Have you ever noticed that when justifying a child's misbehavior it is generally under the excuse of "boys will be boys?" Nobody, or at least in my childhood, justified my little devilish pranks under the excuse of "girls will be girls." Nobody. Instead, I was caged under a list of things that "young ladies" can't do.
It was ridiculous. This invisible "list" only grew when I became a teenager. My brother's shrunk.
I felt like I wasn't allowed to have a genuine interest in ANYTHING without me being taken as a joke. If I liked UGG boots and Starbucks, I was foolish and stereotypical, but if I instead decided to to wear combat boots and drink weirdly obscure coffee, I suddenly became a hipster wannabe who tries a little bit too much and a little bit too hard. However, if I liked boy bands, like One Direction, or singers like Taylor Swift, I was a mainstream airhead. On the other hand if I read comics and played video games I was a fake geek girl.
When it came to sex, it was the same thing. If I liked it, I was a slut. If I didn't, I would hear the world prude even in my dreams. My personal choices, even the most minimalist like makeup, was questioned: I was "fake advertising" when I wore it but when I didn't, I was boring and catering only to me. Well, who else I am going to cater to?
When I accepted a compliment, I was told to get off my high horse and to stop being the embodiment of Narcissus himself. But I had low self-esteem and needed to learn how to love myself when I denied those same compliments.
I was often branded a crazy "feminazi" who also happened to be an insane social justice warrior when I causally mentioned politics in a conversation. But when I didn't, I was a silly girl.
Us, girls, are literally mocked for every single thing we do or not do, for the things we like or dislike. No matter what those things are.
Though this would happen in a utopia, the change to fix this awful double-edged sword should start within ourselves. Grow that confidence and make it bloom, so that when men try to brand us under "labels", we smile a warrior-like smile and fight. When men insult us, we make ourselves the beautiful statuette of our mind's eye and let their hate wash off us because we are not in this Earth for their whim, we are here for us. But most importantly, girls, do not box other girls because we are complex, multi-faceted gems. And when you go on labeling girls like that, it makes it ok for society to do so today. You are perpetuating that idea. Instead, do whatever your whim calls. Perhaps it is to go to that One Direction concert or play that one video game and beat every single guy that dares question your ability. Do not cater to anyone but yourself. Remember that.
