Back in the days of the nineteen twenties through the nineteen fifties, teenage boys were very well mannered and polite when it came to girls. During the present days of the twenty first century? Not so much. Teenage boys and men for that matter are treating girls less like ladies and more like pieces of meat they feel they have the right to feast on. As a sixteen year old girl in a present day public high school, I am not only noticing this drastic change, but I am experiencing it. Boys in my school don’t look at me like I am a dignified and respectable young lady. Instead they look at me as though I am something that is there for their pleasure to look at, touch, make fun of and disrespect. I have been living this since the seventh grade and quite frankly I am more than sick of it.
Everyday without fail, I am around boys who think that it is funny to talk about obscene topics in front of girls. They talk about us in ways that portray us as plots of land that are just up for grabs. To clarify better, no girl wants to her about what the guys want to do with you or the girl sitting behind you, we don’t want to hear about the disgusting things boys watch on the inter net in their spare time, and we most definitely do not want to hear about what they did last weekend when they had their “all boy” party. Young men should act like young men, not pigs. Young men should treat girls like young ladies, and in order to do that, the elimination of the previous topics would be a good place to start.


Most of the boys here at school feel that they are the coolest and best thing that ever happened to the planet Earth; and let me tell you, 99.9% of them are not. When one of those really “cool” guys reaches out to cop a feel on my backside, or tell me how “sexy” they think I am, instead of being flattered, I am revolted 100% of the time. Imagine if you can, that you are in my position; you’re standing at your locker, trying to retrieve your books and because you are wearing a form fitting skirt, some idiot guy who rarely even says hi to you comes up behind and has enough nerve to think that it is okay to put out his hand and do one of the following to your behind; pinch, grab, slap, etc. Now if you are in the crowded hallways of high school, the kid will probably get away before you can say anything, but if not, you will turn around to tell him off and he’ll just start laughing with his group of even more idiotic friends. So, what is a girl to do?
The problem with this lack of respect from the male species is that as it becomes more regular, more girls are letting it happen. They are allowing boys to take advantage of them and make them feel like they are lower than themselves when they really aren’t. Teenage girls of 2011 need to demand respect from these predators that dominate the hallways of high schools. They need to have enough respect for themselves that they won’t let anyone treat them like that.
As young women of today’s society, we need to get angry. We need to let those jerks know that what they perceive as funny is nothing but disgusting. We need to turn around and no matter if they are already halfway down the hall or laughing with their friends, we need to tell them that they are sick. Now, as someone who has experienced this kind of treatment, I know that if you do tell them off they probably won’t talk to you for a while. This used to bother me, but I finally realized that anyone who thinks that it is alright to behave so poorly and to treat me that way really isn’t worth my time, or any other girls’ time.


No girl should be hurt or upset because the guy she told to shut up stopped talking to her when he was being profane, or when he ignores her because she told him to keep his hands to himself. Teenage boys need to get some manners when it comes to the way they treat teenage girls, and in my opinion it would be better if they do it sooner than later.