8 microaggressions females face daily

Microaggressions are minor everyday offenses, intentional or unintentional, that target a specific group of people — in this case women. These small aggressions can be avoided through the respect, acknowledgement and encouragement of women.

1. Gender slurs

We’ve all heard the phrase “stop being such a girl” used to demean someone for acting weak, whether that person identifies as female or not. Furthermore, “man up” is told to someone who is acting “like a girl.” Gender slurs assume that doing something “like a girl” makes it subpar or inferior to how it should be done. These slurs only serve to enforce female inferiority. The Always #LikeAGirl campaign strives to deconstruct that stereotype through empowerment. According to the campaign website, 72 percent of girls feel society limits them. The movement attempts to raise confidence among young women by changing the stereotype “like a girl” into a good thing. Gender slurs in general lower the self-esteem of women and make them out to be lower than men. Increasing confidence among women can occur through eliminating gender slurs and, in turn, reducing the impact they have on women.

2. Slut shaming

The term slut shaming refers to the harassment females face because of their real or perceived sexual history and choices. Slut shaming tells women that the number of sexual encounters they have or the clothing they wear define who they are as a person. Slut shaming provides expectations about what it means to be a “decent” citizen in our society. This unacceptable shame aims to guilt, belittle, demean and embarrass its victim. Women deserve the right to do with their bodies as they choose, dress how they choose and have as many or as few sexual partners as they choose. Society should not be able to tell women who they are as person based solely on their sexuality. A female’s clothing does not determine her consent and most certainly does not condone any sort of harassment. Additionally, women who dress provocatively or minimally do not owe men sex at all in any way, shape or form. According to a survey by Stop Street Harassment, 65 percent of women have experienced street harassment, which includes sexual touching and following. Street harassment and targeting are not acceptable no matter a women’s clothing or sexuality. Females must be seen as actual people, not temptations for men.

3. Assuming women are athletically inferior

From picking teams in gym class to coed sports leagues, women often see a lot of bench time and cheering from the sideline when it comes to sports. People often claim America has come a long way from the time when women couldn’t even play sports, but have we really come so far? According to the Women’s Sports Foundation, men take up 96 percent of sports news, leaving little to no recognition for women’s sports. These staggering statistics show how devalued women’s sports are compared to men’s. This can be seen in everyday life when girls aren’t allowed to play football with boys at recess or are picked last for teams in gym class. Women need more acknowledgement for their athletic abilities and recognition can come from encouraging women to participate in athletics instead of discouraging them. Women’s sports deserve more broadcasting time to achieve a more equal media representation.

4. Expecting women to “act like ladies”

There have always been standards about what it means to be “ladylike.” Some standards such as only wearing skirts and dresses have long been thrown to the wayside, but some still plague society. Women are often told to keep their legs closed simply because it’s “ladylike,” which was practical when women almost always wore skirts and dresses and did not want to show off their undergarments. Nowadays, this practice is outdated and perpetuates the stereotype of what it means to “be a lady.” An article by Daily Life describes a law firm issuing a request for females to keep their legs closed in the workplace. Not only is this request non-practical, but it keeps women from making their own choices about their bodies. This tradition also ties into rape culture, because a female sitting with her legs open must be “asking for it.” Women are also expected not to burp or fart in public because it is “unladylike.” Men often congratulate each other on the volume of their bodily noises, but women must not do anything of the sort. Not only are these stereotypes outdated, they limit women, require them to conform to unnecessary expectations and create a double standard compared to men.

5. Leadership double standards

An article by the Washington Post exemplifies the double standard women face when it comes to leadership. Women with leadership skills are labeled bossy and demanding, while men in comparative roles are seen as assertive and confident. The Ban Bossy Campaign aims to eliminate the usage of words such as “bossy” and “pushy” used to describe females with ambition. According to the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), as of now, only 20 percent of senators and 19.4 percent of representatives are female in the United States. These statistics show the massive underrepresentation of women and the lack of female leadership in the U.S. government. According to the IPU, the United States ranks 75th on the list of countries with most women in government, an unacceptable statistic for a leading, first-world country. The leadership double standard can be combated by changing the way we label women in society. Women who exhibit leadership skills should receive praise from educators, parents and other adults in communities, instead of scorn.

6. Mansplaining

“So the team in the purple jerseys, those guys right there — they are going to try and get that brown ball across that line over there so they can score some points, okay?” Most females have been on the receiving end of that oversimplified explanation of football. Mansplaining: the art of dumbing things down with overt exaggeration when a man explains something to a women. From sports to household tasks like changing a lightbulb or fixing a simple plumbing issue, many everyday things are mansplained. These overt explanations are not only offensive, but they automatically assume women are less knowledgeable about topics for which men supposedly have a greater aptitude. Mansplaining creates unnecessary male superiority that only serves to demean women.

7. Male-dominant relationships

Whether it’s a school dance, a date or even a marriage, for heterosexual couples, guys are almost always the ones asking the girls. According to CBS News, women offer marriage proposals only about 5 percent of the time. This statistic illustrates the outdated tradition and the years of male-dominated relationships that occur in society. The term “wearing the pants” in a relationship brings light to the expectation for men to play the dominant role. In non-heteronormative relationships, people are often asked “who wears the pants?” — a question that assumes a relationship without a man or with more than one man doesn’t have a clear leader. Even in heteronormative relationships there shouldn’t be a clear leader because men and women should have equal representation. Women need to be encouraged to take charge of themselves in their relationships, rather than just submitting to their counterpart. Our society cannot tell women that they have any less power than men.

8. Dress codes

The National Education Association wrote an article illustrating the gender bias dress codes tend to perpetuate. Many school dress code policies crack down on showing body parts such as shoulders, thighs and collarbones, which typically pertain more to women. Asking women to cover up an unnecessary amount of their body in school perpetuates the idea that men cannot control their urges because “boys will be boys.” Instead of blaming women for having bodies, boys need to be taught self-control. The lesson needs to be “don’t objectify” instead of “don’t be objectified.” Dress code sexism only serves to sexualize women and tell them that their bodies and their clothes are more important than their learning. Dress codes are entirely necessary to provide a basis for decency in attire, however, codes must allow students to express themselves and feel comfortable in high temperatures. Additionally, the clothing standards and punishments for infractions must be uniform for all genders.

We can combat these microaggressions through female empowerment and support of gender equality. Women’s rights must take a front seat in the struggle for equality. The time of female inferiority and submission has passed.