I’m not from Utah originally. Even before I moved, rumors spread abound about the religiosity of the place. I heard that people were shameless with their worship, often pushing it onto others. That the men were self-righteous, and the women were uptight. As a middle schooler, I wasn’t too sure about these rumors — I thought they would be patently untrue. Per my expectation, my lived experience did not live up to them.

Something I have noticed about the religious community since living here is the ever-present feeling of restraint. Women in particular practice a certain type of shame-related repression that I have never encountered anywhere else, and it is harmful. I wasn’t sure why repression and chastity existed in such a way in young people until I came across the Brigham Young Virginity Club Instagram account. The sense of shame and guilt immediately made sense.

The content of this Instagram page is shocking and deserves our attention. It’s never been explicitly stated whether the account is satire, and its over-the-top promotion of virginity so closely mimics church messaging that many are unable to tell for themselves. The aggressive, political content of the Brigham Young Virginity club’s Instagram page clearly shows that it’s not a page about virtue-signaling but instead promotes repression.

Strong Language

The Instagram account is an amalgamation of text-only posts made up of three colors — it’s a simple, easy-to-read page that attracts its users through minimalism and punchy headlines. But when you read those headlines, you’re struck by how aggressive and divisive the language is. The group’s main claim is that those who choose chastity and remain virgins before marriage are a “marginalized group of society.”

The page is made up of helpful tips on staying chaste and what to do if you’re called out for your ‘virginity’ — yet it also bashes those who do not choose it. One of the posts instructing what to say if someone laughs at you reads: “Good one. I can laugh about myself, too. I’m sure I’ll have a good laugh when you die alone and go to Hell.”

Aggressive language like this is common on this page — there are posts calling people sinners and claiming those who don’t live ‘purely’ will end up in Hell. It makes its message abundantly clear: virginity is marginalized and hated, even though it’s the only way to live. Instead of boasting about empowerment and support to those who choose to follow a chaste lifestyle, the account uses harsh language to criticize everyone else. It uses comparison as a weapon for the repression of ‘purity’ by saying those who are not chaste deserve to live bad lives.

The page talks a lot about “haters” and those who try to bring it down. There’s also a recent post claiming that “Satan’s forces” tried to bring it down when it was subject to a hacking attempt. Its defensiveness only adds to the blatant aggression.

Politicizing Private Matters

The page has a nasty habit of sensationalizing sex habits. “Pride is a sin,” reads the account, “but there is nothing prideful about representing your virginity. By letting others know you practice abstinence, you will lead them by example. Our movement needs evangelism, not secretism. Wear your purity on your sleeve.” This statement is gross and of bad practice. No one should feel obligated — or entitled — to shout their sexual status from the rooftops.

The page itself further tries to politicize virginity — it makes several attempts to turn virginal stigma into a social and political issue without much success. Its latest post reads: “Virginity is inherently political in our polarized capitalist society where religion is under attack and politicians have abandoned moral governance/policy.” Virginity is not political and not under attack from politicians — it’s not even a valid marker of ‘purity.’ It’s a religious pseudoscience that holds no relevance to a modern lifestyle.

Lack of Legitimacy

Whether this page is an attention-seeker looking for hate clicks is unclear. To many, it seems to really stand behind what it’s saying, even if it’s bizarre and outrageous. The comments find the page humorous, regardless of whether the page takes itself seriously.

When I reached out to the page to express interest and ask some questions, I received nothing but radio silence as a response. This indicates to me that this page understands its status as unbelievable. It knows that it spreads repression and aggression rather than actual solutions and empowerment. And yet this page maintains itself, despite its lack of credibility.

This page is an excellent case study of how language and content can be skewed to assert that one lifestyle is the right one, and all others lead to damnation. Although this particular page might be a laughingstock, it’s a clear indication that purity culture and all its nastiness are still prevalent in religious communities.

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@harperlhargis