The mother tells the daughter
Don’t wear that skirt, it’s too short
Men will look at you in no way you want them to
The mother tells the daughter
Don’t stay out too late
That’s when the monsters come out
The mother tells the daughter
Speak only when you are spoken to
The men will never listen to you
He never listened to her when she said no
When did they ever ask for it?
The mother tells the daughter
carry a knife, carry mace
Just in case you must protect yourself
The father tells the son
Go out tonight
Have a good time
Photo by AlivaPam 
Mack,
this is an incredibly strong poem and a very cool and jarring way to approach both rape culture and that double standard that exists between men and women. Thank you for this. I’m excited to see more of this type of pieces.
Dear Aliva:
I am very surprised about your post “Be safe” because of the way that you expressed your thoughts about women. You’re saying that they are very sensitive and that they need to take care of themselves more than men.One sentence you wrote that stands out for me is “The mother tells the daughter ‘Don’t wear that skirt, it’s too short Men will look at you in no way you want them to’”This shows that men don’t have respect for woman. Another sentence that got my attention was “The father tells the son Go out tonight Have a good time” this grave my attention because I think this saying that for men the parents doesn’t have to worry about nothing because men can protect by him selfs. Thanks for your writing.
Sincerely Andrea.
This is a very powerful way to approach a very sensitive topic. I think you really illustrated the double standard we hold in society for males and females and what is expected of them. I hope you write more soon.