By: Allie Reynolds, General Manager of Mast TV
A lot of girls get offended when they’re called basic. It’s just another one of the hundreds of negative labels society uses to put down women, and I’m so tired of it.
I love iced vanilla lattes, scented candles from Bath and Body Works and worship the ground Taylor Swift walks on. To most, this makes me a basic white girl. According to Urban Dictionary, a basic white girl is “your run of the mill white girl that has no identity of her own.” She wears leggings as pants, owns Uggs and North Face jackets and posts her coffee and food pictures on her Instagram account, using the hashtag #blessed.
I don’t think women should feel ashamed for liking what they like. If you like posting pictures of your food on Instagram and counting down the days until Pumpkin Spice Lattes are available again, I don’t think you should feel ashamed for being you and liking what makes you happy.
Society teaches young women that it’s okay to compare ourselves to one another and put each other down. Calling other young women out on what they like is doing the same thing.
Life is so much easier when you surround yourself with friends who support you rather than bring you down for liking what makes you happy.
Senior Emily Mansfield is doing her Capstone project in sociology on women being called “basic” in the media and society.
“Girls are told to buy Starbucks, Ugg boots and other things that are considered basic. Once she buys them, she becomes a negative stereotype, even though she was being told to buy these objects. I find it really frustrating,” Mansfield said.
I encourage young women to own their “basic.” Take as many selfies as you want, drink your flavored lattes and yell One Direction and Taylor Swift lyrics at the top of your lungs. You shouldn’t feel ashamed for liking things that make your day a little brighter.
