Sylvia Likens Was A Victim Of Slut Shaming

How is slut-shaming and public shaming measured? Is it measured by how many people join in and continue the chain of humiliation or is it measured by the intensity of the comments or actions made? Many pop stars have been publically shamed and are pitied for being slut shamed and radicalized public, but does it count for the people that only have been slut shamed by a small group of people? Many people have been slut shamed in a smaller scale yet they still were very affecting to the victim.
Sylvia Likens (picture on the left) was born on January 3, 1949, Sylvia was a victim of slut shaming, public torture and later murder. Let’s start from the beginning, Sylvia Likens was the daughter of Betty and Lester Likens who were carnival workers. She

had two pair of siblings that were fraternal twins and she was the 3 child born in between those pairs. The Likens family had oved around a lot because of the parent’s job and the instability of the household. The family had spilt up several times in order for the children to have a stable education. In the year of 1965, Sylvia was 16 years old she was staying with her mother and sister Jenny in Indiana. Unfortunately, Betty (Sylvia’s mother) was imprisoned with the charge of shoplifting. That is when Lester Likens decided to make the decision to leave the girls with a woman named Gertrude Baniszewski for $20 dollars weekly. Gertrude has 7 children and the condition of their house was in much need of support, despite that Lester left the girls with Mrs. Baniszewski (Trail Transcript- Lester Likens). Lester indicated to Gertrude to “Straighten his daughters out,” (Unknown. "Sylvia Likens | Home Page." Sylvia Likens | Home Page. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Jan. 2016.)

Everything was seemingly fine in the beginning, but as time passed Mrs. Baniszewski became more aggressive. When the first payment from their parents didn't arrived on time Mrs. Baniszewski beat both Sylvia and Jenny with a paddle.
When rumors accusing Sylvia of stealing candy that she had bought were created by Gertrude, Gertrude became more abusive with Sylvia including when she kicked Sylvia in the genitals and accused her of being pregnant.

Then Sylvia was accused of spreading rumors that Stephanie and Paula were “whores”. After all these incidents Mrs. Baniszewski began to tell other kids of the neighborhood to torture Sylvia for being a liar and for being a supposed “whore.” encouraged Hubbard and other neighborhood children to torment Sylvia including, “putting cigarettes out on her skin and forcing her to remove her clothes and insert a glass Coca-Cola bottle into her vagina on at least two occasions.” (Unknown. "Sylvia Likens | Home Page." Sylvia Likens | Home Page. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Jan. 2016.) As a continuation to the torture and the public humiliation and slut shaming when Sylvia as a cause of all the beatings peed on her bed. As an effect of that Gertrude locked Sylvia in the basement and refused to let her use the bathroom. Since Sylvia was in the basement they didn’t feed her at all, they forced her to eat her own “feces and urine.” As if it wasn’t enough public humiliation Gertrude gathered with Richard Hobbs (a boy that likes Sylvia), Marie Baniszewski, and Shirley Baniszewski heated a needle under the instruction of Gertrude Baniszewski and carved the words "I'm a prostitute and proud of it!" into Sylvia's stomach. Additionally, Shirley Baniszewski, also heated eye bolt to burn the

number "3" into Sylvia's chest. (The Picture on the Right is a representation on what it would look like)
After over hearing that Gertrude was going to take her to the woods and dump her there Sylvia made her last attempt to escape and save herself. Unfortunately, Gertrude caught Sylvia listening to her plans and yet again she locked her basement tied up. “Two days later, On October 26, 1965, after multiple beatings, burnings, and scalding baths, and the family memebers and neighbors rubbing salt on her wounds (Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 04 Jan. 2016.), she died of a brain hemorrhage, shock, and malnutrition.” (Unknown. "Sylvia Likens | Home Page." Sylvia Likens | Home Page. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Jan. 2016.) Unlike many situations this slut-shaming and public humiliation impacted Sylvia Likens life because she ended with up dying as a cause of it.
If Sylvia Likens would have gotten the opportunity to recover from the humiliation she had at the Baniszewski’s house she would have done everything possible for women like Gertrude Baniszewski to get medical attention and to prevent for people in Gertrude’s condition to be under so much stress and on top of that take care of children in her state.