Slut Walk

Yesterday women in Toronto marched in protest. Its was called the slut walk and it is the second one. It was sparked by the comments of a police officer who said at a seminar last year that

“women should avoid dressing like sluts in order not to be victimized”.  


What the officer was saying is that it's your fault, in whole or in part if you are assaulted. Women have been subjected to this particular belief for a very long time. It's not you it's you outfit, but since you chose to dress that way i guess it is you after all. 


Around the world the dress code for women can differ greatly. In less free nations laws require women to cover their entire bodies. In some other countries modesty requires covered heads and plain dress. In my country and much of the West there are no laws regarding dress. That does not mean women are exactly free to dress as they like. Women face cultural and social pressures to conform to a standard of dress.


Moral and religious codes displaced from our time by thousands of years and a chunk of geography, urge women  dress modestly. As an outward sign of Chasity, Obedience and Submissiveness. It is uniform; marking out Good women from Bad women. 


So women are to dress modestly as a protection against sexual assault. How offensive is this? The temptation of the female body is so great, that men are powerless to restrain themselves. Men as victims? Women as wanton sexual creatures? We are all powerless in the face of biology and desire. The message is that Men can't restrain themselves. So women must cover up, avoid certain situation and above all comport themselves with modesty; so as not to tempt men. 


That kinda of thinking needs to stop. It is why they had the slut walk. There is no justification or provocation for any type of sexual assault. It is a decision made by one man to attack one women because he wanted to. She dressed a certain way is an excuse, she was drunk is an excuse, she was in the wrong place is an excuse. No women is ever asking for it.


A reworking of how culture and society describes and defines women is occurring. This time it's in their hands.  Everything from the right to choose, to pay equity. The right to dress as one likes is just one of many fronts that women are fighting on. The purpose is to end the "woman as a possession or object". Equality.


A note on the comment sections following the slut walk articles. Even if you discount trolls, there are a large number of people that still find fault in females that don't safeguard themselves. A position that ultimately excuses the assault.