With over 32,000 students and about 16,000 undergraduates, Boston University is its own ecosystem—a breeding ground for ideas and diversity. Although, comparatively speaking, BU is diverse and reflects the opinions and backgrounds of thousands, something BU (and the rest of the world) still needs to stably institute is gender equality. Freshman Francesca Ogilvie Vaeza grabbed her roommate, Grace Li, and some guidance from Emma Watson and UN Women, to bring gender equality to BU. Next fall, He for She will have an established chapter at Boston University.
A movement for gender equality started by the amazingly inspiring Emma Watson (yes, I am a fan), He for She stands against gender bias and discrimination. This is quite literally a movement, fighting hard to be a force that inspires everyone to treat each person as equal. It’s not just about feminism and helping women overcome their obstacles; its about abolishing all gender stereotypes so that men and women and everyone in between can live without a stigma, without the pressure to be someone they aren’t and without daily oppression. It’s about equally representing the underrepresented half of the population and empowering everyone.
Although she’s lived in seven countries, Francesca spent most of her time in Latin America with a stay-at-home dad and a mom working for UN Women. This unconventional set-up stood out. With the macho-man culture prevalent in Latin America, her parents, particularly her father, weren’t accepted. He should be the one providing. He is a man, after all. But what was actually happening was that Francesca’s father decided to be a stay-at-home dad so that her mother could follow her career path. Francesca’s home life presented her with a perfect example of why gender stereotypes mean nothing and why every family and person should have the freedom to transcend them.
Through bringing He for She to BU, Francesca is optimistic that the movement will grow and take root in our current college generation. When I asked her why she felt BU needed He for She, Francesca gave an answer that I hadn’t really thought about before. She said that BU was the perfect place for He for She because of the amount and diversity of students. Most of us at BU are very westernized and definitely privileged, but in our position, we can actually do something to help push the movement forward and make it a worldwide phenomenon. Francesca and her staff plan to work with other campus organizations to facilitate action toward gender equality in politics, health, identity, education and work, while diminishing violence against women.
It is also important to note that He for She is not just a feminist a movement. It’s about eliminating gender stereotypes for men as well. He for She aims to get rid of these small niches everyone is supposed to fill according to their sex. This movement is vitally important for the men at BU and the world. Despite the preconceived notion that initiatives such as these are by women and for women, that’s actually pretty far from the truth. Gender equality holds no ground if it stands without the help and support of the male population.
Worldwide, He for She has already made important stride in giving females greater access to education. On our BU campus, it can work to change our culture and spread that influence wherever BU students go.
