This article is a response to the article "I Am A Female And I Am So Over Feminists."

“Beliefs are beliefs, and everyone is entitled to their opinion.”

With this, you are correct. You are entitled to your opinion, and I am entitled to mine. An important part behind opinions is education about the matter.

That being said, let me educate you on the true meaning of feminism. Merriam-Webster defines “feminism” as the theory of political, economic, and social equality of the sexes. NOT women having ascendancy over men. Women have fought and continue to fight every day for the last century to attempt to gain the same rights as men. Feminism does not include putting people of the opposite sex down.

“I’m all about girl power, but in today’s world, it’s getting shoved down our throats. Relax feminists, we’re OK.”

We are not “OK.” If we were okay, then at least 4,814,000 people around the world would not have protested for women’s rights. People die everyday due to the lack of equality between men and women, whether that is fighting for their rights, or just simply living/trying to get by.

“My inspiration actually came from a man (God forbid, a man has ideas these days).”

Both men and women inspire me every single day. For example, my dad, my grandpa, Barack Obama, Martin Luther King Jr., my mom, my sister, Selena Gomez, and Michelle Obama. These are just a few. Feminists consist of both the male and female sexes and do not discriminate who the idea came from. We support everyone in their beliefs and drive to action.

“First of all, this is the 21st century. Women have never been more respected. Women have more rights in the United States than anywhere else in the world.”

Just because this is the 21st century and women have more rights than they ever have, that does not mean we have all the rights we deserve. Feminism is not only based in the United States, it is something people fight for all across the globe. Although respect for women has drastically increased, women are nowhere close to receiving the full respect we deserve. 683,000 adult American women are raped each year. There are 56,916 rapes per month, 1,871 rapes per day, 78 per hour, and 1.3 per minute. If women were respected in every way, our own bodies would be respected as well as our thoughts.

“Whatever happened to chivalry? Why is it so “old fashioned” to allow a man to do the dirty work or pay for meals? Feminists claim that this is a sign of disrespect, yet when a man offers to pick up the check or help fix a flat tire (aka being a gentleman), they become offended.”

Frankly, this is simply incorrect. Feminists do not claim that chivalry is disrespectful. They claim that it puts women in a unnecessary submissive position. Instead of the idea of “chivalry” we should look at is purely “being nice.” Feminists have no problem with men opening doors for women, paying for bills, etc. with the intention of being nice; it becomes a dangerous territory when men perform these actions merely because we are women or expect something in return.

“There is a distinct divide between both the mental and physical makeup of a male and female body. There is a reason for this. We are not equals.”

The difference in our body makeup does not mean the sexes cannot be equals. When you say “we are not equals,” unfortunately you are exactly right. We are not equals because society has taught us we are not. You are entitled to your opinion, but our biological makeups are not a reason for inequality.

“And while I can understand the concern in regard to money and women making statistically less than men do, let’s consider some historical facts. If we think about it, women branching out into the workforce is still relatively new in terms of history. Up until about the '80s or so, many women didn’t work as much as they do now…”

Just because women have not been in the workforce as long as men have, that does not mean we do not deserve equal pay. Feminists do not believe that when it comes to equal pay in the workplace, that we should automatically be the same. If a man and a woman are working in the same position and have the same skill level, then there should be no difference in pay. But unfortunately there is, hence the reason feminists fight so persistently.

“I consider myself to be a very strong and independent female. But that doesn’t mean that I feel the need to put down the opposite gender for every problem I endure. Not everything is a man’s fault.”

I as well consider myself to be a very strong, independent female, who is also a feminist. And I can tell you that I don’t feel the need to put down the opposite gender for every problem I endure, either. Feminism is not about putting others down, it is purely about raising people up. There is no blame on either of the sexes, but there is inequality that is pointed out.

“We don’t have to pretend we don’t need our men every once in a while. It’s OK to be vulnerable.”

Men are an important part of the world, that’s for sure. But, some people were raised in an environment that was lacking a male figure. None of us pretend that we don’t “need” men, but we promote the idea of being successful without a man. Being vulnerable can be good and feminists have nothing against it, but there is a difference between being vulnerable and being submissive.

“Men and women are meant to complement one another—not to be equal or to over-power. The genders are meant to balance each other out. There’s nothing wrong with it.”

I would agree on the idea of men and women balancing each other out. But, after researching the exact definition of “equal,” balanced came up as a definition AND a synonym. By default, wouldn’t that help prove feminist ideas that the sexes should be equal?

“However, I don’t believe that being a female entitles me to put down men and claim to be the “dominant” gender. There is no “dominant” gender. There’s just men and women.”

Once again, female feminists don’t believe that just because we are women we are entitled to put down men and claim to be the “dominant” gender. Feminists do not want dominance, we want equality.

“Women and men. We coincide with each other, that’s that. Time to embrace it.”

I am sad for you that you are “so over feminists” but we are not going ANYWHERE. Time to embrace it.