Everyone has had that moment when they think to themselves, "I'm being discriminated against." It's a natural feeling when one feels left out, but coming from a woman's perspective it's an everyday experience. Now while most of us ladies, especially in college, are thinking about who our next boyfriend is or when the next party will be, there are other issues we should be considering. I'm not around here to preach or to act like your mom but I believe every self-respecting woman should be a feminist.
Feminism has taken on a negative connotation through social media and news articles and many women that are feminists are now being called 'feminazis.' Contrary to popular belief, there is a difference. Feminazis believe that men should be treated unequally to give women a higher advantage and therefore tip the scales in our favor. Feminists, also termed equalists, believe that women and men should have the same rights. They're the more peaceful of the two terms and have made progress in their attempts at making things equal for women around the world. One of their more recent movements include growing out body hair. Young women around the world are growing out their leg and underarm hair to prove to men, and other women, that it's perfectly acceptable to not be the almost hairless being that society has expected them to be.
Now, regarding the topic of millennial ladies: You should naturally be a feminist. You should want to do what you please with your body, you should want to be paid the same amount as men, and you should not want to be sexualized by your community to benefit your male counterparts. Most women are uneducated regarding these subjects and even if it takes a few minutes out of your day, maybe a quick read while you're waiting for your shower to heat up in the morning or finishing up the last deliciously sweet sips of your frappuccino, you should educate yourself.
The biggest concerns regarding women's rights are based upon the fact that rules and regulations are being forced upon us by men. Your president is a man, most of your senators are men, and check out your congressmen because (as the name states) many of them are men. They can't understand that women deserve birth control through their insurance because problems like that are irrelevant to them. We never asked to be naturally fertile! Their beliefs that women shouldn't be able to have abortions are based upon fickle biblical myths and religious intolerance. People take excerpts from the bible such as the ever popular "thou shalt not kill" and run with it to try and prove an imaginary point that a woman can't do what she pleases with her body.
Ladies, please listen, and follow my advice. Fight for your rights! If your boss thinks it's fun to stare at your chest while you're talking to him or if a man tells you to go make him a sandwich, stand up for yourself. No woman should ever be degraded or treated as an object. No woman should be turned away from an abortion clinic because they live in the bible belt and that's 'not Christian-like.' It isn't funny when a man jokes that a woman's place is only in the kitchen. Remember not being able to show your shoulders in high school? That rule was to keep boys from being distracted in class. Young girls are being sexualized by the educational system and that's not right. It's definitely more distracting to see a pair of superman boxers hanging out of some saggy jeans that are two times too big than to see a girl's shoulder poking out of a tank top.
The point of me telling you this is to keep you ladies in the right frame of mind. You're all so beautiful, so strong, so smart. Don't ever let any men tell you that you're not worth it and don't let the double-standards of today affect you. If a man plays around with a bunch of women he's called a 'player' and he's idolized by all his buds; however, if a woman is with a bunch of men she's called a 'slut' and shamed by her peers. Don't let anyone shame you for who you are. If you look in the mirror and think "I'm not pretty enough," or "I'm not skinny enough," you're thinking that because that's what men have forced you to believe. That's what social media and celebrities have led you to believe. Every woman of every size, color, attitude, and background is beautiful. You are all celestial, you are all goddesses, and don't let anyone tell you otherwise.
