By Raquel Catpo, Staff Writer
Primarily created and popularized on the app TikTok, terms like “pick me,” “super straight,” and “simp” are now widely known and used throughout social media apps like Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter. To most people, social media terminologies like these are seen as powerless, trivial phrases. In reality, some social media terms can be damaging to others because they encourage negative behaviors and ideas.
The term “pick me” has taken over Tiktok, with 1.8 billion views under the hashtag “pickme” and 278 million views under the hashtag “pickmegirl.” According to Urban Dictionary, “A pick me is a woman that is willing to do anything for male approval. She will embarrass or throw other women under the bus to achieve this goal.” This terminology was originally used to describe women with internalized misogyny, but over time, “pick me” has been frequently used as an excuse to degrade girls and women. One example of this is @daryanwillyardt’s TikTok video, in which Daryan repeatedly lip syncs “pick me” when referring to girl cheerleaders. Other examples where this term is used are if a girl doesn’t wear make-up, wears “too” much make-up, wears leggings, has a softer voice, or has a certain clothing style. In summary, the term “pick me” is toxic because it is many times used to shame girls and women for having different interests or personalities.
The next social media terminology, “super straight,” was just recently created in February by TikToker Kyleroyce on the social media platform, TikTok. As of April 15, the phrase “super straight”, including all videos, hashtags, and accounts under it, have been removed and banned from TikTok for its “association with hateful behavior.” As stated by Urban Dictionary, the definition of “super straight” is, “A straight person who only dates people that were born with the opposite gender.” In other words, someone who claims to be “super straight” would not date a transgender person. Some argue that the term “super straight” is a new sexuality, but I’ll explain why it’s actually just transphobia. If a man is interested in a woman but upon finding out she is a transgender woman, loses interest, it is strictly because she is transgender. There is nothing wrong with having preferences, but excluding a whole group of people solely because they are transgender as well as making an invalid sexuality is transphobic. Furthermore, the terminology “super straight” claims to be MORE straight, implying that transgender women and men are not “real” women and men.
The term “simp,” created in 2019, has also begun trending throughout social media apps. On TikTok, there are 7.6 billion views under the hashtag “simp.” Urban Dictionary states a “simp” is, “someone who does way too much for a person they like.” However, the overuse of this word has altered its meaning. For the most part, the word “simp” is now used to describe a boy or man who does something nice for a girl or shows affection towards a girl. Men are called “simps” for showing any kind of respect towards a woman. Some examples are if a man texts a girl first, opens the door for a girl, talks highly of a girl, or is “softer” around a girl. This is problematic because even though it’s usually meant as a joke, it shames men for being respectful and polite towards women. Moreover, it pushes the belief that if a man values a woman or is polite towards a woman, he is weak, or not a “real” man.
At first glance, these few social media terminologies seem innocent and light-hearted but in truth, these toxic phrases can impact and discriminate against whole communities, like transgender people or women. The use of these words, even as jokes, reinforces unjust ideologies and assumptions. Using appropriate terms rather than harmful ones, is the more thoughtful choice.
