Today the word feminist has a specific tone to it. We think of bras being burned and women enslaving men. But feminism, at its core, is people standing up for the rights of women everywhere. It’s fighting against the mistreatment of women as a part of society. Though things are better than they were in the past, there is a lot of work still to be done.
Throughout history, there have been three different waves of feminism. Each one working on slightly different ideals for the rights of women. The current wave is focused on the definitions of femininity, which (according to them) over-emphasize the experiences of upper middle-class white women. Trying to fight for women as a whole, allowing them to be exactly the people they want to be.
We all share this planet. Together it is up to us to make it a better, or worse place for those who are to come after us. So, in our time here, it’s important to make a difference for every single person you can. Independent from where they are from, what they believe, what color they are, we all share this space. And among all the inequality in the world, and especially in our country, why are women treated as less than men in a culture that has no time for such petty inequality?
According to an article written by the Institute for Women's Policy Research, women will make 79 cents for every dollar their male counterparts will make. And when it comes to getting into a career, a man and woman can have equal experience and knowledge, and more often than not the male will receive the position. Why is this still happening in the modern world? Where these women will work just as hard, and do just as good if not better than a man, why are they still belittled in such a way?
In the past, women were given the position of being the mother and caretaker, while the father was the breadwinner. The man would provide the support for his wife so she would not have to work. And there is nothing wrong with this. But on the other hand, there should be nothing wrong with a father wanting to stay at home and being a caretaker for the family. But presented this idea, it simply seems wrong and out of place.
From the time we have been children we have slowly been conditioned to believe that this is just how things are meant to be. Men will be workers, and women will be mothers. We see it in our media, in our toys, even in our clothes when we are first born. We are treated different, and taught that we are different. When really, we aren’t. A woman can do anything that a man can do and vice versa.
I will not be silent about the inequality of those around me. We all deserve to be treated as what we are: humans. No one person is better than their neighbor. The rights of women have come a very long way since the first wave of feminism, but there is still work to be done.
