Friday, August 29, 2014

This is why feminism matters

I love the blog Girl's Gone Child. (I started reading way before Clara was born.) I've embraced the free form/stream of consciousness style of writing because many of the topics are so emotional – I'm not sure there's a better way to write them. From a recent post:
Fable, without even realizing she had done so, had accepted that there would be times when what she wore and did and represented would cause some to want to touch, take and dismantle... but instead of wearing a higher-cut top or a quieter color trading in the light-up lunch box for something that would perhaps garner less attention, keep the boys from hitting, help her stay anonymous in the crowd, she stood up. She stood up to them and she stood up to me and she said the word that I struggled so hard to say as a child, a teenager, a young woman, and even now.
She said no. 
"This is my lunch box. I love this lunch box. I chose this lunch box. They're the ones who need to STOP. Not me." 
I wanted to wake her up and tell her how right she was. I wanted to thank her for showing ME what it means to be a sister, and a feminist and an individual who knows how to say NO to those who are challenging her RIGHT to say YES. 
"THIS is why feminism matters..." 
Because saying NO to others is not enough sometimes. We need comrades and partners, sisters and brothers, friends and family to help us raise the volume, build our muscles, dance our dance... 

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