I cook for my man, I love dresses and heels; pink is even my favorite color. I am your breathing stereotype as a girly girl, and yes, I am a feminist.

It blows my mind that even though we are living in the information age there still seems to be so much confusion about what it means to be a feminist. There's so much confusion about the term that a new label called “equalist” has come into popularity for people that support equality of the sexes.

However a term for wanting equality of the sexes already happens to exist, which shouldn’t be hard for anyone to find who has access to the internet: feminism. Feminism is defined by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary as “the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes.”

Even empowered female celebrities like Lady Gaga and Madonna, who are champions of promoting equality, shy away from calling themselves a feminist when asked because they “love men” or prefer to call themselves a humanist. Let me just clarify what humanism is before you start calling yourself that instead of a feminist.

The term humanism was first coined in the Renaissance to describe a cultural movement towards the revival of Greek and Roman thought. Humanism also refers to the philosophy that focus on the human is more important instead of the divine or supernatural. In short humanism has nothing to do with equality.

And what’s with this idea that feminists hate men? I will acknowledge there are some extremists that may call themselves feminists who are anti-man, but you can’t let a few extremists define the movement as a whole. The KKK claims their beliefs are tied to Christianity but we certainly don’t condemn Christianity for the actions of a terrorist group.

If feminism was about hating men, feminist clubs certainly wouldn’t be allowed to be formed within the guidelines of a university. That would be like a university allowing themselves to be associated with a hate group that would alienate half of their student body. The universities aren’t being tricked into allowing man-hating feminist clubs to form, they just simply understand the definition of feminism.

It is important to mention that since feminism is about equality of the sexes (not world domination led by females) it's a movement that benefits men too! There's a toxic standard for masculinity men are forced to adhere to.

They aren’t supposed to show much emotion unless it’s anger, they are seen as less masculine for being stay-at-home dads, they're given harsher sentences than women who commit the same crime and, perhaps most upsetting of all, they have to pay for cover while women get in free!

But in all seriousness, because men aren’t encouraged to express themselves since emotion is stereotyped as a “feminine trait,” it can put their well being at risk. Being taught that "boys don’t cry" and that they need to “toughen up” can lead to men not seeking out the help they need when suffering from depression or other mental health issues. They're discouraged from building strong bonds with their children because of the gender stereotypes deeply ingrained in our society that raising children is a mother’s job.

Sexism is also why women may get a shorter sentence for the same crime as a man. There’s a problem with standardization of sentencing when it comes to race and gender bias. Any true feminist would argue that a woman be given the same time for the same crime as a man because, although the movement started to gain more basic rights for women, the inequality is toxic on both sides.

I should also make a note that feminists may not have always been inclusive of all types of women, thus the term intersectional feminism was coined. Intersectional feminism is modern day feminism. It takes into account different identities, whether they be based in race, sexual orientation, social class or anything else. Feminism truly is for anyone and everyone.

So stop being scared to call yourself a feminist. Feminism is not a dirty word. It’s a word to describe the champions for equality.