I have been a writer for Her Campus’s Alabama chapter for the past two years and, with the new academic year starting, I’ve spent a lot of time reflecting on my work with this chapter. As I head into junior year, I’ve had to reevaluate my involvement with extracurriculars and decide what’s worth my time and energy. This period of reflection has made me deeply consider what Her Campus’s function truly is and why I still put time and effort into writing articles on top of my demanding academic load.
For me, the beauty of Her Campus is the freedom it gives its writers. If you look through my works, you’ll find articles on topics ranging from my honest discussion about having ADHD in college to in-depth analyses of Taylor Swift’s discography. Being able to control what you write about is huge advantage for both the writers and the site. Some of the most honest and educational works I’ve read have been produced by our chapter, such as Rachel Jakovac’s “’Champions of Women’ Volume Two”, or Lorin O’Rear’s, “Dear GOP: Critical Race Theory is Not Your Enemy.” Trinity Hunter’s piece, “America, It’s Time to Wake Up” made me want to apply for Her Campus during my freshman year. At its best, Her Campus can be a place whose content is driven by passion.
What makes Her Campus so unique and vital is that it’s a space where young women can be heard. It’s a women-dominated platform to its core. The title “Her Campus” lives up to its name. It’s an entity that is controlled by women. The use of the possessive pronoun is accurate—we own it. Not only does it allow us to speak up on issues facing women, but it also lets us target issues specifically challenging college women at the University of Alabama. Of course, not everything HC produces is a feminist think piece. However, even articles giving tips about date parties or fashion advice feel empowering to me because of their existence. It’s so validating to see women-centric interests be taken seriously.
HC produces a wide variety of articles, but they all possess one common theme, our audience. The one major editorial direction that writers receive is to write for our fellow college girls. There’s so much media out there that targets the 18-24 female demographic, and most of it is trying to get us to buy something. While the Her Campus brand certainly has had its capitalistic moments, the writing created for this site is genuinely produced with the intention of speaking to and uplifting other women.
In the wake of Roe v. Wade being overturned, that kind of validation feels even more essential. For the first time in American history, that beautiful 18-24 year old female demographic has less rights than their grandmothers. We are witnessing a major step back in human rights, which will produce an incalculable number of negative repercussions for women across the nation. It has always been a scary time to be a woman, but it feels especially scary right now. In one fell swoop, the overturning of Roe has told an entire generation of women and gender non-conforming people that our basic human rights are not guaranteed, nor are they protected. I’m not trying to claim that we lived in a gender utopia before, or that the fight for abortion rights hasn’t been raging on for years. I do live in Alabama, after all. However, SCOTUS’s ruling has been detrimental to my own faith in the future. It’s difficult to believe that you have control over anything when you don’t even have full bodily autonomy.
This is why places like Her Campus are more important than ever — they validate female voices. I’m not saying that Her Campus is perfect, or the answer to all our problems. All I’m attempting to convey is that, now, more than ever, this validation is vital.