Does This Fashion Trend Ward Off Slut-Shaming?

THE LEORA LETTER

June 15, 2023

Slut-shaming matters because when people are dismissed as sluts, hoes, and thots, they are denied care and compassion as human beings and in a variety of situations, including when they are sexually harassed, sexually assaulted, and need an abortion.

As temperatures in New York City climb, young women face a dilemma: They want to wear summery tank tops and miniskirts but are concerned that as they travel around the city, especially on the subway, they will be met with predatory stares, harassing “Hey baby, won’t you give me a smile?” comments, even unwanted touches and gropes.

And so, being resourceful New York women, they have hatched a solution: the “subway shirt.” An oversized, shapeless shirt one slips over her “real” outfit, the subway shirt—also referred to as an “outfit dampener”—hides the contours of one’s body from neck to thighs, shielding from view the skimpy outfit beneath. And, because this is the age of TikTok, a number of women have shared their genius trick with other women on social media. The cover-up has gone viral.

As I told The Guardian, it's fantastic that women on TikTok are raising awareness of the harm caused by sexual harassment and assault in public spaces. Hopefully, the result is that now more people recognize how scary it can be to simply go about your day, including taking the subway, when you present as feminine.

But did these TikTokers actually devise a solution to the age-old problem of being harassed and assaulted? No, they did not. There is no evidence that harassment or assault is motivated by what a victim wears. While covering up might make women feel safer, it does not truly protect them. The subway shirt offers no real safety against sexual harassment and assault. And if someone does not wear a subway shirt over their tank top and is victimized, they did nothing wrong.

The subway shirt phenomenon resonates not because it represents the greatest Band-Aid ever for the wound of misogynist behavior. It strikes a chord because it reveals the lived experience of young women, and anyone who presents as feminine, today, who are always being watched—and sexualized. Having grown up devoid of privacy in a culture that values sexy femininity, they experience a sharp contradiction between wanting or feeling pressured sometimes to appear sexually provocative—but selectively, and only on their terms.

Read more about “subway shirts” at The Guardian.

Key takeaway: The "subway shirt" trend is a genius trick created by young women to avoid being slut-shamed. Unfortunately, slut-shaming is not so easily prevented. Nevertheless, women who wear the shirts deserve credit for creative problem-solving.