An article by “The Guardian” describes the “chill girl” as “a girl who lets distasteful jokes slide so as to not seem angry or woke by their male peers.” In a school with strong vocal platforms such as Student Government, Affinity Groups, MX, and clubs such as Student Task Force and Reproductive Justice Club (RJC), the “chill girl” culture at Parker shouldn’t exist, but it does.
According to the World Population Review of the 193 UN Member States, “women make up 21% of the world’s Prime Ministers, 26% of Parliamentarians, and 34% of local deliberations.” However, the Inter-Parliamentary Review states that “men hold three times as many executive and legislative positions, and that the rate of women in office is hitting a decline in 2025.” Nevertheless, the existence of women in office at all proves one thing: the world is starting to not revolve around men anymore. Men are being handed a silver platter of power less and less.
“Teenage boys are veering to the right,” a 2022 Monitoring the Future survey reported. The current U. S. administration seems to appeal to the young male demographic because it places them right back at the top. If a rich businessman with 34 felonies and two impeachments can still hold the unshakable support of a large percentage of American voters, the “boys will be boys” mentality becomes boundless. This phenomenon is increasingly apparent in the halls of Parker. I constantly see circles of boys talking about politics over a table, one thing I do not see is girls at that table.
As a young woman who has been both an observer and a participant in political conversations with young men at Parker, I can confidently say that I am treated differently as compared to my male peers. I could say the same thing as a man and be met with something that can only be labeled as condescension. From looks of shock when I say a fact to overtly being laughed at and called “woke,” I know that my experience isn’t unique. I know that other girls in and outside of Parker have been met with the same response. These kinds of prejudiced responses from boys only fuel the “chill girl epidemic,” contributing to the suppression of the young female voice. Why waste time trying to prove a point to someone you know won’t listen? Why risk being labeled? Why get yelled at?
In a school where students learn to think, it is inevitable that students will discuss what’s going on in the world around them and form opinions on their own. This is one of the best parts of Parker, and a part that becomes difficult when not used for progress. When those passionate opinions become rooted in bias, it is imperative to speak up and correct mistakes. If Parker students want to truly gain the most they can out of Parker’s philosophy and way of learning, being okay with the girls they interact with every day not using their voices as much is not the way. It only supports the archaic opinion that women are inferior, and that is no opinion that any teenage boy should bring with him into adulthood. If a girl can’t simply talk about what answer on the homework was right without getting yelled at by a group of boys, that is a serious problem that every student who values the people around them should be concerned about.
The scarier it is to speak up, the more vital it becomes to speak up. It’s hard to converse with your community when those same people view you as less than themselves. At some point, those people cease to be your peers. Words like “woke,” “angry,” and “dramatic” are words that are thrown around to describe women. In reality, those words are rooted in gender bias and stereotypes. They are used to instill fear into women, to diminish them, and to quiet them. When you hear something, say something. What a group of teenage boys thinks of you doesn’t matter, your voice does. Young women’s voices, especially in a high school, are one of the many voices that play a pivotal role in broadening perspectives and combating discrimination.
As students at Parker, we are fortunate enough to have the opportunity to make change in the school. As girls, it is crucial that we utilize those opportunities to stand with each other. Student Government announcements, speakers or presentations at MX, and even simply raising your hand in class are a few of the ways young women at Parker can speak up. Progress-oriented groups such as RJC’s Youth Reproductive Justice Summit, Women of Color Affinity, Social Justice Committee, and countless other student-led spaces all provide a safe and uplifting way to speak up. Above all, being a support system and an upstander are the two biggest ways boys and girls alike can unite to end the “chill girl epidemic.”
