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“Grab them by the p****. You can do anything.”
That’s Donald Trump, the Republican nominee for President, talking about how he can “do anything” to pretty women because he’s a star. The conversation was recorded in 2005.
To be honest, I’ve been burying my head in the sand for much of this election cycle. I am technically a registered Republican, although I am becoming more and more troubled by what that means as this election continues.
I don’t know who I am voting for on November 8th, but it’s not Donald Trump.
it’s called sexual assault
I went on Facebook today and read a post by a female friend who was disgusted, as I am, by Trump’s comments. Multiple people jumped on to share her disgust, and then a misogynistic guy jumped on to try and defend Trump because the “women let him do it.”
I was mad enough to write this post.
No, Mr. Facebook Misogynist, regardless of how a woman reacts after being sexually touched/groped by a man, that initial move is undoubtedly sexual assault. ESPECIALLY when it comes out of the blue, the way Trump’s comments make it sound like it did.
“Chill, girl”
Once at a college dance when I was a freshman, an older guy slapped my butt as he shimmied past me. I whipped around, making a bit of scene, and yelled at him for it.
His response? “Chill, girl.”
Now I want to confess something here that I think is important because it comes up all the time in these discussions: A baser side of me was flattered. I was 18 and no guy had ever touched my butt. Especially not a random older guy at a dance (Worth noting: this was the first “dance” I’d ever attended).
Looking back, I realize that somehow I’d been sickly trained by our culture to be flattered by sexual assault and objectification. I felt attractive. Pretty. Desirable. Sexy. Because I wasn’t sure if I was attractive to guys. Because I wanted attention. Because a guy I hardly knew and wasn’t even dancing with or showing attention to decided he had a right to touch me.
But guess what? The fact I was a little flattered on the inside didn’t stop his actions from being sexual assault.
it’s not your body
You see, I didn’t report this kid or tell the deans or make a further scene because, honestly, that seemed a little dramatic. In fact, it feels a little dramatic complaining right now.
He just touched my butt, no big deal, right? It’s just a kiss? He just pushed me on his bed….
That’s the problem.
#1 That women are so conditioned by society to be sexually desirable that we are sometimes flattered by being objectified.
AND
#2 That women are conditioned to think that it’s somehow prudish or dramatic to be offended by someone touching our bodies without asking us first.
The fact that I’m hesitating to call this guy’s actions sexual assault because, hey, “he only slapped my butt and it could have been way worse,” just goes to show how brainwashed I’ve been by our culture.
Not fit to be president
A man who thinks it’s funny to grab a pretty woman by the “p***y” because “he can” is not fit to be president. A man who objectifies women and then laughs about it shouldn’t have a seat in the Oval Office.
Women don’t belong to you because you are famous. They don’t belong to you because they are pretty. They don’t belong to you because you are more powerful than they are.
The last thing misogynistic men need is more power. #NeverTrump