It’s no stretch to say that we’re living through some serious political chaos. There hasn’t been a day this past week where President Trump hasn’t passed a new law that seems to set us back fifty years of progress – from cuts to abortion funding, to the approval of the Dakota Access Pipeline, to orders that are seeing people turned away from entry into America in airports literally right now. And, better yet, we can turn on the news and watch our own Prime Minister endorse him and his actions. Brill.
The world feels like a particularly difficult and scary place to be in right now, and it feels so tempting to log off Twitter and turn off the news and run as far away from politics as is humanly possible and live in a cabin in the woods. But this isn’t how we make a difference. The Women’s March last Saturday is a key example of how we can’t let feeling disillusioned stop us from taking action; things are tough, but nothing will change if we don’t resist.
Here are eight fictional ladies who would totally have marched last weekend, and who can motivate us to keep hoping and to keep fighting back.
Annalise Keating, How To Get Away With Murder
Annalise is an unapologetically black, bisexual, and three dimensional female character. She’s not perfect – she’s definitely broken the law quite a lot – but she’s the ultimate Girl Boss, totally unafraid to speak her mind, to be heard, and to be seen.
Professor McGonagall, Harry Potter
Head of Gryffindor House, Animagus, member of the Order of the Phoenix, and one of the only competent adults in charge at Hogwarts throughout the entirety of the Harry Potter series, McGonagall is potentially the most badass woman of them all. She’s entirely devoted to keeping her students safe from the corrupt forces that attempt to take control of the school. She takes no crap, feeds information to the Order of the Phoenix when Voldemort takes control of the school in The Deathly Hallows, and never lets fear get the better of her.
What an amazing lady.
Cressida, The Hunger Games
You might have forgotten about Cressida and the role she played in the final two Hunger Games films, but she’s everything that we need right now. A successful Capitol director who joined the Mockinjay when she heard of the rebellions in the Districts, Cressida uses her talent as a force for resistance. She takes her skills and puts them to good use, sparking a nationwide rebellion.
Leslie Knope, Parks and Recreation
We like to think that there’s a reason why the National Parks have gone rogue on Twitter, and that reason is entirely Leslie Knope. Leslie is the champion of local government; she goes from being deputy of the Parks and Recreation department of Pawnee, Indiana, to being a city councilwoman, and eventually becoming President of the United States, but it’s not just that making her the badass female character she is. It’s her fearless optimism, her capacity for hope and kindness, and her commitment to supporting and raising up other women that really inspires us.
Save us, Leslie.
Eowyn, The Lord of the Rings
She often gets reduced down to simply a sad girl who whines about how the boy she loves doesn’t love her back, but Eowyn is so much more than that. She defied orders to stay at home while the men fought, refusing to accept that she was too weak to fight, and ultimately killing the Witch King. She fought the battles that she wanted, and didn’t let anybody tell her that she couldn’t.
Mulan, Mulan
Mulan is prepared to do whatever it takes to protect her family and her country, and she’s devoted to standing up for what is right and fighting injustice. She refuses to accept the laws put in place that expect her elderly father to fight, and that prevent her from fighting in his place because of her gender. She refuses to let the fact that she’s a girl keep her from doing what she wants, and the fact that she’s a Disney protagonist means that she’s inspired countless children and young people.
Furiosa, Mad Max: Fury Road
There’s potentially a bit more at stake in the political turmoil of Mad Max: Fury Road – what with it being set in a destroyed, post-nuclear holocaust world and all that – but there are still some pretty significant parallels that we can draw with our situation today, and Furiosa is still the feminist icon that we need. She frees the wives of the tyrannical leader Immortan Joe (who also has a pretty horrific hairdo… just saying), and is 1000% prepared to fight to the death to keep them safe. She refuses to give in, refuses to concede or contribute to a corrupt society or respect its leader.
Leia Organa, Star Wars
Leia became the face of the Women’s March last weekend, and for good reason; a senator, leader of the Rebel Alliance, and general of the Resistance across four Star Wars movies, she consistently proved herself as not only a fearless female leader, but also someone who wasn’t afraid to stand up against injustice and fight. She’s everything that we need and everything we should aspire to be, and no list of badass ladies would be complete without her.
Keep fighting the good fight, folks.