Womanhood is brought on with a monthly “gift” that you wish you could return and a jump into the real world. With every passing year, you become more like your mother, even though you will deny it forever.

At first we want a boy’s attention because it makes us feel valued and we want people to notice us. At first we like when people check us out when we walk across the street because it makes us feel desirable.

Then we come to a point where we can’t go to the grocery store in sweats without a man following us down every isle. Where we can’t feel comfortable at our work because we get sexual comments and advances thrown at us. Where we can’t feel safe saying no.

And we go through school watching teachers send girls to the office for “reveling” clothing when the boys sitting in class are wearing tank tops too. So you sit and wonder when their education became more important than hers.

Then we start noticing all of our friends talking about the times they were taken advantage of. About how those times must have been their fault. We start noticing our Facebook feeds filled with women talking about how the justice system didn’t take their sexual assault/harassment seriously.

When you start noticing that every woman has millions of stories about times that they felt disadvantaged, downgraded, or scared for their safety by the hand of a man. When I really started listening, it shocked me how normal they thought it was.

Then the final blow is when you see women posting that they don’t need feminism. Like it is some disease that they believe is going to wipe out the entire population. So you wonder who told them that it was an evil organization of men hating women, because it certainly wasn’t a real feminist. Maybe they are just misinformed by numerous social media outlets.

I am not a man hating, crazy feminist or a misinformed millennial. I am a feminist that believes in human rights and equality of all human beings. I do not just advocate for women, but for all people.