Let’s take a walk down memory lane: The year is 2019, the air is crisp and there are no signs of COVID-19 yet — life is good. VSCO girls have taken over the internet, and one thing that sticks with their sksksksk-identity is the Hydro Flask.
Everyone knows the Hydro Flasks, and in 2019, everyone learned to hate them. Why is that? Because they represented a stereotype.
Back to the reality of 2024, a whopping five years later, and we are doing the same thing. The Stanleys. Everyone knows them, and everyone, once again, hates them. But maybe if you stopped focusing on a water bottle and looked to the real world for a second, you will realize there are bigger issues than a 40-ounce, loud cup.
I can recognize the obsession with, and consequential hatred for, Stanleys. Why do we need 30 of them? Or why do the meanest girls I know own them? But let’s not look at those characteristics, and just focus on the water bottle.
Stanley has been in business for over 100 years, providing drinkware and gear at affordable prices. Until recently, Stanleys were popularly used for hiking due to the durability of the cup.
We can all admit that a Stanley cup is a pretty durable water bottle. In a now-viral TikTok, one woman showed that her Stanley cup was the only thing left standing after her car caught on fire.
Now to address the elephant in the room: lead. Several people are using the lead in Stanley cups as the number one reason to hate Stanleys. In reality, they are covering up where their true hatred lies — the stereotype.
To put the rumors aside, Stanley released a statement that said it follows industry standards for lead presence in the bottles. However, Stanley’s spokesperson told TODAY.com, lead exposure from Stanley cups is not a source of risk unless it’s severely damaged.
One thing we can agree on is an issue is the hoarding of Stanley cups. Hoarding anything can be a problem. But hoarding any type of water bottle — not just Stanley cups — is bad for the environment.
Personally, I own one Stanley. Before that, I was using a plastic water bottle and water fountains. I think we can all agree that using a reusable water bottle is better for the environment than using a three-day-old Dasani plastic bottle.
And yes, often a specific group of people in society own a Stanley. But who are you to judge? I get it, everyone wants to be different and set aside from societal norms, but things are popular for a reason.
As a 20-year-old college student with three jobs and an urge to do nothing but knit in my free time, being hydrated is what I’m primarily concerned with — not what water bottle I drink out of.
Get off your high horse and realize that not everyone has to be different. It is a freaking water bottle. Please, can we acknowledge that there are so many more dangerous events happening in the world that we should be getting mad over? Let’s bring this attitude to human rights, and help other countries who are clearly in need.
The next time you see someone holding a Stanley, please remind yourself that it is just a water bottle. It will not hurt you. It will not call you names. And please, stop stereotyping people based on individual items. Let’s leave that in the past and allow everyone to enjoy their life without being categorized as nothing more than a member of a group. Grow up, and stop being a hater.
