But for young women, theĀ culture of slut shaming that the Kristen Stewart scandal representsĀ wonāt go away. I might not be concerned for K-Stew, but IĀ amĀ concerned for all the young women today who are tuned into this scandal, ones who are learning that itās not okay to screw up, ever. Chris Brown can publicly beat the hell out of his girlfriend but still be played on the radio and win Grammys. However, if you ever cheat on your boyfriend, your life is over and no one will ever want to be associated with you. Almost no one will blame the much-older guy you cheated with, and it might actually make himĀ more famousĀ andhelp his career. Few will care that he was your boss and in a position of authority or that he may have have taken advantage of your youth and relative inexperience. Everything is your fault, and your life will be threatened over it. If you are a trampire, you will be publicly staked for it, even though cheater Ashton Kutcher recently emerged relatively unscathed by the media. No one asked for him to be fired fromĀ Two and a Half Men.
I might not be concerned for K-Stew, but I am concerned for my younger stepsister who has pictures of Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson on her walls, who idolizes and worships them, and who might grow up to hate Kristen Stewart for reasons she doesnāt understand. Iām worried she will be taught that itās not okay to mess up, learn from it and apologize, because no one wants your apology, just your suffering on camera. Iām worried that sheāll think its okay to harass and threaten women for their indiscretions, even if men get off scot-free. Iām worried she will think this culture of bullying, slut-shaming and rhetorical violence against women is the norm, because you get aĀ t-shirtĀ for it. Iām worried she will learn to internalize the shame brought on far too many women today, for having sexualities, for not being perfect, for not fitting into a box. Iām worried sheāll believe men like Todd Akin, Paul Ryan and Mike Huckabee are right.
Because even if she doesnāt know who Akin, Ryan and Huckabee are, even if she doesnāt pay attention to politics or the radical right-wing GOP, she does pay attention toĀ TwilightĀ and Robsten. And if we want to empower her to be a strong, independently minded woman who knows that her body, sexuality and safety are legitimate and can stand up for her rights, we need to pay attention, too. This might seem ridiculous to us, and most people I know canāt wait to stop talking about it. But for her,Ā having this conversationĀ makes a difference. Although no young woman shouldnāt think itās okay to cheat, what we are teaching them right now is so much worse.
āTrampire:ā Why the Public Slut Shaming of Kristen Stewart Matters for Young Women
