When I was young, I used to think the term "feminism" was a nasty word. Women who claimed to be "feminists" were just women who hated men. Women were equal to men, and there was no reason to argue that. As I grew, I realized how truly uneducated I was. My view was shaped by the people around me, and it became clear to me that my entire life I had been misinformed about what it means to be a feminist, and I think many people who are anti-feminist are misinformed like I was just years ago. I am a feminist because I believe in political, social, and economical equality between men and women. I will do everything I can so my children will see a day where women are equal to men, and that includes marching for our equality.

Whenever I tell someone that I march at the Women's March, I typically receive two responses: 1) "That's awesome that you are standing up for what you believe in!" or 2) "Why? We already have every right you could ever want." The second response makes me want to projectile vomit. We are not equal. Why can't you understand that? Are you so privileged that you think inequality doesn't affect you? I would love to live in your little world where men and women are equal, but sorry, that place doesn't exist in the United States. We are not equal. In the state of Ohio, Governor John Kasich has issued multiple abortion bans while he has been in office. If we were equal to men, our bodies wouldn't be up for debate every other day in the General Assembly, by the opposite gender. Maybe, if Kasich wanted to prove how much he cares and values life, he would start by ending death penalty laws.

We are not equal. If we were equal, the pay gap wouldn't exist. White women wouldn't be paid eighty-three cents to the man's dollar; African-American women wouldn't be paid sixty-five cents to the man's dollar; Hispanic women wouldn't be paid fifty-nine cents to the man's dollar. We are not equal. If we were, we wouldn't have to carry mase or keys in our knuckles when the sun goes down, even in our small little towns, to avoid being attacked and raped. We would be able to wear whatever we want without men dictating our self-expression because they can't control their boners. In your little world where women are equal in the United States, did the most qualified woman in American history still lose to the least qualified man for the presidency? Are women still taxed on Tampons? Are women still shamed when they speak out against men who rape and assault them? Does the pay gap still exist? Do women have full control to what gets to grow in their uterus?

We are not equal.

THIS is why I march, and I won't stop burning my bras with the other millions of women who strive for equality until we reach a day that ALL women are equal to men. If you're tired of third wave feminism, maybe you should leave your little world where women are equal in the United States, and vote for people who will help reach the goal of equality, instead of people who just take us back to times that we worked too hard to overcome.