I had the misfortune the other day of watching an arrogant homophobe's youtube video in which he spent 6 minutes reacting to a video that explained the term "gender non-binary." While I didn't think the video he was reacting to was all that good in the first place, that wasn't my concern.

My concern was that this raging moron sat in front of his video camera, explaining his view on gender, all while being too uncomfortable to say the word "vagina." For 6 whole minutes he went on about how there are only two categories of bodies and therefore two genders "male, with a penis, or female, with a... hoo-ha."

Well, sir,

I, a female, don't have a "hoo-ha." There is not one part of my body that is going to be labelled as a "hoo-ha." And if having a "hoo-ha" is the requirement for having a female body, I regret to inform you that there are absolutely no females in existence.

I have, however, met many people with vaginas. Some who identify as female, some who don't. But even those who don't identify with male or female, the "its" as they've been so rudely called, don't have "hoo-has."

So I wonder, if a tree falls in the woods but we cannot call it a tree, did it even exist in the first place? If Vagina cannot be spoken of, does it even exist?

As of right now, I don't think it does.

I don't think that vaginas exist in the way they should. They should be known, and feared. But they should not be feared because they are weird and awful things that should not exist, even when being spoken of. They should be feared because there is nothing stronger than something that cannot be spoken of and yet is still the focal point of so many conversations.

My vagina, and everyone else's, is fighting against your fear. We are at war with your mouth, and we refuse to back down. Say the word and say it proudly:

Vagina.

Be confident in the human body, for it is the only body you will ever know. Do not ever tell me you love a woman if you cannot say you love every part of her, "hoo-ha" included. Do not ever tell me you love yourself if you shy away from your own anatomy, because love and silence do not correspond. Affection and rejection do not coincide. We must reclaim the word that has shamed us for so long, the word that we have been taught to fear.

I am fighting your fears with you, because we all know they are unreasonable. With the fear of the word comes the fear of the thing being spoken of, but I promise you, vaginas will not hide under your bed while you sleep. Vaginas will not haunt you. Vaginas will not harm you.

Say it loud and proud,

Vagina.