I like to believe that even with bumps and winding paths, humanity’s journey moves forward, and as a society and community, we keep getting better.
But recent events show that when it comes to objectifying women’s bodies, we haven’t made much progress in recent years.
Years ago, I was the only one who spoke up on the tram against a man who held his phone right in front of me to comfortably zoom in on a girl’s legs and photograph her without her knowledge. When I confronted him, he got defensive. He accused me of making him uncomfortable on the tram (!!!).
It seems that photographing women’s legs still isn’t taboo—in fact, some even encourage it. What’s even more disheartening is reading comments under news stories about this, where many still try to justify this behavior.
The argument “if she didn’t want to be photographed, she shouldn’t dress like that”—if we can even call it an argument—is so senseless and foolish, I can’t imagine anyone who says it actually believes it.
I refuse to believe that anyone can’t understand this crucial truth: a woman’s body belongs to her. Only her. No one else has power over it—ever, under any circumstances. At least, they shouldn’t.
Our Own Choice
When a woman wears a miniskirt, shorts, or anything else, she’s making a choice about her own body. She decided to show her legs. It doesn’t matter if it’s because she’s hot or wants to feel sexy—what matters is that she made a decision about her own body.
The moment a photo is taken without her permission and ends up on some creepy phone or in a magazine printed in the hundreds of thousands, that choice is taken away. She no longer owns her body.
I don’t believe those who make excuses fail to see this vital difference between revealing our own legs and photographing someone else’s. I fear it’s worse: they see it and just don’t care. They don’t believe a woman’s body belongs to her, that a woman can exist independently—not just in relation to them. They don’t believe a woman can be a full human being in her own right.
That thought fills me with a gut-wrenching fear. Because if my legs aren’t mine today—who knows what might be taken from me tomorrow?
