Slutwalk

I don’t get the controversy about Slutwalk – what’s not to like? And admire? Hats off to those who organized slutwalks around the world. Another example of the power of our globalised social media. A stupid remark by a policeman in Canada is called out for what it is – all around the world. “Women should avoid dressing like sluts in order not to be victimised.” Wrong in law. Wrong socially. Wrong morally. Reflecting a deeply ingrained sexist view of women. What does he want us to do – introduce compulsory burkhas? Stupid, stupid man. And dangerous. Wouldn’t want him policing my neighbourhood thank you very much. And great that there was so much solidarity expressed for those women directly subjected to this rubbish. Spontaneous. Led by young women and their friends. All quite wonderful I thought.

When I was young I couldn’t bring myself to say the word, but shriveled inside when I heard it used by anyone else – man or woman. I remember arguing with my mother that there was no male equivalent. “Ram”, she said. I’d never heard of that and no doubt any man described thus would have been proud of it. I did rather like the description ‘rutting chimpanzee’, to describe Dominique Kahn Strauss the former head of the IMF. My own daughter invented the word manslut when she was about 12 and started noticing the double standards applied to men and women in matters sexual. But this merely reinforces the gendered nature of the word – normally sluts are female. It’s unfair to criticize the organizers, as some have done, for not demonstrating about other things, like equal pay or equal opportunity laws. All differential treatment of women arises from a culture that judges women as the other in a world run by and for the interests of men. As argued by Simone de Beauvoir all those years ago. And it is why the Reclaim the Night demonstrations were amongst the first, and the most viciously contested protests of the early feminist movement. It is pleasing to see young women continue to call for their sexual independence because this is the base from which all else flows.

So I was happy to join a friend and our teenage daughters and around 3,000 others in Melbourne last week-end to reframe the word slut and decry the sexist notions that underpin it. Here is the speech my daughter wrote and delivered at school on the subject:
Good morning ladies and gentlemen,
Today I’m going to explore the notions public and private by persuading you to join me tomorrow on the Slutwalk. If you believe that men and women should be equal; if you believe that to judge an individual on their outfit is unfair and if you believe that rape and sexual assault is never invited then you will be attending the Slutwalk! In our society there is an assumption that the way women dress is open to moral judgement. The public will often stereotype women, insisting that if a woman dresses this way she will act this way, and have these values. Most notoriously applied to females is the stereotype of slut. Despite the fact a woman has just made a private decision to express her individuality, her sense of style, or God forbid, her sexuality; the public clashes with her decision by making assumptions. A woman wearing Fishnet tights, a tight skirt, or a short dress indicate she has a promiscuous lifestyle. Does this seem fair? To assume a woman wearing 6 inch heels or red lipstick involves herself in numerous sexual encounters? The Slutwalk is advocating the right for women to have the freedom to choose how they dress without being subject to judgement from the public’s narrow moral prism. If you believe a woman should have the freedom to go down the street without being called a slut, you will be at Slutwalk! In 2011 we have equality between men and women under the law. The Sex Discrimination Act of 1984 aims to eliminate discrimination and sexual harassment and promote greater equality in all aspects of the Australian community. Why is it then that a man can walk down the street without a top and nobody bats an eyelid. Why is it that a man’s personal decisions about what he wears does not result in the same stereotyped public response? If a man leaves his shirt half unbuttoned does this mean he sleeps around? Men aren’t the only ones labeling women in this way, some females are willing participants. But men are rarely, if ever, the victims of such public condemnation of their private decisions. It is unfair that men and women should be publicly judged so differently. If you believe men and women’s choices should be treated equally you will be at Slutwalk! Earlier this year in Toronto a police officer advised female university students to “avoid dressing like sluts in order not to be victimised”. This comment shows how public judgments have sickly morphed into the views of public figures. Blaming victims for sexual assault and even rape is unacceptable. What a woman wears is her personal choice and should never be used as an excuse for sexual assault. Wherever a woman may go, whatever a woman may wear, sexual assault and rape are never instigated by the victim. It is inappropriate for a public figure to blame rape and assault on a woman’s choice of outfit. If I walk down the street wearing a tight skirt am I inviting rape? If your daughter or mother is on a tram in a tight dress are they asking to be groped? If you believe it is wrong to blame victim for rape because of what they wear, you will be at the Slutwalk tomorrow!

I wasn’t there to hear it delivered but understand the speech went down well with the audience and that the speaker was dressed appropriately in fishnets and a tight skirt.

At the actual walk we had a good time. We didn’t hear the speeches – the sound system was found a bit wanting given the numbers. But the crowd was good natured and happy just to be there to show solidarity. There were few organised groups – Trots (not many) and the Australian Sex Party (which we had some misgivings about). Overall lots of committed young people which was terrific. And a few old troupers like me. This was the question everyone was asking:

And here are a couple of contrasting definitions – we liked the second one!

Another definition we liked was being worn on the jacket of a participant: “Sexually Liberated Under Total control”. That issue of control was a common theme:

And more word reclamation:

Overall the message was simple –

and serious a –

It’s a positive thing that in this day and age, when a public official says something stupid, people with energy and passion can get organised spontaneously and express outrage.