Thursday, 16 April 2015

Being a woman is not a disability.

     I only recently classified myself as a feminist. Before hand, I was under the impression that I had never been discriminated because of my gender so naturally, feminism didn't quite interest me. I don't know exactly what it was that led me here but I have realized that simply because I've never been groped and raped, doesn't mean I haven't suffered sexism. There is something deeply wrong with the word if  a woman can be on the ugly end of sexism and not even realize it.
     I began reevaluating the principle of feminism a few weeks ago when my best friend told me she wasn't allowed to come to the annual school carnival as it started at 7pm and there would be men who could harm her and as a girl, her father believed it was unsafe for her to attend. Her brother was allowed to go. He's younger than her.
     These thoughts were magnified a couple of weeks later when another one of my friends had his nudes leaked by his ex-girlfriend. Some friends and I were talking when he (the friend who had the nudes leaked) said he was looking for his old phone which contained his ex's nudes which he wanted to counter-leak. Everybody was like "no, don't do that". I believed that we were all on the same page; telling him not to leak her nudes as revenge was wrong. He had to be the bigger person and not stoop down to that level. I believed that we were trying to convince him not to fight fire with fire and just let go of all the drama. But then, this boy justified his idea to not leak her nudes by saying "C'mon, she's a girl. You can't leak a girl's nudes as it'll ruin her.". One of my girlfriends' leaned over to me and whispered "Wow, I didn't know he was a feminist. It's cute." I on the other hand , have never felt so insulted.
     Maybe that's not the best example of feminism and no, I'm not encouraging womens' nudes to be leaked or anything but that mentality is wrong on so many different levels. Then, it hit me; sexism is not exclusive to men who openly disrespect and objectify women, it includes all those men who parade around claiming to be feminists but treat women like inferiors; children!
     All those people who say "You can't do that because she's a girl.", "Come on, she's a girl, you know we have to treat them differently", are the worst of the sexists because not only do they believe they are noble and worthy, they lead women to believe they are being respected but in reality they are not. Being a woman is not a disability. We do not need special care and to be treated like fragile eggs or flowers. There is a fine line between treating a woman right and treating a woman as if she's handicapped or a child, and that's a line way too many people cross blindly.
     And as feminists, I believe that's the first problem we should tackle; dismantling these double standards that plague society. Men and women do not get the same consequences for the same actions. I remember so many times I tried to do the same thing a boy could do and get off freely for, the consequences have always been disastrous. Additionally, parents should not teach their daughters that they can not accomplish something simply because they are girls. Equality is something we should work endlessly to achieve. And besides, "Well-behaved women seldom make history." -Laurel Thatcher Ulrich
     When I logged on to twitter this afternoon, "#EveryDaySexism" was trending, I was immediately swept up by the movement and the response I've gotten is mind-numbing. I have never received such a response on any social media before and below are the tweets that have ignited this passion in me. Men and women both, and I stress this, should learn to understand and teach their children that being a woman is not a misfortune or a disability, it's an honor and it's okay.
 




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