Feminism is the advocacy of women's rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality to men.
Let me say that one more time. Feminism is the advocacy of women's rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic EQUALITY to men.
Feminism is rooting for humanity and being able to watch it grow with a light in our eyes. I was inspired to write about the simplicity behind this concept when an anti-feminism article ignited a raging forest fire in the hearts and minds of my entire household this week. My particularly fiery and passionately intelligent roommate began charging around our house screaming in response to this article, which was written by a woman who explained why she was an anti-feminist. This writer's main reason behind anti-feminism was because men deserved support too.
Being a feminist does not in any way mean hating men. It is believing that men and women are equal. Feminism is not the belief that men should be belittled, squashed, squandered, or destroyed. It is the belief that men and women can stand side by side, with their backs straight, and feel equally empowered and important.
The importance of feminism lies behind its fight for equality: the battle toward generally making a woman's life just as easy as any man's. The ability to be as well-protected and rewarded as any man. This includes a woman being paid just as much as any man working just as hard as she is. This includes not having to pay extra tax dollars for feminine products, because women already have to endure the brutal side effects of a period once a month, they don't desire to pay even more for their monthly cycle than they already have to. This also includes being given the same opportunities as any man is provided with.
In an interview with Huffington Post on International Women's day this year, Sophia Bush relayed her exquisite definition of feminism: "what is feminism to me...it's so not complicated. This is another thing, I watch everybody fight about whether it's appropriate to be a feminist or not, and I sit here thinking, well I'm a woman, I would like to be judged on the quality of my work, I would like to be compensated fairly for my work, I would like to have access to just as much healthcare as any man...uh, yeah, that's pretty much it. I don't know what the big fight is all about, but you know, believing in my right to live as well and as well-protected in the world as a man doesn't mean I hate men."
Hear more about what Bush has to say about feminism starting at 20:28:
If you're not a feminist, you do not believe that men and women are equal. You believe that one gender is better than another and that one gender does not deserve the same quality of life as the other. Feminism is the very opposite of tearing each other down and battling it out, which is what the word seems to spark between both genders these days. Both the word and its definition are meant to band all people together to fight for each others' rights. To empower each other. To cheer each other on. To watch each other grow, and let others' passionate sparks inspire our own, instead of challenge and threaten our own flames.
