Emerald Shaw

My Self-Respect Is Not The Clothes I Wear

I don't have to be modest to be respected.
Sade Andria Zabala
January 16, 2017
“We’ve been taught a woman’s body will cause men to sin. We’re told that if a woman shows too much of her body men will do stupid things. Let’s be clear: a woman’s body is not dangerous to you. Her body will not cause you harm. It will not make you do stupid things. If you do stupid things it is because you chose to do stupid things.”
— Nate Pyle, What I Want My Son To Know About Women
Tagged: feminism, Sin, Religion, Sex, Temptation, Sexism, Gender Wars, Perspective
“Astonishingly, not all girls get dressed just to please men.”
— Jojo Moyes, Me Before You
Tagged: Sexism, feminism, Rape Culture, Fashion, Gender Wars, Girl Power, Perspective
“Better sexy and racy than sexist and racist.”
— Stephen Fry, The Hippopotamus
Tagged: Sexy, Sexist, racist
“So we need to break through these limitations. We need to keep changing the attitude that raises our girls to be demure and our boys to be assertive, that criticizes our daughters for speaking out and our sons for shedding a tear. We need to keep changing the attitude that punishes women for their sexuality and rewards men for theirs.

We need to keep changing the attitude that permits the routine harassment of women, whether they’re walking down the street or daring to go online. We need to keep changing the attitude that teaches men to feel threatened by the presence and success of women.

We need to keep changing the attitude that congratulates men for changing a diaper, stigmatizes full-time dads, and penalizes working mothers.”
— Barack Obama, Glamour Exclusive: President Barack Obama Says, "This Is What a Feminist Looks Like"
Tagged: Change, feminism, Sexual Harassment, stereotypes, Gender Norms
“These women talk about feminism, but I feel Rihanna lives it. She doesn’t tend to speak up about gender equality and other major issues, but she embodies one of the most important acts of feminist: to be yourself and not feel you have to apologise for it.

This is evident in everything she does... What her critics are missing is that her actions are brave. Like Madonna in the 80s, she’s defying the status quo. She is showing women that they don’t have to conform to society’s idea of femininity...That ultimately, their bodies are theirs and they have the right to do what they want with them.”
— Radhika Sanghani, Why Rihanna is the best 'role model' young women can have
Tagged: Pop Culture, Fashion, feminism, Body Positive, Rihanna
“Imagine donating 8.5 million dollars to charity every year and having people rejoice that you were held at gunpoint because you had your sexual consent violated several years ago and the world still blames you for it.

Kim Kardashian doesn't have to imagine.”
— Anonymous, via Tumblr
Tagged: Sexism, Kim Kardashian
“Why should a woman have to be modest in order to be respected?”
— Unknown, via Tumblr
Tagged: Modesty, Self-Respect, Respect, feminism, Bad Girls, Sexy
“Beauty or brains?

Fuck that, it’s not a dichotomy. Let’s not act like mascara glues girls eyes so shut that they can’t read a word of Dickens or solve a trig problem. Let’s talk about how no boy has ever been asked if he’d rather get his Bachelor’s or get married; no boy has ever been told that he’s too handsome to run for office. So why cover up my tits so you can take me seriously?

Beauty or brains? I’ll take ‘em all, thanks.”
— uglyboyband, via Tumblr
Tagged: Spilled Ink, Modesty, Girl Power, feminism, Intellectual, Sexy, Bad Girls, Double Standards, Sexism
“We will not change the way we dress because it's more convenient for your lack of self control.”
— Unknown, via Tumblr
Tagged: Modesty, Cover Up, Rape Culture
“Nudity empowers some. Modesty empowers some. Different things empower different women and its not your place to tell her which one it is”
— kennabbby, via twitter.com
Tagged: Nudity, Modesty, Body Positive, empowerment
“Expressing sexuality in art is not an invitation for disrespect. Just like wearing a short skirt is not asking for assault.

Women's choice... Our bodies, our clothing, our music, our personalities... sexy, flirty, fun. It is not. an open. invitation. 

You are literally saying that if we look a certain way, we are yours to take. But we are not!!! It's our right to express ourselves.”
— Ariana Grande, Ariana Grande: 'Sexuality in Art Not Invitation for Disrespect'
Tagged: Modesty, sexuality, Objectification, Rape Culture, Fashion, Ariana Grande, Mac Miller, ariana grande mac miller, ariana grande twitter, ariana grande feminism, ariana grande objectified, ariana grande mac miller dating, ariana grande boyfriend, mac miller girlfriend
“The day that women can casually be topless and not be raped or degraded will be the day that women will be equal in society.”
— Willow Smith, via twitter.com
Tagged: Objectification, feminism, Rape Culture, Modesty
“‘Have some self respect’ literally has nothing to do with me. It’s about you rating and weighing my behaviour against a 2 dimensional caricature of a women that you think deserves basic decency. I respect myself.

What you mean is ‘please conform to my personal, rigid beliefs of what I deem acceptable for a woman because it’s up to me to decide who deserves to be treated like a human being or not based entirely on meaningless socialized and sexist values.’”
— iamatinyowl, via Tumblr
Tagged: Self-Respect, Modesty, Respect, Girl Power, Self-Worth, Empowering
“We teach girls shame. Close your legs; cover yourself. We make them feel as though being born female, they're already guilty of something. And so, girls grow up to be women who silence themselves. They grow up to be women who cannot say what they truly think. And they grow up--and this is the worst thing we do to girls--they grow up to be women who have turned pretense into an art form.”
— Chimamamda Ngozi Adichie, What The World Teaches Women
Tagged: Modesty, Internalized Misogyny, Sexism, body shaming, Objectification, Body Positivity, Rape Culture
“A woman should've have to be clothed from head to toe in order for you to respect her. If your respect for women is conditional, keep it.”
— @delafro_, via twitter.com
Tagged: Self-Respect, Modesty, Sexism
“The whole "good girl vs. hoes" mentality is nothing but misogynistic. It's denying a woman simple respect just (because) she's not "modest." If you only respect a woman when she's "modest", you don't actually respect women. That's not how this works. You respect a woman regardless of how she presents herself. You respect her because she's human just like you.”
— @delafro_, via twitter.com
Tagged: Self-Respect, Modesty, Misogyny, Respect
“A few months ago I heard Kathleen Cleaver, a former Black Panther, speak at a local museum and as she spewed her feelings about ‘Formation’, calling it pornography, I recall feeling a disappointment so strong it nearly felt like grief. I felt similarly reading bell hooks’ criticisms of Beyoncé. I felt that ultimately they were expressing their disdain for me, women like me, and my/our own brand of feminism and autonomous expression. I don’t fit into any one box. Sometimes I am poised and polite. Sometimes I’m a bitch. Sometimes I am homely. Sometimes I’m scantily clad. Regardless, I am always wanting more for us. More respect, more love, more space and freedom. My attire does not negate that... 

Shame and internalized misogynoir are real. Respectability politics are real. And while I am a woman who can be agreeable to a fault, I’ve never had a talent for conforming. This is not pornography. These are self portraits.”
— Emerald Shaw, via Tumblr
Tagged: Sexual Autonomy, Bodily Autonomy, Misogynoir, Misogyny
“There are sexual things that I do that aren’t for a man. I feel empowered sometimes by being sexy and being comfortable enough to be sexy on camera—a lot of woman struggle with that. But there are some days that I don’t want anyone to see me. I’m just a regular girl. Some days I’m super strong; some days I’m super insecure. But I don’t really identify with any particular label. I just speak my truth and if people like it, they like it, and if they bash it, they bash it.”
— Nicki Minaj, Newly Single Nicki Minaj on Feminism, Meek Mill, and Rapping at 50
Tagged: Sexual Autonomy, Bodily Autonomy, Culture, Music, Nicki Minaj, feminism
“We've been taught having self respect means keeping ourselves covered, not showing too much skin, not too much cleavage... we've been told wearing booty shorts make us cheap and nasty. We've been told we have to act, dress, and do certain things in order to have self respect - but we are not the ones who set those rules. We are individuals, we have a sense of self, we have likes and dislikes but we also have the ability to have self respect for ourselves, even if we're not doing what is "proper". Break away from what you've been told. Make your own choices - and it's okay if your choice is the same as what we've been told - be comfortable with who you are... Remember that no one can tell you you're not respecting yourself just because you slept with five people last week.”
— hannah-ruth-x, via Tumblr
Tagged: Modesty, Self-Respect, Sexual Autonomy, Slut Shaming
“Self-respect has nothing to do with sex or nudity. Self-respect means making choices that make you happy.”
— Unknown, FEMALE COLLECTIVE
Tagged: Self-Respect, Slut Shaming, Modesty, Happiness, Self-Love
“Modesty lost its appeal when I decided I no longer wanted to be moderate at anything, but excel exceptionally at everything. I began to see the beauty in my indecency exposed.”
— amiiiritafari, via Tumblr
Tagged: Modesty, Naked, Sexual Autonomy, Bodily Autonomy
“No matter how I present myself, I’m confident and I’m comfortable. My self-respect is doing what makes me happy. When I’m hungry, I eat, when I’m thirsty I drink, I have self-respect, I look after myself.

You can't tell me what ladylike is because we don't live in the '50s any more. I am looking for equality... I am 15 years old. You do not get to sexualize me like that, you do not get to tell me that my body is sacred, because it isn't... 

Half the population are females. We’re not sacred, we aren’t a new discovery, people know I have legs, I have knees and thighs... I do not want girls growing up in a society where they believe their body, and they, have to be a certain way because they can be however they want to be... They can be however makes them comfortable and confident...

Girls don’t do things for boys or do things to impress boys. I don’t care about boys, I care about myself... You don’t go up into someone’s personal space and look them up and down because of how short their skirts or shorts are.”
— Faith Sobotker, Faith Sobotker takes bold stand against Kambrya College for ‘slut-shaming’
Tagged: Modesty, Dress Codes, Self-Respect, Bodily Autonomy, Rape Culture