Becky Sargent/Th e Falcon

I am not a whore.

Despite what some of you may have read on my whiteboard, heard in dinner conversation, and/or joked about in passing, I have a legitimate, non-degrading job, thank you very much.

In light of the discussions during Violence Against Women Awareness Week, I just wanted to take this time to do a quick Colbert Report-esque "wag of my finger" at a disturbing new trend that I've noticed around campus.

The word "whore" is becoming a term of endearment.

Now, I'm not the coolest person when it comes to the hip new lingo, and I might have missed something, but I'm pretty sure "sex for money" still means "having sex for money."

Trust me, there is nothing endearing about that.

Or, even funny about it.

In Prostitution: Fact Sheet on Human Rights Violations, Melissa Farley, Ph.D. of Prostitution Research and Education, said that prostitution is sexual harassment, rape, battering, verbal abuse, domestic violence, a racist practice, a violation of human rights, childhood sexual abuse, a consequence of male domination of women and a means of maintaining male domination of women.

Do you still want to joke around about your friend being a whore?

"Whore" becoming a term of endearment is even worse than the word "pimp" becoming a positive adjective. As despicable as the practice of pimping is, at least the word "pimp" is still used quasi-properly.

"Pimp" is used to refer to a guy surrounded by a lot of women or an individual who seeks to replicate a pimp's outlandish style. Although now used with a positive connotation, the understanding that a pimp is someone, usually a male, who profits off of the exploitation of women, is still known.

Avery Matro is a sophomore double-majoring in english literature and classics

But having, "Boo, you whore," follow, "I'm sorry I'll have to miss dinner with you tonight," displays a complete lack of understanding what that word actually means. The dictionary defines "whore" as, "a woman who engages in promiscuous sexual intercourse, usually for money; prostitute; harlot; strumpet."

Yes, having a lot of homework to catch up on is practically the same thing as selling my body; I can see how you could be confused.

No, what is legitimately confusing, are the numerous reasons justifying the use of the word "whore."

"Don't worry, guys. We're taking it back."

"It doesn't mean anything."

"It's OK to use it if you're part of the community."

Each and every one of those justifications is a myth and a dangerous one at that.

Adopting a derogatory term that is used to dehumanize your sex is not "taking it back." It's making its use acceptable. It trivializes the pain and hurt that the use of that word causes an individual when you flippantly use it to refer to a friend who forgot to call you back.

The very fact that the word "whore" needs "taking back" means that it means something. To call someone a whore is to call that person a prostitute. And despite this twisted culture that we live in, where porn-star memoirs are best sellers and fetish role-playing outfits are acceptable Halloween costumes, I hope that the thought of being forced to sell your body and essentially your humanity for money is still unsettling.

This trend of using "whore" as a term of endearment is not only affecting women. What kind of message does this send the males that view this development in female-female relationships?

I would be, still am actually, frequently called a "whore" by my friends for various reasons: flaking on a dinner date, not being able to go somewhere, you get the idea. While this irritated me, I bought into the myth that since only members of my community (aka women) were using it, what harm was there? So, I didn't say anything.

That changed the day one of my guy friends decided that we were close enough that he could likewise call me a "whore." I forgot what I was doing at the time, but whatever it was, I stopped and just stared at him. His face told me that he was joking, and why should he think any differently since one of my girlfriends had called me that a few minutes earlier.

But that struck me. Here we were, at a Christian college in the middle of Violence Against Women Awareness Week, and one of my guy friends called me a whore.

Whether he meant it playfully or not, it is not OK.

Ladies, let's value ourselves more highly and stop using the word "whore" to refer to our friends and ourselves.

I would rather be known as a woman of not-so-easy virtue, thank you very much.