the same with us girls, if most of us are riddled with the effects of slut shaming, our entire sisterhood is affected, even if one or two of us aren’t.

We say it’s just one little comment, but when will it be enough? When we leave harassing posts on each other’s Facebook for all to see? When we make “smut lists” of the “sluttiest girls?” Or when one of us hurts or even kills herself because the very people who are supposed to be her support system are the ones bringing her down?

Here at SJHS, we’re supposed to be a sisterhood. Our fellow students should be the very people to whom we turn when we’re sad, frustrated or just need help. We should all strive to be that person our sister can turn to if not for ourselves, for the sake of our sisterhood.