By Nina Serrianne
Policy Intern



It is no secret that vintage t-shirts are currently trendy, but unfortunately the vintage concepts of female sexuality are still being accepted in mainstream culture.  Urban Outfitters has become a target of criticism after using their message tee to promote the concept that a girl’s virginity belongs to her father. The clothing company’s stance on female sexuality has been further criticized because of their previous alleged commitment to political neutrality.  The company claimed that they did not want their tee-shirts to take a political stance on issues, specifically on gay marriage, but they did not shy away from misogynist messages. The political contributions of the company’s former CEO and Founder, Richard Hayne, to Right Wing organizations have factored into their bias opinion on message tees, but more importantly, sexual violence against women is not a partisan issue. 

Rape culture and sexual assault begins with language and actions being accepted in society. 

The issues and images of sexual violence and female ownership in popular culture are directly tied to victim derogation and the promotion of purity.  Besides the crude image of the subordination to Uncle Sam, the t-shirt promotes a message that removes a female’s right to choose over her own body and sexuality.  By removing ownership of a person’s own body, dehumanization occurs and violent actions begin to be rationalized. 

A t-shirt alone cannot create sexual violence, but it justifies the sexist mentality that is present within assaults. Saying no to images of sexism, saying no to the virgin/slut dichotomy, saying no to the language of rape culture are all ways to say no to sexual violence.  There has been no movement by Urban Outfitters to remove the t-shirt from their line, as they did with the marriage equality shirt, but as consumers we can say no to this t-shirt and say no to the selling of the purity myth to America’s Youth.