I identify myself as many things. A nerd, a gamer, a daughter, an aunt, a book-lover and a writer just to name a few. One thing I have always had a lot of pride in identifying as is a feminist.
What bothers me most is that for some reason, we are at a point in time in which this is something I should be ashamed of. Being a feminist is something I am supposed to feel dirty about. Well, I kindly refuse and will explain to you why.
When I was younger (and even now) I was a huge fan of Joss Whedon's "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" a show about demons, the occult and the one girl in all the world destined to protect against these forces of evil. Buffy taught me so many lessons about what makes a girl powerful and brave, as well as what can break a girl down.
I remember in the early 2000's I watched an interview featuring Joss Whedon in which he labeled himself a feminist. I was confused to say the least, because I didn't understand how a man was allowed to be a feminist. So I did some research and discovered something I should've known all along, feminism is not a ladies club for man-hating, but instead the notion that women are equivalent to men--not better, not worse.
This was something of a revelation for me and led me to discover my immense love for strong women in television, film, literature and games. I began to gravitate toward female protagonists, not because I felt they were better, but because they showed me that women experienced all the same hurdles as a Luke Skywalker or a Clark Kent. The struggles of men were no different than the struggles of any human, and leading ladies gave me the ability to see this first hand.
Over the course of the past year, I have had many people shudder in disbelief when I say I'm a feminist, or wrinkle their nose as if I just said "Yeah, I murder kittens on the weekend. You know, for funsies." I've even had women I know say things like "Yeah I think women should be equal to men, but I'm not a feminist."
Well I hate to break it to you, but you are, and you should definitely be proud. While I am well aware there exists a pretty toxic community of women who think men should be obliterated and we should create some Amazonian society, that IS NOT WHAT FEMINISM IS ABOUT.
Feminism is simply the notion that women are people too. That the fact that a wage-gap exists is foolish. That assumptions made about my abilities based on my gender are preposterous. That I am here only to cry and eat bon bons and bring children to life is absurd. Feminism has nothing to do with me hating men or believing I am superior because I have a vagina, but that my genitalia determines absolutely nothing about who I am and what I am capable of.
I think if we can get to a place where men and women alike live by this school of thought, we will see a more prosperous and positive future for not only young women growing up in this world, but young men too. If we can teach young men to not identify women as objects and instead their equals, we can create a world in which consent is not only taught, but understood. It also gives men the opportunity to explore their emotions and become more comfortable in their own skin.
If we can teach young women that they are capable of whatever they set their mind to, the way we teach this to young men, we can build a world in which equality is a right, not a privilege.
If you took the time to read through this and you are scared of feminism, I implore you to think of the way you feel about women and their rights. If you agreed with most of what I said here, then consider that you may very well be a feminist too, and you should be extremely proud of that fact. Together, we can reverse the stigma of feminism and bring up a generation that values all human life, not just the ones that have a penis.