It is no secret that a woman is believed to belong to a society or even a civilization where the beliefs are that women are the second sex. In addition, women must adhere to the laws of their governments, which are in place to determine whether they are worth protecting or neglecting. In Toward a Theory of Law and Patriarchy, Janet Rifkin (1980) examines the working component of the law by stating, “The law is powerful as both a symbol and a vehicle of male authority’ (Pp 412). Her comment is very similar to the thoughts of many another theorist who have approached the idea of feminism vs law; however, the law depends on the social thoughts of everyone. Unfortunately, this is not acknowledged unless a trial that involves rape or sexual assault. …show more content…
Leora Tanenbaum presents an interesting view on the labels that are implemented on women based on the social image of hypersexuality. The label of condemnation is not new to the public, but it has become an urgent problem today. Shaming a woman for being sexually active is common knowledge, but however, it has become normalized to the public to openly shame women based on their appearances and race. Tanenbaum further examines this idea in her blog The Truth About Slut-Shaming (2015) by stating, “I have yet to meet an American woman under the age of 25 who has not been called a “slut” or a “whore” at some point in their life” (Pg2). Acts of shaming are becoming easier to accomplish with social media. Young men and women can now anonymously take photos of people naked and unconscious without consent and post them online. The criticism that comes with condemning women for their sexuality is only a small portion of the issue at hand. It has now been documented that the label itself is harmful to the induvial that is considered promiscuous. Once a girl is regarded as promiscuous, she then becomes a target for sexual assault. And if she is sexually assaulted as Tanenbaum has written in The Truth About Slut-Shaming (2015), “she may be assigned the “slut” or “ho” identity to rationalize the crime and to protect the assaulter”