My friend was recently asked, "Are you a feminist?" and then we got thinking, how could you be a female and not be feminist?? I'm all for everyone having their own opinion but I would be lying if I said it didn't completely blow my mind that there are some women who claim to not be feminist.

While being content with your role as a woman in society is fine, I think it's worth clearing up a couple of things. Feminism is not whiney white middle-class American lesbians that don't shave. Feminism is not fighting for the rights of just American women, feminism is for all women. Feminism is for white, black, Hispanic, Asian, and LBGQT women. And feminism isn't solely just for women at that, it is equal rights for both genders. It is the wanting to terminate stereotypes, double standards, and unfair advantages that both genders face. Feminism does not mean you don't respect men, it means you respect yourself enough to know that you deserve equality.

Being a feminist will not take away your role as a nurturing mother if that is what you want for yourself. Being a feminist will not take away the gentlemen role of opening car doors and asking girls on dates if that is what you want for yourself (even though that sadly is rare nowadays anyway). It will not take away a man's desire to "provide for his family" if that is what he wants for himself.

What Feminism actually is...

Feminism is fighting for equality. There is unequal pay and while you can deny all you want that women don't have disadvantages, the fact that women still make 80 cents to every man's dollar is just that, a fact. "At the 10th percentile, women are paid 92 cents on the male dollar, whereas women at the 95th percentile are paid 74 cents relative to the dollar of their male counterparts’ hourly wages. Asian and white women at the median actually experience the biggest gaps relative to Asian and white men, respectively. But that is due, in part, to the fact that Asian and white men make much more than black or Hispanic men. Relative to white non-Hispanic men, black and Hispanic women workers are paid only 65 cents and 58 cents on the dollar, respectively, compared with 81 cents for white, non-Hispanic women workers and 90 cents for Asian women," (Economic Policy Institute). According to the World Bank, South Korea experiences the biggest gender wage gap of 36.6% and New Zeland experiences the least gender wage gap, still at 5%. You can not tell me that as a woman, it does not frustrate you that you can do the same job as the man next to you and make less than him solely because you are a girl.

Feminism is fighting for women to have a say in what happens to their body. While you may not agree with abortion, it is not your call or place to judge what any other person does to their body and we need to all understand that.

Feminism is the breaking of double standards and stereotypes. It is wanting to get rid of phrases like "you __ like a girl" and "man up." It is the fight to get rid of having to "act like a girl" and to be "manly." It's fighting against the "boys will be boys" excuse. It is the breaking of girls not being able to play certain sports because their "guy sports" and guys not being able to wear makeup because "it's just for girls."

Feminism is the fight to not be catcalled or ridiculed for what one chooses to wear on their bodies. Feminism is fighting against the objectification of women's bodies. It's women getting ridiculed for showing skin while men can be shirtless and get praised for it. It's the strict dress code regulations aimed at females teaching them that their body is a distraction and in order to control men they have to control what they wear.

You can vote today because of feminist.You can work today because of feminist. Women have gotten to where they are today because of feminism yet although we've come a long way, we still are not there yet. In some places, women are still being denied education. In some places, women are still looked at as less qualified and efficient than men. In some places, women still cannot own property and the husband is still the dominant one in the house. It's 2017, it's time we modernize our views and fix these lingering problems. We shouldn't still be having to prove ourselves just based on our gender. We shouldn't be denying education because of gender. The Feminism Movement is important and it's important for both men and women everywhere to stand by this movement. Our voices deserve to be heard. If we're not fighting for change, nothing will change.