Feminist; it is a term that has lost its initial meaning overtime. The term feminist has distressingly been given a negative connotation, and many have the misconception that a feminist is a stereotypical man-hating vegan activist who believe that men are the cause of all the problems in this world. It has been even altered to the term ‘feminazi,’ belittling feminism to something equivalent to contributing to a tragic mass genocide. Feminism is not the hatred of men, nor is it the belief that women are better than men. It is also not a stereotype. Feminism, by definition, is “the advocacy of women's rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality to men.” Let me stress on one word in that definition: equality. Feminism revolves around equality, and it is crucial to the development of any society.
Being a feminist is not limited to running through the streets with signs and spitting in the faces of anti-feminists, it is standing for your rights and knowing that feminism is important. A woman who decides to be a full time mother and homemaker, but believes that she is equal to her husband, is no less a feminist than a vegan female boxer/part-time firefighter. Same way a man who believes women like his mother and sister deserves equal rights, is no less a feminist. You don’t have to be an activist to be a feminist, but you must recognize the importance of equality.
This brings us to a pressing question, why is being a feminist so important?
1. It values human life
Being a misogynist demeans the value of women, hence being a feminist recognizes the worth of females’ equivalent to that of men. With the belief that women are of less value than men, gives men the belief that treating women like animals is acceptable. This mindset justifies the verbal and physical abuse of women. Abuse, especially within a household, affects the family more than just the recipient of the abuse. It sets an example to their sons that hitting their wives or sisters is acceptable and creates a vicious cycle.
To that, when a woman is a feminist, she knows her value and her rights. She knows that she is no better than a man, and a man is no better than she is. This boosts her self-esteem, and gives her motivational drive from the knowledge that she can achieve as much as a man can.
This brings me to my next point.
2. It opens up opportunities
Opportunity is a factor that influences the success of people. When women are depreciated to less value, then they are given less opportunities and they will be placed in the belief that they do not deserve those opportunities. When the belief that a woman is of equal value as man is spread, then the acknowledgement of the needs of women will be spread as well. A major opportunity, for example, is education. There are countless benefits of the improved education of women. When a woman is given education, she knows what she deserves, and will make an effort to give that for her daughter.
The opportunities that they are given will hopefully teach them to be independent, and to be their own person instead of living underneath the identity of their husbands. With educated and empowered women, there are many positive impacts on the world.
3. It just makes the world a better place
With women becoming more empowered and given access to opportunities like education, they learn to become better citizens, role models, professionals, and much more. What if the cure for cancer was in the mind of a woman but she was not given the same opportunities as a man?
With feminism, the world will be based on the foundation of equality. Equality means that no one has more rights than the other; therefore, women are able to be more active citizens who recognize the importance of feminism and teach that down the future generations.
Let us stop the negative connotation of the term feminist. Misogyny is no different than racism, fascism or any other –isms that display prejudice amongst another group of people. It is important to understand the true meaning of feminism before we call ourselves one, or accuse someone of being a ‘feminazi.’
