Feminism is not a bad thing. Being a feminist means equality for women and men. It does not exclude gender, and I would go so far as to say it does not exclude race—on the sheer principle of wanting equality for genders of different races. Men can be feminists. Everyone can be a feminist.

Feminism allows anyone to have the rights they deserve. This could mean voting, equal pay, and even the right to live life the way you wish. Let me pause here; being a feminist allows you to live your life the way you want to live it. So, why is there such an uproar with women who want to be stay-at-home moms? They are not undoing hundreds of years of feministic work. They are not saying that it is wrong to be the CEO of a corporation; they are not asking you to quit your job, to be weak and unable to accomplish anything; they are simply saying, “I want to live my life this way,” and they are. This does not mean that they themselves are weak, either, and I am not saying that. Women who choose to stay at home are honorable. They are raising our next generation, our next inventors, and our next president. They have an important role in society. In the same perspective, those women that are CEO’s, leaders, single mothers working three jobs, and women who are going to college to further their education are also inspirations. They are bettering the environment we live in. They are giving us the proof that women can do anything men can do. Women can make amazing lawyers; they can run companies, countries, and the world. We should instill these ideals in little girls and in little boys. We all have an important role in society, and being a feminist means you realize that what you choose to make your role is up to you. Living in America we have the privilege to say this and put it into work, and it is truly an empowering thing. In contrast, though, it breaks my heart to say that feminism has become so degraded in today’s society with the media defacing it and showing the radical sides. We cannot change lives of females, males, or anyone, by bickering about the labels to which we assign causes. To me these ideals of feminism should be basic human interests, so why do we need to label it? Our instincts should tell us to speak up for equality; it is a downright shame it does not, and that the label of feminism has been turned into something people are ashamed to call themselves. Feminist ideas have become polarized to the point that women believe we are the superior gender when all genders should be equal. We should all be equal.

We have this luxury here, and in other countries, enough for women and men to live in equality, but other females in more traditional countries do not. Instead of criticizing those in our country who are not sufficiently feminist, we should turn our attention to all the women who cannot choose their husbands; women that do not dare to go anywhere without clothing covering every inch of their bodies except their eyes; women who are stopped at their doorsteps, paralyzed by the fear of death pending their steps outside. These are the women feminists, and everyone actually, need to be speaking about. There is more progress to be made beyond our borders. In Iran women, along with men, are still subject to amputation of legs and arms, stoning, and whippings—which are often displayed in public, and allowed even if people have not been proven guilty. Women in Iraq are the victims of domestic violence and rape daily, becoming purely sex slaves, and there are no convictions because of the legislation protecting Islamic views in Islamic states. These are actual crimes deserving of the utmost punishment. We should be raising these women up instead of shunning women in America who choose to live harmless lives.

In light of Middle Eastern, Egyptian, and all imprisoned women, we are extremely privileged in America. Sure, there are still improvements to be made within the context of gender equality here, but what we fail to realize sometimes is that there is more to fight for in women’s rights across the world. Feminists should stand up for those that cannot stand up for themselves. As a country, undivided, we should not try to break each other. There are women far more deserving of our support. We should strive for change and equality if we are going to step up and honor anything at all. This should be our purpose.