I’m the girl who watched movies “for boys” all my life and loved them. I have tried to watch “Pretty Little Liars,” but I wasn’t interested in those kind of shows. I liked kicking butt and taking names kind of films, or the ones with animals. My movie preferences vary greatly. Some of my favorites include strong female roles. . (Looking at you JLaw, you wonderful and gorgeous gem.) I hate the movies where women are objects or cast to the background. I often recall sitting next to my dad, watching “Star Wars” or “The Mummy” together. Or the times I would watch my dad and stepbrother play Call of Duty on the Xbox while my sister was playing dolls downstairs. “Scorpion King” is a good watch too. (Hello ladies, Dwayne Johnson is in it.) Or any of the Fast and Furious movies. (Again, Vin Diesel and Paul Walker. Dwayne appears in the later ones of those movies too, looking hunky as ever.)
This is one of the times that my feminism really kicks in. Why must I be called nerdy or a geek because I watch “Star Trek” or the old “Justice League” cartoons? Why can’t this be common, the norm? Sure, I enjoy being a part of Bachelor Nation as much as the next girl. It’s not that I don’t like shows or movies geared towards women, I do. But why can’t men watch any Nicholas Sparks movie and not get called gay? Why can’t women watch any Batman or Superman movie and not be told that they are trying too hard or that they are fake? This isn’t just about movies. It is about anything that is generalized for one specific gender. Comic books. Video games. Music. Clothes or fashion. Books. Instruments. Cooking. Why can’t we, as humans, just let go of these stereotypes and enjoy our lives?
So to those of you who go beyond your gender norms, do what you please and ignore the negativity you’re sure to hear. Make those first strides. Don’t take anything anyone says to heart. Men, you watch those chick flicks while you’re in the kitchen baking an extravagant chocolate cake. Women, you kick your feet up and watch that next superhero movie coming out, or scream and yell as you play Call of Duty. Jump around and dance life’s worries away. We are only human and we only live once. Don’t be afraid to geek out because you’ll be the only one. Grow your hair out super long or cut it short. Go to Comic Con dressed as a Wookiee or as Wonder Woman. If you get flagged as nerdy or geeky, then so be it. But don’t let those gender norms barriers stop you from living your life.
I mean, come on. Who doesn’t like watching futuristic battles in space with all different kinds of races and species coexisting? All fighting for the same cause: to defeat the bad guy.
