Stand Up for Women’s Rights
As women we have come about different campaigns over the decades and we still don’t have complete equality. We all think it but don’t say it. But, Feminism is a way to change the world for women everywhere.
“Only when women rebel against patriarchal standards does female muscle become more accepted,” said feminist author and editor, Gloria Steinem.
There are two types of feminism, there is radical feminism which is a philosophy emphasizing that the male is the head of the family, which divides rights, privileges and power between women and men. Second is liberal feminism which argues that society holds the false belief that women are, by nature, less intellectually and physically capable than men.
Throughout our lifetime from high school to college and well into your career, men have treated women as if they cannot live up to or achieve what men have accomplished. “I support feminism because I believe everyone was created equal. We deserve the same respect and same power for we work just as hard to earn that respect and power,” said Rita Payne, a student at HCC.
“Men are only different from women when it comes to the science of reproducing, and even so, women plays the stronger role in that,” Payne said.
The feminist political movement in 1848, in Seneca Falls, NY was a plea for female to get the right to vote, especially political elections. Surprisingly, it was a group of men who drafted and approved the Declaration of Rights and Sentiments. This act shows that some men supported women’s movement back then and can still do so in today. From then on, women’s right grew into many state legislatures that allowed women to retain ownership and control of property they brought before they got marriage, marking the beginning of power for women.
It was not too long ago that celebrity Emma Watson made a speech on behalf of the UN Women which focuses on priority areas that are fundamental to women’s equality. More information on Watson Speech can be found Unwomen.org. Hilary Clinton also made a well-known speech in 1997, in Beijing about women’s rights. Many of the things she wanted to change are still a reality today. Unfortunately, men only accounted for 30 percent of Clinton’s audience.
One way men can support feminists is to support equality for all because we were born on the same planet earth.
“I feel feminism is that women should have all the equal rights that a man has and shouldn’t be discriminated because of her gender,” said Yvensky Abichet, a current HCC student. “As a male we could support women by allowing them to do things that are considered ‘manly.’ Also I feel like we should teach more about women history in schools to educate how far women have come in society today.”
I want to reach out to men and let them know women need their support. Women are apart of every man’s life- from mothers, sisters, wives, and even a female friend. So, feminism should be a problem for men too. Feminism is not a negative way to view men, but it should stand up for women’s rights.
As 2Tupac said in his song “Keep your head up”:
“Forgive but don’t forget, girl keep your head up
And when he tells you you ain’t nothin’ don’t believe him
And if he can’t learn to love you you should leave him
Cause sista you don’t need him
And I ain’t tryin to
gash up, I just call em how I see em
You know it makes me unhappy
When brothas make babies, and leave a young mother to be a pappy
And since we all came from a woman
Got our name from a woman and our game from a woman
I wonder why we take from our women.”