Elisa Mariño
2 min readFeb 14, 2022

--

Not really. It could be just show consequences for actions. Example: a friend told a man that she didn't want him to lick her. Yes, you heard right, he wanted to lick her. she didn't wanted him to lick her. She stated boundaries over her own body. He licked her check thinking that he was being funny or flirty. She slapped him because he crossed a boundary that is perfectly reasonable. People don't go around licking others without consent. It is disgusting. The men was shocked because he expected no consequences. He didn't bothered her anymore. Mision acomplised.

So I would say that reaction to crossing boundaries should be balanced. Slaping someone for something minor that can be just said, os not ok. Slaping someone who crossed boundaries like that men did, is a perfectly reasonable answer. You are protecting yourself.

If you touch someone against their will, yes, you risk an equal response and that response might be a slap or a push to get them away from you. And sure, some guys would get violent because they think that they have a right to touch you even if you don't want to. But slaping you back won't make your first response wrong, just reinforce that they don't respect your boundaries.

No one have to be "mature" about unwanted touch. If someone tries to kiss me against my will, it is normal that I react pushing them back and stopping them. If they become violent after that, I would also react to that violence. And let me tell you, it won't be by cowering and deciding that sudently I'm ok being touched against my will. That is not mature, just coward.

Don't slap people for petty reasons. But don't hesitate to defend yourself even physically. Context and reasons for doing something matters.

Holding ourselves to the same standards also means reinforcing boundaries and expecting that "no" suffice. And if that no is ignored, and word are ignored, your only options are either walk away or defend yourself physically. As simple as that.

--

--

Elisa Mariño
Elisa Mariño

Written by Elisa Mariño

Fiction is the art to tell lies to show truths. Politics is the art to use truths to tell lies.

Responses (1)