Is It Unfeminist to Teach Your Daughter Not To Drink?
The perils of raising girls in a drinking culture
Trigger Warning: this article contains a brief discussion of sexual assault that may not be suitable for all readers. Fearless community, please read with care.
I started drinking because I wanted to have fun, but it wasn’t long before I got into trouble.
The First Bad Thing happened at a sleepover. It was a rainy Friday night, my best friend Zara’s 14th birthday party, and someone suggested we buy cider. I had taught Zara how to drink, but now she was an old hand. Sometimes I wished we could go back to how it was before we got hooked on booze. Jumping out of boxes and giving dead arms.
Had our friendship been better before I brought alcohol into it?
Our first drunk was unforgettable. We dry-humped saplings and jumped into hedges, and sprinted through our Geography teacher’s garden. We shared two tiny bottles of Ouzo and laughed until our cheeks hurt.
Nowadays drinking felt different. Serious somehow. We forced down the vinegary — tasting liquid, and waited for the fun to start. Only it didn’t. Not really. Not anymore.
