That’s right, I dropped the F-Bomb—FEMINISM.

A friend, and fellow sister, recently commented, “the only thing that makes me angrier than ignorant men who speak negatively of feminism, are ignorant women who speak negatively of feminism.” Chioma Nwanonenyi took the words right out of my mouth, when my (former) favorite actress publicly rejected being a feminist. Because how can women be against a social movement that was solely created for the advancement of themselves? If I’m being completely honest, I think that Shailene Woodley is ignorant on the subject. She defines the feminist movement as ‘raise women to the power, and take the men away from the power,’ which completely deviates from what feminism is actually about. In fact, I think that a lot of people inaccurately interpret the word feminism.  So to clear the air, the Oxford English Dictionary defines feminism as “advocacy of equality of the sexes and the establishment of the political, social, and economic rights of the female sex”. As Lena Dunham so eloquently summarizes, “Do you think that women and men both deserve equal rights? Great, then you’re a feminist.” It's that simple.

Men and women are different. We have different anatomical parts, different body chemistries, etc. But just because women are different than men doesn’t mean we’re less than men. If you agree, then guess what? YOU ARE A FEMINIST. Nevertheless, it can get more complex if you look deeper

If feminism is off-putting or a subject of discomfort, then that is enough evidence to prove that gender equality is a myth; and it’s something that we haven’t accomplished yet. We’ve all heard the following facts at one point or another: women earn seventy cents on the man’s dollar (Center for American Progress); marriages are 50% more likely to end up in divorce when the female is the primary breadwinner (Pew Research Center); 91% of rape victims are female (Bureau of Justice Statistics); etc. Although not every female has been a victim of the aforementioned statistics, I believe that every female has felt the effects of living in a patriarchal society mostly dominated by men. I’ve listed a few ways in which these effects are manifested (in no specific order): 

-My appearance should not be equated to my self-worth and
value as a human 

-If I walk down the street alone, no one should take it as
an invitation to catcall me or harass me 

-If I have had more sexual partners than my male significant
other, I should not be considered a whore 

-If I decide to use contraceptives, Rush Limbaugh or any
other bigoted politician should not deem me a “prostitute” 

-If I was running for President, I should not be judged by
my appearance but by my political platform and philosophy 

-If I am raped, it should not be okay to ask me what I was
wearing 

-If my father talks to me about safety precautions when
going out at night, then my father should talk to my brother about consent 

-If a man murders six females, he should not be sympathized
with just because he was a virgin 

-If I reject a man’s advances, I shouldn’t have to have an
excuse for refusing them 

-If my mom doesn’t teach my brother how to cook, I shouldn’t
be forced to learn how to cook either 

-If a man identifies himself as a feminist, he should not be
celebrated for being decent 

-If a woman identifies herself as a feminist, she should not
be criticized or seen as an extremist 

We should all be feminists because this issue is universal.
It isn’t unique to women; we all have mothers, and daughters, and sisters, and wives. Beyoncé, a fellow feminist, states that, “equality will be achieved when men and women are [granted] equal respect. Humanity requires both men and women, and we are equally important and need one another.” Queen B, is absolutely right. Gaining gender equality has to be a collaborative effort. Women need to truly understand their position and men need to be aware of the male privileges that they possess. 

The next time you hear the word feminism, I hope that you have a different understanding of it. And I sincerely hope that you identify as a feminist too.