SlutWalk Seattle

Our response to The Conversation with Ross Reynolds’ coverage of SlutWalk Seattle on KUOW 94.9 FM

The following open letter is in response to this interview.

Read Chloe Angyal’s response here.

Dear KUOW 94.9, The Conversation with Ross Reynolds, Senior Host Ross Reynolds, Producer David Hyde, Feministing, Writer and Editor Chloe Angyal, Seattleites, and Sluts and Allies everywhere,

On Wednesday, May 12, The Conversation with Ross Reynolds held a discussion on the SlutWalk movement. As avid KUOW fans, the three of us at SlutWalk Seattle were elated when a few days before the show Producer David Hyde emailed us in search of recommendations for speakers to participate in the upcoming discussion. Naturally, we volunteered ourselves. An hour before the show, however, Mr. Hyde canceled and stated that the show us “going to go a different direction today for formal guests.”
 
We respected The Conversation’s decision to opt for other guests to speak in favor of SlutWalk Seattle, hoping they would do a better job than we could of articulating the nuances of the movement. For the most part, we were thrilled - Activist Christy Forrester and Feministing Writer and Editor Chloe Angyal are excellent speakers and made many compelling and well-informed points, as did the guests who called in to share their thoughts and stories. However, we must respectfully object to and clarify a comment made by Ms. Angyal, who stated, “I don’t think this protest is about reclaiming the word [slut].” Reclaiming, or more accurately, reappropriating the word “slut” is a fundamental cornerstone of the movement, as a brief look at our posters bearing the slogan “reclaim the word slut” would suggest. One of the most effective ways to fight hate is to disarm the derogatory terms employed by haters, embracing them and giving them positive connotations. This also serves to provide a sex-positive term for women (and men), few or none of which currently exist, and allows sluts (individuals of any gender who have and enjoy frequent consensual sex, especially with multiple partners) to identify as part of a cohesive group for political representation. We feel that offering a place for women who lead such a lifestyle to self-identify as sluts does not disrespect them – indeed, the disrespecting is done by the rapists, the victim blamers who excuse the rape, and the slut shamers who say or imply they are disgracing, degrading, and dishonoring themselves. Naturally, as with any reappropriated word (examples of successfully reappropriated words include queer, dyke, butch, Methodist, Mormon, Quaker, Pagan, geek, and nerd), the use of such a word in reference to an individual is fully at that individual’s discretion.
 
SlutWalk is a broad, multifaceted movement, encompassing thousands of individuals across lines such as nation of origin, gender, orientation, race, ability, and class. For each individual who attends a SlutWalk, it is a different part of the movement that speaks to them, but they all boil down to fighting victim blaming and slut shaming, and they all intersect – for example, by reclaiming the word “slut,” we make it harder for the legal system and society to label victims for their behavior and attire, thus dehumanizing them and making it easier to turn a blind eye to crimes of sexual violence. The focus of the discussion on The Conversation on victim blaming was a refreshing one, given the mainstream media’s fixation with the semantics of the word “slut,” and we truly appreciate the insights of The Conversation’s guests. We merely wish to remind the world that reclaiming “slut” is still, in fact, a part of what SlutWalk is about, and assert that we do not create a hierarchy of what the movement is “more” or “less” about, instead letting participants decide that for themselves.
 

Sincerely,
Jessi Murray, SlutWalk Seattle Leader
Robin Sacks, SlutWalk Seattle Leader
Samuel Schimmel, SlutWalk Seattle Leader