SLICE: Women can do anything men can do, but maybe we shouldn’t 

by | Aug 5, 2026

There is something distinctly inherited about misogyny. 

It lingers and creeps in your veins as if it were a dormant disease. It flows through your blood and poisons the mind. It is almost buried beneath and before you know it, you find yourself looking sideways at the girl you deem promiscuous because she is not docile. You will not realise it is there, even when you pray for a baby boy because they are ‘so much easier to raise’ than girls. Without knowing it you uphold patriarchy in small ways.  

This topic is a dead horse that will never stop getting beat. It is constantly on my mind. How can it not be when we live in a world where an abuser can sell out stadiums globally. A world where violence and injustices against women are constantly ignored. Men claim to care but prove daily that they do not. In my opinion, men rarely consider your feelings the same way a women would. 

This is evident in the support problematic male celebrities continue to garner. These men are defended and uplifted irrespective of how irredeemable their actions are.  

  1. A comment under a TikTok about the recent arrest of Chris Brown.         
  1. A comment under a TikTok about Connor McGregor’s court case.  

Society expects women to sit idly by, with no bark or bite, because we should be pleased to have a seat at the table. We still have to hope that asking, “What if that was your mother or daughter?”  is enough for a man to be empathetic. A woman should not be reduced to her role in a man’s life for her pain to be empathised with.  

‘Bird.’ ‘Pick me.’ ‘Slut.’ ‘Cunt.’ ‘Bimbo.’ ‘Bitchy.’ ‘Gold digger.’ ‘Prude.’ ‘Loud.’ ‘Bossy.’ ‘Hyper-independent.’ ‘Ditz.’ ‘Ran-through.”  

It does not matter what type of woman you are or aspire to be, nine times out of ten, there is a word out there to demean you. My favourite out of the bunch lately is ‘bird,’ used to refer to a woman who is being wistfully naïve when it comes to seeking male validation. Have you not found the courage to leave your abusive boyfriend yet? Bird. Do you forgive cheating? Bird. Do you complain about your manipulative boyfriend but stay with him? Bird. People on the internet say, “too many birds on the ground and not enough in the sky.”   

The latest example are the women on Love Island 2026, namely Melanie Moreno and Aniya Harvey. The term has shifted from holding women accountable for enabling men to blaming women for being mistreated by men. People should be capable of calling out a woman’s wrongdoings without diminishing her entire character, especially without using terms that were created to police women and their actions.  

Misogyny shows up in the jokes we find funny; in the memes we reshare; in the bullying we endorse and the two-cent comments we dismiss. It does not just spring up suddenly in unexpected violent outbursts.  

It is when we dislike a woman for being too loud, or for taking up too much space, instead of staying in the tiny corner designated for her. We see this experience the most among famous women. From Taylor Swift to Megan Thee Stallion to Chappell Roan, all women hated for different reasons but with one noticeable similarity. In most cases, even if there are valid reasons to dislike these women, rarely are those the reasons why people do.  

These ‘jokes’ test your morals and what you deem as okay to say and hear. They question how ignorant you are toward those you love when they make such takes. 

Comments under a TikTok about Chappell Roan’s controversy.  

Women who are complicit in men’s misogyny should not claim to care about our issues. If you associate yourself with this kind of man, you are complicit. You are the company that you keep. By associating yourself with this type of man, you are that man yourself.  

This is the part of the article where I confirm I am not some all-men hating, bitter misandrist. If this is bitter, then bitter is what I will be. As it is, I do not believe we are bitter enough.  

In South Africa, “almost 50% of the assaults were committed by someone close such as a friend or acquaintance (22%), a spouse or intimate partner (15%), a relative or other household member (13%).” These statistics are an indication that there is no room for complacency.Your sisters are out there being assaulted and violated. Every single day.  

Graphic of South African gender-based violence statistics committed by a specified perpetrator, 2018/19. Graphic: Kerese Govender.

FEATURED IMAGE: Graphic of female celebrities who are often victims of mass internet hate trains. Graphic: Kerese Govender

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