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Name-calling that targets identity is linked to shame.

Insults aimed at women's bodies reinforce self-objectification.

Public insults signal to onlookers what is acceptable.

On October 10, comedian Shane Gillis hosted Saturday Night Live and used his monologue to say that women at the gym now dress like “whores.” The backlash was immediate. Actor and writer Dan Levy posted on Instagram, saying that short shorts don’t make women whores; they make the men calling them that misogynists.

Gillis’ comment couldn’t have come at a worse time. The country was in a heated argument over the Cornell case, a civil lawsuit in which a former student (Jane Doe) alleges that seven men drugged and raped her at a fraternity party. Underneath the debate sits an old question: whether a woman’s appearance and choices make her responsible for what happens to her. Gillis’ joke hit right at the heart of it.

Same insult, different stage

Last November, aboard Air Force One, Bloomberg’s Catherine Lucey asked President Trump about an Epstein email. He pointed at her and said, “Quiet, piggy.” The White House didn’t apologize. Instead, it accused the reporter of unprofessional behavior. This wasn’t the first time Trump used that word. Former Miss Universe Alicia Machado has said Trump called her “Miss Piggy.”

Name-calling isn’t exclusive to men. Discussing the Cornell case, podcaster Megyn Kelly described the woman at the center as “not the most attractive gal.” When singer Olivia Rodrigo voiced her support for Jane Doe, Kelly called her a “know-nothing moron” and told her to shut up and stick........

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