by Aubree Gearhart
Many will argue that double standards are non-existent when in reality, that is a completely false narrative. Double standards do in fact lurk behind the scenes, and they are everywhere. While they may not be completely obvious, they definitely do exist and often go unspoken. There are several different types of double standards, but the ones on social media are most prevalent for many teenage students.
“Gender norms and standards for people on social media continue to blow me away because of the double standards,” senior Saaya Parikh said. “A specific example of this is if a guy posts a shirtless picture, he is praised, and it is seen as normal. However, if a girl posts a picture in a swimsuit or a gym picture she is seen as “suggestive” and fake. People also automatically assume that girls edit their pictures to have others perceive themselves in a certain way. This thought doesn’t even cross people’s thoughts when it comes to guys. Another example is whenever a girl posts on social media, her friends and family are quick to spam her comment section with encouraging messages to hype her up. Usually, on a guy’s post, they don’t get much of this.”
Gender norms and societal standards within social media have been a hot topic over the past few years. One notable example of this is celebrities such as Harry Styles breaking down the wall of “typical” gender norms and wearing a dress on the cover of Vogue Magazine in 2020. Styles doing this caused a lot of uproar on social media. Those who were not in support of it were quick to share their opinions, and the statement “bring back manly men” was echoed relentlessly on social media. Styles has always been a voice for being yourself and being comfortable in your own skin without caring what others think.
“I think there is a really big problem with it,” junior Kyle Trinh said. “Obviously there are big problems like how women generally make less than men today, but there are so many everyday things that go under the radar. So many people think women and men are equal today when that is simply not the case. Women can’t really do or be interested in anything without being objectified or harassed by men. For example, if a man likes video games it’s normal and he’s cool; if a girl plays video games, she’s just doing it for male validation and doesn’t really know much about video games. There is definitely a double standard that people should recognize and speak up about.”
These are astounding examples of double standards that we do in fact see today. If women coincidentally share the same interests as men they are almost always automatically seen as “looking for attention” or “seeking male validation.” An example of this could be when a woman shows interest in a sport such as football, men sometimes will be quick to claim that “she only likes it because the guys are hot” as opposed to the fact that the woman might actually enjoy watching the sport or to tie back to the gaming side of things, women are made to feel that they should be dolled up with their makeup and hair doneb to be on the monitor, whereas men will just sit in a plain dirty t-shirt and basketball shorts. Although this is not so much social media focused, as far as equal pay goes, many will argue the fact that women and men are paid the same when that is just not the case and has been proven time after time. If a woman is in a higher position in a workplace, many will imply that she manipulated people to get where she is. In reality, they can’t accept the fact that she was really just able to put in the hard work and determination that was needed to get the position that she so clearly deserved.
“Social media standards are very high for women, especially in the limelight,” junior Rylan Aspeland said. “Men are always held to a lower standard when posting on social media versus women. Women are held to an extreme standard of acting like a lady and dressing appropriately and being sure that every inch of their body is hidden for modesty. Women are always bashed and beat over the smallest hint of photoshop, while men do not get any scrutiny for the photoshop that they do to their photos.”
Given all of these examples, we can blatantly see that double standards are in fact real and they do exist in everyday life. Double standards are a continuing issue in today’s society and are something that need to be addressed more often. They will continue to exist until they are consistently spoken up about until something is done. It does not matter what women do, they will always be judged. Anyone who shames someone for doing something that they genuinely enjoy and are passionate about is quite literally the worst type of person.
