Feminism – why is the word such an uncomfortable one?

My early morning attempt at making a difference!

This is just one of the many brilliant points Emma Watson raised during her recent UN speech on the ‘He for She’ campaign. And, as it turns out, her message is important. It’s easy these days to automatically think of man-hating, matriarchal Firestone types when people say the word “feminist” and of course in some cases, there are women in this category who are identified as feminists. But that doesn’t make a young woman who spends her days in floral dresses baking and singing Disney songs (who- me?! *ahem*) any less feminist- because it’s not about the details of your identity – it’s about having the choice to create one in the first place!

I’m sure I’m not the only one who can relate to the examples Watson used in her speech, such as being branded as ‘bossy’ for acts that would likely be seen as a display of leadership in men. “But what’s the issue?” some may ask. “Women can vote, they can work, why do little things like that matter? They have equality, feminists are just making a fuss about nothing.” The truth is, true equality isn’t gained until we get rid of these attitudes. And honestly many of us, men and women, are probably been guilty of it without even realising. I remember back in primary school being told I wasn’t allowed to read the Bartman comics during Golden Time – those were for boy to read and as girls we wouldn’t understand. This is a problem that works both ways- men are frequently judged for actions considered to be traditionally for women, such as being a stay-at-home dad.  What I’m hinting at is that perhaps we should adopt a ‘She for He’ attitude too- gendering actions is a barrier against equality and it needs to stop. 

The wonderful Matthew – student supporter of the ‘He For She’ Campaign

This is why the UN campaign is so important- you don’t have to be a female to be a feminist. The lovely Joseph Gordon-Levitt recently released a video discussing his feminist beliefs (definitely worth a watch!) and some of the negativity he got in response. God forbid that a man sees women as his equals! This attitude can also be seen in the rather disgusting response of 4chan blackmailing Emma Watson with the threat of leaking naked pictures – her private property. This rather sends the message of “How dare you push for equality- we will now publicly humiliate you!”- slightly medieval don’t you think?

So, to those of you who have stuck through my rant, think what you’re saying a bit more. I’m not guiltless myself in this area, I used to be a bit naive about feminism in modern Western society and whether or not it had a point. Thank you to Emma Watson for speaking up in front of the whole world on the issue, and I can only hope the ignorant responses to her speech fade away pretty soon

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