19/03/2026
𝐌𝐢𝐬𝐨𝐠𝐲𝐧𝐲 𝐂𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞: 𝐈𝐟 𝐒𝐡𝐞 𝐖𝐚𝐬 𝐚 𝐌𝐚𝐧, 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐒𝐡𝐞’𝐝 𝐛𝐞 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐌𝐚𝐧 (𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐖𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐧’𝐬 𝐌𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐡 2026)
“𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝘄𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗶𝗳 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗿𝘂𝗱𝗲, 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗯𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗺𝘆 𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗮𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗽𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗲𝘀.” – The Man, Taylor Swift (2019)
Recent controversy regarding Australian-Filipino Actress Anne Curtis and 4th District Representative B**g Sutay has once again shown another negative reality society faces today: women continuously facing prejudice and objectification in the public domain, where respect must be shown to all, and is non-negotiable. While it focuses on an incident between two individuals, it goes way far beyond that; it reflects a long-standing, stereotypical mindset that still treats women as objects to be used for admiration, for jokes, or for desire rather than being considered individuals with voices and dignity.
For women in general, this treatment was never unusual. Across various workplaces, public spaces, and even in daily interactions, women are often looked down upon and degraded because of their physical appearance or treated as sources of entertainment and pleasure for men. This happens to many women everyday, and treated unequally and are not being valued for their ideas, skills, and contributions. It goes even as far as for most individuals to put women in situations where their presence is objectified. This type of mindset fuels misogyny – an attitude that dismisses women’s worth and normalizes disrespect. We must not normalize this behavior, as these actions show harmful stereotype that keep gender inequality alive in society today.
To stop misogyny in today’s society requires more than public criticism towards an individual of one incident. We must remember that this behavior toward women has been and still is happening for centuries now. It demands for us, a society, to promote a cultural shift that sees women as equal individuals to men through respect and accountability. Not only leaders and institutions are responsible in promoting this change and setting standards that assure women’s dignity and roles in society, but also as a community. True progress in this shift means recognizing women not as objects, but as individuals with dignity and voices, which deserve to be heard and respected, no matter if it is public or private.
As the world celebrates International Women’s Month, the discrimination and stereotype faced by Curtis from an individual in power is a reminder on why society celebrates this month in the first place. It is not only about honoring what women achieved throughout the years, but also their determination in reforming how society sees them today by challenging discrimination, and advocating for equal, or even basic human rights. In order to do this, we must value women for who they are, and what they contributed to the world today. Through this, we, as a community, will move forward and continuously develop if we treat each other as equals.
🖋️ 𝐖𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐧 𝐛𝐲 𝐌𝐞𝐥𝐯𝐢𝐧 𝐒𝐨𝐦𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐨 | 𝐎𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐄𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐨𝐫
