Feminism awareness has been a hot topic in 2015. This is good because healthy debate and greater understanding helps us all – women and men. If you’ve been stirred into being more proactive as a feminist but are not sure how, these few tips will help.
Do not be afraid to call yourself a feminist. The only way we are going to be able to change the perception of feminism being a man hating, aggressive movement is to let it be known that women (and men) from all over the world, from all different backgrounds, are not afraid to label themselves as such and can show everyone that feminism comes in all forms.
In order to be the best feminist that you can be, you need to understand and acknowledge that feminism comes in a multitude of different guises, whether it be white, black, Asian, male, female, gay, straight, rich, poor etc. Not all feminists have to look and think exactly like you to be ‘correct’.
One of the key things people can forget about feminism is that it is all about equality of choice, not necessarily everybody agreeing with your own viewpoints. A woman can be a feminist and still be a doting stay at home mom. It doesn’t make her any less deserving of the title than a career woman who owns her own company.
True feminism isn’t about trying to get one over intellectually on others; it’s about sharing enthusiasm and support for all women in whatever goals they want to achieve. Like I said, wanting to be a doctor or wanting to be a secretary are both equally important for feminism; it’s all about the freedom of choice.
The key misconception about feminism is that all feminists hate men. This simply isn’t true! In fact, something the feminists should do equally for men as they do for other women is support them in their ventures. Again, equality is the key word here; not one gender being superior to the other, but both working together to make a better world.
Feminism should never be used as an excuse for a woman to be downright horrible to another woman. Calling somebody a disgrace to their gender in the name of feminism isn’t helpful to the cause; it just means that the name caller is a mean individual who is masking their personal spite by using a broad term.
This is sort of a case of practice what you preach. When it comes to feminism, you should try to be as independent as possible so that you cannot be accused of being a hypocrite.
If you ever find yourself in a situation where some major misogyny is taking place, don’t hold back in calling that person out for their behavior. The only way people are going to learn is if they are made aware of their own misgivings.
Ideally, calling yourself a feminist shouldn’t just end with accepting the term. You should be making an effort to become more learned on the topic. Having more knowledge will only help you to educate others further down the line, advancing feminism, step by step.
Personally I think feminism starts with the individual woman. Where do you stand on this issue?