This truly is a man’s world, and you know what, it sucks.

I emailed my mentor last week to see if he had some free time to chat. I hadn’t spoken to him in a while and needed someone to talk to about the ups and downs of being a freelance writer.

Let me begin by saying I adore my mentor. He’s a Brooklyn raised, Guyana born brown skin shorty with curly salt-and-pepper hair. He has a young spirit, loves hip-hop and proudly wears his Converses and jeans to the office.

“I have a bone to pick with you,” he said as he cleaned his glasses.

“You do?” I asked

“Oh yes I do. You’re a feminist and you preach women’s rights and presentation and all that, yet I see photos of you on a beach showing cleavage and wearing a bikini. What’s that all about?”

“I was on vacation!” I said.

“Who cares if you’re on vacation. You think companies care about context? You have to be strategic about these things.”

“But I was on vacation.”

“I know a girl who was interviewing for a marking position at a company and they got a hold of her Instagram and saw pictures of her in Trinidad at Carnival dancing and having fun. Unfortunately, she didn’t get the job,” he said.

I don’t expect companies to understand my West Indian culture, nor do I expect them to see our dancing, gyrating our waistlines, and parading down the street in colorful costumes that show off “peer belly skin” (Jamaican patois for midriffs) as anything other than sexual. However, I do expect any future employer to infer that I was on a beach, and while on a beach, I decided to wear the traditional garb, which was a bikini.

“Yeah, that sucks for homegirl, but I wasn’t at Carnival. I was on vacation.” I said this time with more attitude in my voice.

“Listen, I can keep it real with you or can I shut the f- up, whichever one you like,” he said. “There are just perceptions out there that exist and you have to be mindful of that.”

I understood where he was coming from, but I still felt like my mentor was exhibiting a patriarchal view point, which meant attacking me for not hiding my body.

If there were ever an appropriate place to “expose” my body, it’s on a vacation and on a beach. I wore a bikini, which consisted of a top and bottom. I did not wear a thong bikini, nor did I take photos showing my ass. It was a girls trip to Montego Bay with my mother and if you saw cleavage while I was wearing my two-piece, well its because I have breast.

Shocker!

If I were a man walking along a beach with no shirt on, I’m almost positive my mentor wouldn’t have any bones to pick with me, or tell me about the “perceptions” I would face in the corporate world.

“You’re a woman in the entertainment industry,” he said. “You have to be mindful…

His voice began to trail off because I stopped listening to him. I became irritated and annoyed.

How is it wearing a bikini while in Montego Bay on vacation (I can’t stress enough, I was on vacation) can be an issue for future employers? Was I suppose to dress modestly on a beach? Without sounding arrogant, I don’t have a “modest” body! I have full breast, hips, thick long legs and thighs that I’m not ashamed of.

So what, because I’m an attractive woman who wore a bikini on a beach I won’t get hired for a job I’m qualified for? Or are women now suppose to think about how their bodies are perceived to male bosses they don’t even have?

What if I lost 50 pounds and this vacation was my coming out party? Am I not suppose to show off my hard work because I have to worry about how I will be perceived? Am I not suppose to be proud of the fact that I don’t want to hide my body?

According to my mentor and these “perceptions,” I have to be mindful of a potential employer’s lustful desires based upon my vacation photos. Even when the photos don’t depict a traditional sexy pose, I’m now being held responsible for any sexual feelings I may incite.

And even if said male employer doesn’t find me attractive, are bikinis on tropical beaches now considered inappropriate? And more importantly do feminist not wear bikinis? To be a woman not insecure or ashamed of her body–back fat, flabby arms and all–is the truest definition of feminism, womanism and all things awesomeism!

Rick Ross–prior to his 100 pound weight loss–proudly showed off his large stomach and folks honored it. I go on vacation, take a pic in a bathing suit, and now I have to worry about “perceptions.”

Why aren’t women allowed to have an after five o’clock life without having to worry if that life affects their 9-5? I wore a bikini, on a beach, while on vacation. That doesn’t mean I can’t think of a dope headline for a story, or bang out a kick-ass interview, or even write great post.

But because I wore a bikini on a beach, while on vacation (beating a dead horse, here) I have to worry about not getting hired? Really, dude?

A guy walks on a beach, shows off his abs, and it’s “Bro do you do Crossfit? Oh, me too!” ***high-fives each other***” “F- yeah!”

I walk on a beach and show off my abs I’m either A) looking for attention B) Being a thirst trap or C) Proudly broadcasting my daddy issues.

Can I live?

Alright folks, I want your two cents. Was my mentor being sexist, or am I being hardheaded? Does he have a point, or does he need to have a seat? Tweet me at @GoldingGirl617 using the hashtag #Vacay.

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Shenequa Golding is a music/lifestyle freelance writer based in New York City and has written for outlets including The Associated Press, VIBE, MSNBC.Com, HelloBeautiful.com and more. When she’s not writing her life way, she can be found praying in a corner, hoping she can afford to pay her student loans for the month. / Twitter / Instagram / Blog