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and then there’s the touching. casual taps on the shoulder and slow rubs of the forearm are the norm — apparently there’s a lot of gratitude for getting a decent table. plus, now that she needs to check phones for vaccination proof, it’s as if leaning in just got more legit — right along with a hand on the small of her back for good measure. and that’s before the alcohol starts flowing.
but just because it’s legal — in canada, the age of consent to sexual activity is 16 years old, 18 if the other person holds a position of authority, or if the activity involves exploitation, like porn, or there is payment or anal sex — it doesn’t make the fact that these guys are perfectly comfortable ogling young girls any less gross, or frankly, disturbing.
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there are numerous studies that have found social media to be a solid driver of how boys and men perceive girls and women. in one study, researchers looked at two instagram sites that targeted college-aged people. they found that female students were portrayed as “objects to be gazed upon by their male counterparts” and “pictured as sexualized and nameless objects of desire with no identity or personality of their own…their bodies shown as physical objects to be used by men.” they also noted that female students were pictured as being submissive to males and photographed in submissive poses. i won’t go any further because their findings get much, much worse.
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