By: Nicole Burns
A deeper dive into why teenage girls can’t enjoy anything without becoming the butt of a joke
Six years ago, girls got cold and decided to wear Ugg boots. It was fall so they would pick up a Pumpkin Spice Latte from their local Starbucks. Two things which should have had zero consequences, after all, it was just that era’s teenage girls existing.
However, that became known as the “basic” girl and was the last thing anyone wanted to be. Since then, it has been impossible for teenage girls to enjoy, well, anything, without becoming that year’s joke.
In this day and age of 2019, the “basic” girl returns. Except, they’ve been rebranded and are now known as “VSCO” girls. Do you carry a hydro flask? Do you keyboard smash or wear long t-shirts? Do you even dare to wear a scrunchie? Congratulations, you are now the butt of a worldwide joke.
What is it with the teen meme culture and destroying teenage girls for existing? If a girl follows along with her friends and gets a Hydro flask to do her part to help out the environment or she decides to wear a long t-shirt over shorts because it makes a cute and simple outfit, she’s a “VSCO” girl.
Being labeled wouldn’t be so bad if these girls weren’t being made fun of any time they participated in the aforementioned activities. This has happened before.
Not just in 2013 or before, it’s happened again previously in 2019. Did you wear eyeliner and lots of black? Draw little hearts under your eyes because it looks cute? Sorry, you might be an “E-Girl.”
History is repeating itself and as always, teenage girls are the victim. This dates back to decades ago with girls being deemed the “Rachels” during the Friends era, basic white girls, hipsters.
Time and time again, teenage girls are criticized not just for fitting in (re: VSCO girls) but for making attempts to stand out (re: E-Girls).
Girls should be able to walk through this world without everyone laughing at them. These jokes start off funny when they are contained to the realm of the internet, but even now these “harmless” memes are beginning to take off in the real world.
Although, you or your friends may laugh at the jokes about VSCO girls (you know, they are funny sometimes) but underneath this is a harmful stereotype that is part of a repeated cycle based on the idea of making a joke out of the next generation of girls.
If boys can be boys, it’s about time that girls can be girls too. Teen culture has turned into a vicious cycle where the new meme of the month is simply a girl trying to live her life.
VSCO girls, E-Girls, Horse Girls, and any other stereotyped teenage girl need to step it up and unite in order to take down the single, common enemy between all of them: E-Boys.
