Feminism is the theory of the political, economical and social equality of the sexes, according to Webster’s dictionary (and Beyonce). Women’s rights is a hot topic right now, with the newly-inducted president having had some press around his views on feminism, and a universal women’s march having been just a few weeks ago, it seems to be all I see on my Facebook Timeline nowadays.
But what is feminism? And are you actually a feminist just by being a female? I didn’t partake in any marches; does that mean I’m not a good feminist? I decided to question some female UF students to see what they thought.
“Feminism for me is more the equal treatment of everyone, so not necessarily empowering women,” said Susana Beccera, a senior communication sciences and disorders major.
“Showing everyone the same kind of kindness. That everyone should have a fair shot in life.”
But everyone’s definition of feminism can be a little different. Some people do see feminism as more than the fight for equality; it can be an idea of empowerment.”
“There was this lady in high school who was kind of like a mentor kind of to me,” said Isabelle Bermudez, a junior telecommunication major. “She explained feminism to me as just being the best version of yourself that you can possibly be and just giving your best to everything that you do.”
Feminism isn’t a females-only club that constantly puts men down. Feminism should be about self-identity and confidence, as well as universal empowerment.
“You hear about feminism being so aggressive and man-hating and all that,” Bermudez said. “That wasn’t really my style, and I just never really considered myself a feminist until she kind of took me aside and explained it that way to me and I was like ‘Okay, I can get on board with that.’”
In the media, you often see many things about these insane protests or quotes from feminists trying to encourage girl power. Though girl power is amazing and should be an idea that every female is aware of and feel encouragement from, this doesn’t mean that women should view themselves as, or fight for themselves as, better than men. You can be a feminist, and want equality and equal pay and equal opportunity as men, but still believe in following traditional practices.
“Men to women, women to women, women to men; I think that everyone should just be treated with kindness,” Becerra said. “That’s not saying that some of our traditional values should be completely thrown away. I like when a guy pulls out my chair before I’m going to go sit or comes over around and opens the car door for me.”
Remember, feminism does not mean “the same as,” it means equal opportunity for everyone as women. We don’t need to try to change who we are for these equal rights. We should embrace our differences while working and fighting side-by-side.
“People take it to different extremes, or just interpret it differently,” Bermudez said. “I mean, I don’t know that it’s as much about equality as it is about identity. People might disagree with me on this, but I don’t think that women should necessarily have to be able to do everything that men can do, the same way they do it, just as well. I think we have our own strengths as women. There’s things about us that men could never do.”
Our differences are what make us beautiful, special and unique. Not just our differences as women to men, but even just women to women. Feminism allows us to embrace the uniqueness that every girl embodies.
“First of all, I don’t think that feminism has to mean that I decide any stereotypes,” said Samantha Mora, a senior communication sciences and disorders major. “I think that you can be a feminine feminist, so that’s just something to keep in mind. But I think that it just means that everyone is (as) deserving of these equal rights because currently we really don’t all have equal rights, which is sad. “
Whether one is a girly girl, who is obsessed with makeup and fashion, or science nerd that always has their head in a book, we should all have the same opportunity to do what we want, work where we want and make the same as our equals.
“I’ve always been a girl who loves science, which is maybe not the stereotypical “girl” thing,” Mora said. “I’ve always loved science and I haven’t let being the only girl stop me.”
Girl power is all about the equal rights of men and women, but it’s more than just equal rights; it’s a movement to empower women and remind them that they deserve equality and are amazing just the way they are.
“t sounds so cliché, but Identifying who you are and what you want your role to be (and) what you think your role is and living into that,” Bermudez said on what feminism means to her. “I think for me, it’s embracing that I am pretty girly and feminine instead of forcing myself to feel like I have to compete with the guys or be at the top of the career ladder just to prove (something)…”That’s not me, so I’m not going to force myself to be that way.I’m going to be me.”
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