Here we have it, ladies and gentlemen, a new all time low our society has reached.

“#ExposeTheseHoes” is a new Twitter trend started by male Chicagoland students, and it involves them posting naked pictures girls have sent them and putting that hashtag at the end of the tweet. Most of these girls are still in high school and they are being exposed — uncensored — for the entire world to see. And, do you want to know their justification for this? The boys believe that the girls who sent them these pictures are “hoes” and deserve being publicly humiliated.

Now, you would think this horrific trend would get a lot of backlash at the boys because maybe there are some rational people out in the world, but no. These boys who started the trend have received quite the opposite effect. Boys and girls alike cheered them on, saying that they were hilarious and that they wanted to see more naked pictures. If that alone doesn’t nauseate you, this crowd agreed that the boys were giving the girls what they deserved since they shouldn’t have sent the pictures in the first place.

Let me just get one thing straight, I am not sticking up for these girls because I condone sending naked pictures, because I don’t. But what I also don’t condone is the exploitation of women, and absolutely no one deserves this type of treatment. Justifying these actions by saying “they wouldn’t be in this position if the girls didn’t send the pictures in the first place” is not a justification at all. You have all heard it before, what goes on the internet stays there forever. How dare any of you think that you have the right treat these women and put them on display like pieces of meat. And, it’s not just the boys who started this trend that deserves a huge smack on the head, it’s the followers who were cheering them on, too.

Ladies, I am sure all of you have had the experience of at least one guy texting, messaging, DMing (direct message) or even snap chatting you to ask for you to send nude pictures. Most of us laugh and immediately reply no, but some of us don’t brush it off. “Maybe he’ll like me more” or “I don’t want him to call me a prude” are some of the thoughts that run through a girl’s head when a boy asks her for a picture. These types of thoughts really anger me. We are all taught not to make these types of stupid decisions for obvious reasons. The receiver of the picture can save it, send it around and exploit it, just as the boys in this situation did. But, that doesn’t mean that girls who fall under this pressure are stupid. If boys didn’t put these girls under this type of pressure to “please” them and actually had enough respect and dignity not to ask for the pictures in the first place, they probably wouldn’t have been sent in the first place.

“This has serious social and emotional ramifications and consequences to a woman’s self worth and image. It’s horrible. They need to realize that what they are doing can have legal consequences,” social work intern Liz Arnold said.

So, are these girls really to blame for putting themselves in this situation by sending the pictures, or are the boys who pressured them to send them at fault here?

I guess what I am trying to say is that maybe it isn’t the “hoes” that need to be exposed, but rather, the people who are pressuring girls for their enjoyment. It’s sickening. I want to say I’m disgusted with this whole situation, but my feelings go so much deeper, because this problem also goes deeper. No one should be put in the situation where they are asked to expose themselves or to put themselves in an uncomfortable position. Some of you are probably thinking to yourselves that you can always say “no,” and as true as that is, it’s not as easy as it sounds. For example, asking for consent during a hookup. Sure, consent is great, but there’s always that added pressure of  “what happens if you say no?” and “what will the other person think of me?”  Consent doesn’t always work for the one being asked.

Although I am pissed at these boys (that’s an understatement), who felt like they could start this type of trend and still be considered decent human beings, I can’t fully blame them to think that this was their place to show off these girls’ pictures. What I mean by “their place” is that they thought it was okay for them to embarrass these girls and expose their bodies because of today’s society. Before you continue reading, think about this for a second: Where do these boys learn this type of behavior?

The Representation Project, which “…is a movement that uses film and media content to expose injustices created by gender stereotypes…” posted a video on YouTube about a week ago to show how the media portrayed women in 2013. The video starts out great, showing the triumphs of women like Malala Yousafzai, Jennifer Lawrence and Katie Couric, and how successful they were in representing a positive image of women in the media and professional world. The video then goes on to show that even through these types of successes, our society truly hasn’t come far in how they view women. Photoshopping women to make them look ‘perfect,’ putting women in bikinis, on cars, pool tables, on top of a man, are just a few of the ways media has exploited and sexualized women in 2013. Even celebrities like Flo Rida, Miley Cyrus, Robin Thicke, and Rhianna joined in to try to draw in viewers by showing off a woman’s body or even exposing themselves for more attention.

Let’s look at Miley Cyrus for a second. Back in August, I wrote a column about the VMAs and Miley’s controversial dance she did with Robin Thicke. I want to take back everything I said about that performance. When I initially watched the VMAs, I thought of her dance as entertaining and hilarious since it was obvious she was only doing it for attention. Now, I have a new perspective. Her doing those types of dances and wearing that type of costume to show herself off on stage and to millions of viewers across the nation for entertainment is the exact problem women are experiencing in society. Today’s society looks at a woman’s body as an object for entertainment, not something to respect. Miley pretty much sold herself, and her body, for the entertainment business, and for what? For more views? Money? Attention? If there’s anything you can’t buy in the world, it’s self respect and that’s what women need to focus on gaining for themselves if we are going to break out of the boundaries society limits us to. Women are more than objects, and we definitely should show ourselves more respect than wearing a nude bikini and a foam finger between our legs.

Hopefully by now you have watched the YouTube video I referenced above because the next thing I want to talk about is the objectification of women in the professional world. There are a few scenes I want to show you. The first scene is at 2:01 in the video and it shows a screenshot of an article called “Women Should Pay More For Health Insurance Because They Have Breasts And Ovaries, Says Fox Expert.” I am not even surprised this is coming from a Fox “expert,” but are you kidding me? I understand that politicians are “power and money hungry” but now they are going to pick apart women body parts to get more money? And this my friends, is Exhibit A for the objectification of women.

Exhibit B is at 2:21 in the video, which shows a scene of one of those Fox “experts” yelling at Tamara Holder, a Fox News Contributor, “know your role and shut your mouth.” First of all, Mr. Fox News Expert, excuse you. No one has the right to point a finger in a woman’s, or anyone’s face for that matter, and tell them to shut-up because ‘it’s not their role’ to speak out. Second of all, what are the roles that women should conform to in society? Is it the classic stay-at-home mom role? Or the role where we sit there, obeying our husband and not speaking a word? Neither of those roles scream “gender equality.”

And lastly, Exhibit C is at 2:50 in the video, which is a quote said by a male politician who felt threatened by a woman politician named Ashley Judd because she thought about running for his seat. “She’s clearly, this sounds extreme, but she is emotionally unbalanced. I mean it’s been documented.” And, you know what else has been documented? The fact that you don’t know how to professionally treat women, and you use hormones to try and make them look bad. That’s kind of sad, Mr. Politician.

I want to say that our society has come far with women rights and gender equality, but it really hasn’t. Women are still objectified as sexual toys in the media and not taken seriously. We are looked at as “emotionally unstable” and “hysterical” in the professional world. If women try and meet the satisfactions of men like, for example, sending naked pictures, we are publicly humiliated and called hoes. If women try and stand up for themselves, and don’t do everything a man says, we are called prudes and emotionally unstable. Will women ever win?

Getting back to the original story of the hashtag, I said above that the thing that really needs to be exposed is the pressure boys put on girls to satisfy them, but in reality, maybe it’s more the way the media and men portray women that needs to be shown to the world.

“By facilitating the hashtag, they are continuing to allow bullying to integrate into our schools,” social work intern Kate Minkus said.

So how do we ‘”fix” this society and social media, instead of just sitting here and writing (or in your position, reading) about it? Well, the first step would probably be to stop this Twitter trend. Earlier this week, the same guy who started the trend tweeted again saying: “50 retweets and I’ll expose another hoe from Lane Tech.” And, guess what? Fifty-one people retweeted it, and he posted the picture. Fiftey-one people. I am going blur out this guy’s twitter handle in the picture because I don’t want him to get more attention, but, if you know who this is, take action. Fiftey-one people had the chance to stick up for these girls and they didn’t. This is your chance to make a difference.

I really think that this all goes back to the Golden Rule, “treat people the way you want to be treated.” Men, if you wouldn’t want to be objectified in the media, dancing around in skimpy bikinis and being called “hysterical” every time you try to be professional, you shouldn’t treat women like this either.

The second step to take action goes to the ladies, stick up for yourself. If someone is putting you in a position in which you don’t feel comfortable, don’t be afraid to show some self-respect and just say no. Although consent doesn’t always solve everything, saying no is the first step to sticking up for yourself.

Lastly, the third step goes out to everyone else. If you see someone being treated unfairly because of their gender, or being objectified and sexualized for their bodies, etc. you need to stick up for them, too. Don’t become a part of the mass that accepts this type of behavior, be a part of the future that advocates for gender equality.

With that, I’ll leave you with one last quote from successful business woman and politician, Carly Fiorina: “If someone believes they are limited by their gender, they will become more limited.” Even in a world where most people don’t believe in women and the success of women, as long as you believe in yourself, it’ll make a difference.