Say It Louder: The Word Is Vagina, Not 'Shame Shame'!

What was the name given to your vagina when you were a little girl? Did it have a name at all? Was it called "that part" or "there"? Being taught the 'good touch' and the 'bad touch', our parents often discussed our genitalia in secrecy or discomfort, using euphemisms or vague references, leaving us to navigate our bodies with a sense of confusion. We grew up associating our vaginas with shame and silence, feelings that continue to linger even in our adulthood. 

However, it is now time we rewrite that narrative. It is time we reclaim our bodies and their parts, not just as biological vessels, but as expressions of autonomy and empowerment. This is precisely the conversation that Shaili Chopra, founder of SheThePeople and Gytree, engaged in with Lilly Singh, artist, content creator and social activist. 

The Vagina Is Not A Bad Word

Singh and Chopra highlighted the stigma they witnessed around the female body since their formative years. Singh, the founder of Unicorn Island, a social impact and entertainment platform, asked her guest a poignant question. "When did you become comfortable saying the word 'vagina?'" Chopra replied, "The day my daughter was born."

"Our body and agency go so closely with each other," Chopra asserted. "No matter what we say, we have been taught that our bodies are not for us. They would teach us, 'Your vagina is not your vagina, it's shame-shame!'" Singh nodded vigorously sharing her frustrations with the societal conditioning that enforces shame. 

The two indomitable media personalities discussed their mission to uncover the 'mystery' that shrouds conversations about women's anatomy. "How can you have agency when you do not know what your body is worth?" questioned Chopra. The discussion then took a fun turn with a rapid-fire game naming tabooed body parts and their functions. 

The duo unabashedly said all the words that have long been discussed in faint whispers behind closed curtains-- from vagina to penis and clitoris to pleasure. They turned a topic that is often shrouded in discomfort into one of liberation and joy. This playful exchange shattered a long-attached stigma to women's bodies and autonomy.

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Why Correct Names For Body Parts Are Important

In 2019, a social worker in the US shared the horrifying story of a child sexual assault survivor. According to reports, a little girl repeatedly told her teacher that her uncle had been touching her 'cookie', the word she was taught for vagina. However, since the teacher could not comprehend the real meaning behind 'cookie', the case went ignored for months.

While the story has not been verified, the social worker used it as an example to highlight why it is crucial to teach young children the correct terminology for their body parts. "If you do not teach your children the proper names for their parts, people can miss important signs of sexual abuse. There’s no such thing as basic anatomy being 'age appropriate'," she wrote on Facebook. 

This lack of understanding of our bodies can also permeate into our adult life. Lilly Singh wrote on Instagram, "Here’s the harsh reality: nearly half of all women are denied the power and agency to make choices about their body. They don’t have the right to decide whether, when and whom to have sex with. To use contraception. To seek healthcare."

She added, "Sadly, many women don’t even know their own bodies—how to care for them, how to advocate for them, how to celebrate them—because they were never taught it mattered or never felt their body was their own." Thus, Singh and Chopra opened a candid conversation and advocated for the reclamation of women's bodies.

Overall, the advocacy to destigmatise body parts navigates a cultural shift towards openness, education, and empowerment regarding our physicality. Chopra and Singh's dialogue not only reverses the history of stripping women of their bodily autonomy but also paves the way for more open conversations around sexual liberation, women's safety, and consent.