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| Hi. Hannah here a.k.a alittlebitbroadway on YouTube |
So, today's post is going to be about something major in the modern world, something which I think should be discussed. Feminism. Yes, I know this is a very controversial topic of discussion and most likely top in the list of "things to avoid in your first blog posts", however my take on it is not your typical passionate speech type of thing. I am going to tell you about my life outside feminism.
Now, before I start, I want to clear something up. I believe that men and women should be equal. I do not support gender inequality in any way and I have great admiration for feminists. But, as much as I love the pride we as a sex have for who we are, I do not class myself as a feminist.
Now, I'm pretty sure at least half of the people reading this won't like my opinion there and that's fine. That's good actually. You see, the reason why I don't class myself as a feminist is because I believe in the individual happiness of every person, rather than fighting for something which won't make every person happy. I know it will make 90 percent of people happy but there are some who believe one gender to be superior to any other genders. Therefore, they would not agree with equal rights for all, nor would they agree with feminism.
Let me explain myself better. Everyone is entitled, not just to their own opinion, but to an opinion which they are proud of and believe wholeheartedly in. If people are happy with their own beliefs then I'm happy not fighting for something which might deprive them of that happiness, however wrong everyone else might believe that opinion to be. I am happy with the world we live in, though not always fully satisfied with the actions of a few people in it. It's not that I don't want equal rights, it's just that at the moment I feel that I have equal rights, personally. Therefore, I wouldn't class myself as a feminist because I can't see the destruction gender equality causes.
Of course, now most of you will be saying, "Hannah, that's so selfish!" "Hannah, do you know the facts, the statistics?" And my answer to that is yes. Yes, I do know about the horrible gap between pay, I know about the percentages and proportions and I do care about them. I do care about helping others in the battle against discrimination and I do care about and fully support those who fight, not just for their own rights, but for the rights of others as well. I admire them.
To me, feminism is a personal battle. It requires life experience and a lot of guts. In the past, I have had someone say to me, "Are you a feminist?" And when I've said no, they've said to me, "Well, you're not a real girl then." So, let me get this straight. If I'm not a feminist, is it right to say I can't be part of my own gender? Am I to be categorised by a belief I should hold, but don't? What are we fighting for here - gender equality for only those who fight, or gender equality for all? Now, answer me this. How can we fight for equality between men and women, if there isn't equality between women alone?
There's a television advert in the UK called This Girl Can. I expect other countries have seen it too - it's all over YouTube. It's a very inspiring, beautiful and motivational advert, showing women competing, doing sports and lots of other activities which show off what they can do. I think it's great, so great that women are speaking up, being given a chance at anything they want to do and I'm glad that we're reaching a stage where women can do whatever they want to do, no matter what that entails. Every day at school, we're encouraged to take science and maths, showing universities what tough, powerful, inspirational women we are.
But that's just it. Do you have to do that to be one of those "awesome girls"? Do you have to be a doctor, lawyer, physicist or accountant to be tough, powerful and inspirational? Are women getting equal rights by doing things society has classed as "manly jobs"? And what happens to those of us who aren't any good at maths or science, or have more interest in music than maths, who place art and design over chemistry? Where do we fit in with this ever-changing society? Sometimes at school, I'll be told it's "wise to take maths A-Level" because it's "more impressive" and "employers regard it highly". So, does taking English Literature make me less impressive? Do drama and music make me less employable? Because every subject, every skill, every gift teaches you something. And, as every person is unique, no one else can do what you can do. "This Girl Can" tells girls they can do all the things we've been told we can't. But what about those things we can do already? We seem to be falling into the mindset that, unless you take science and maths, unless you play sport and want to go into well-respected, highly paid profession, "you're not a real girl".
So, here comes the real point of my post. I'm here to say that yes, feminism is fantastic. Yes, you can take science, maths, sport and do all those amazing jobs which women simply didn't have the chance to do a few years ago. Yes, I am so proud and supportive of you if you are a feminist. But I'm also so proud of you if you're not. I'm proud of you if you, like me, don't want to put your name down for something you don't fully understand or necessarily want to believe in. I'm proud of you if you've realised that feminism is, at first, a personal battle; that, to begin with, you have to feel worthy yourself, so you have the strength to fight for others. I'm so proud of you if you dropped out of school and threw your calculator over a cliff!! If that made you happy, that was the right thing for you at the time.
So yes, maybe in 5 years time I'll call myself a feminist. I'll be happy to say, "I am fighting for global gender equality". But for now, I want to be accepted for my passions. I want to know that, even though I want to act and sing and write, I am still a "real girl". I want there to be equality amongst everyone, not just between genders. I want finding personal happiness to be a priority for everyone, because only then can we fight for others as well. Above all, I want to know acceptance and know that This Girl Can do whatever the hell she wants to do.
