“Slut,” “whore,” “prostitute” and “nappy-headed hoes.” All of these terms have been uttered on live television or radio broadcasts to describe women.
What have we become as a society when the verbal abuse of a person is acceptable? Activists have long striven to end the usage of demeaning terms.
The word “slut” is around 600 years old and originally referred to a woman that is unclean, untidy or dirty. Today, “slut” and other demeaning terms have lost their original connotations and their usage is almost a common occurrence.
Recently, talk show host Rush Limbaugh made national news during a radio broadcast in which he called Sandra Fluke a “slut.” Now, I do not necessarily disagree with Limbaugh on a lot of subjects. However, when he calls a woman a “slut” and a “prostitute,” then we have issues.
Immediately following the incident, negative reaction blew up the wavelengths. “Slut-gate 2012” became a popular movement aiming to shut Rush up. Tweeters have been urged to hash-tag #stopRush and #BoycottRush in order to spread information.
Assistant Professor of Sociology and Anthropology and Coordinator of Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies Julie Winterich does not necessarily believe that when Limbaugh used these gender-specific terms he was reflecting the views of society.
“Rush Limbaugh uses words intentionally to be provocative — it is not necessarily representative of how people in U.S. society use words,” Winterich said.
Limbaugh’s use of these gender-specific terms on a national broadcast opens up a whole new can of worms. When people are using these words, and what they say is heard by millions, this becomes very alarming. Banter between two opposing sides isn’t supposed to be nice and fun. We get it. You need to have tough skin if you are arguing with the likes of Rush Limbaugh. But when it escalates to the point to where young people grow up thinking these words are okay, something is awry.
When young people grow up believing these words are okay, their use becomes the norm. Furthermore, when young women grow up hearing these words, they can become discouraged to speak out against the use of gender-specific names.
The problem here isn’t only that the words were used, but who used them. When a high-ranking member of the media uses these terms, everything changes. High-profile people have followers who want to imitate their actions. Someone who hears Limbaugh utter these gender-specific words will think that, because he used them, it makes it okay to demean women.
Luckily, there were repercussions for Limbaugh’s actions. More than three dozen companies yanked their endorsements from Limbaugh’s show.
“What’s interesting about the Limbaugh example is that advertisers pulled out, which is a striking example of what is no longer acceptable in some contexts, in some ways,” said Winterich.
The example of pulling sponsorships from his show emphasizes the hope that these gender-specific slurs will be a thing of the past.
“Customers and listeners have taken to social media to inundate advertisers, stations and sponsors of Limbaugh’s show with calls to boycott Limbaugh,” Fluke said in an interview with ABC News.
These steps to pull sponsorship as well as the decrease in listeners are positive steps when it comes to the fight against these demeaning slurs.
