Even in today’s 21st century, there is a negative stigma surrounding feminism. Why is this the case? Why is feminism such a bad thing? The Women’s Rights Movement was 100 years ago, but for some reason it is still wrong for people to want equality. Property and voting rights are not the only rights we want! We simply want to be seen by society as equivalent to men.
Feminism does not mean “man hating.” The definition of feminism is “the belief that men and women should have equal rights and opportunities; politically, economically, and socially.” Today women do not want to label themselves as “feminist” in fear of coming across as too strong or aggressive because society sees it as such. Men do not want to support feminism because they have been led to believe that we want to take rights away from them, but that could not be further from the truth.
How can we make a change when feminism is typically seen as only for women? While on a different level, gender equality still affects everyone. Women’s rights may not affect my father directly, but he wants me to get an education, and become independent and strong enough to support myself in whatever may come in my future. Women’s rights may not affect my brother directly, but he still wants me to have all the opportunities that he has in order to make a better life for myself. While they may not be affected by women’s rights directly, they are directly affected by gender equality.
We have to remember that while there still is work to be done in this country, we are much better off than women and girls in other parts of the world. Most of our parents do not love us any less because of who we are. Our schools do not put boundaries on us because of our gender. Our life plans are not restricted to getting married and having children. Girls everywhere are kept from a secondary education because it is seen as only a male’s right, restricting them to a life that is full of boundaries that should not exist for them. We are able to receive an education. We are able to work. We are able to succeed in the things we want to do. Not everyone on this planet receives the same rights, even if we do not see it in our day-to-day lives. We have to make a change.
Today, girls as young as nine years old are being given as brides to grown men, and we should not turn our heads just because it does not happen in our own country. Everywhere in this world, women and girls are subject to violence, ranging from online bullying to female genital mutilation. Without fighting something like this, we are subsequently supporting it.
Feminism is something that we should work towards not only for our society, but also for the girls who cannot speak without being punished for simply wanting a good and fair life. If we do not act, there will be another girl left without an education. There will be another girl sold into human trafficking. There will be another girl killed. Without us there will be no change. If that girl were you, would you want someone to help you? Society cannot continue to shame feminism. We cannot accept what is happening in our world today. We have to make a change and as the fabulous Emma Watson said in her speech to the UN Women introducing He for She, “If not us, who? If not now, when?”