I am a feminist.

The first time I said those words out loud, I was in Introduction to Women Studies as a sophomore in college. In the first day of class, my professor asked, “Who identifies as a feminist?” And I didn't know what to do. As I saw hands go up all around me, I asked myself what feminism actually was. And I had absolutely no idea. Little did I know that class was going to change my perception of this world and ignite my passion for feminism.

Let me clarify: No, I do not think that women are superior to men. No, I do not hate men. No, I do not burn my bras or have terrible hygiene. These qualities that you believe encompass feminism are not even close to the reality of what it actually means. As the famous feminist theorist, Bell Hooks once said, “Feminism is a movement to end sexism, sexist exploitation and oppression.” Basically, feminists think men and women should be equal. That’s it.

So, why does no one want to call themselves a feminist?

Thanks to popular media, negative stereotypes of feminism have been perpetuated by movies, television shows and the news. They make feminists out to be man hating monsters who yell “down with the patriarchy” and want to destroy society as we know it. No. It’s time to rewrite the script on what feminism is and how it is viewed by the media, and thereby the average person. Until we all accept feminism as what is simply right and everything else as pretty damn sexist, we have a huge societal problem.

If you asked the average person “Do you believe that men and women should be equal,” they would most likely say “yes.” Of course, most people know that men and women should be seen as equal in all respects (workplace treatment, maternity leave, average wages, etc.), but if you were to ask “Do you identify as a feminist?” the response would likely be much lower.

These two questions are asking the same thing, but the media has corrupted the image of what a “feminist” is and turned it into a villain. Conservative forces, in particular, have forced this negative view of feminism upon us, with certain outlets going so far as to publish headlines such as “Would You Rather Your Child Had Feminism Or Cancer?” That headline, by the way, was published by Breitbart news, which a member (Steve Banon) of the current President-elect’s team is a part of. Right now, and certainly during the next four years, we need feminism. We need true feminism, the belief in gender equality, not the skewed version which we have been presented with.

America is about to welcome a man who has been recorded making disgustingly sexist and misogynistic comments and disregarding them as nothing more than “locker room talk.” This is not okay on any level; it perpetuates rape culture and sexual violence against women, and it somehow did not disqualify him for President. This is not the worst he has done, but it is a clear example of how much we are going to need feminism in the next four years.

And the first step into achieving that? Educate yourself. Google ways on how to get involved on the matters that are important to you. Don’t listen to popular media. Read a book on feminist theory.. The first time I read Bell Hooks, I was in a Feminist Issues class and the work we read was called, “Feminism is for Everybody.” It clearly explains feminism from an intersectional approach that makes it clear to anyone reading it what feminism hopes to accomplish.

I hope that reading this can help you realize that identifying as a feminist isn’t what the patriarchal mass media makes it out to be because this world desperately needs feminism if we wish to progress in the upward direction in the next four years. We need to unite together and become activists against sexism, racism, Islamophobia, transphobia, homophobia, and any kind of oppression.

“The people, united, will never be defeated.”

Thank you to my friend Janelle Neary for helping me write this article.