What is feminism?  According to the Urban Dictionary, feminism is “the advocacy of women’s rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality to men” I consider myself a feminist, which does not mean that I hate men, or that I burn my bras. I say this because when people hear the word feminism, they automatically think of the radicals that don’t allow anyone to form their own opinion. Junior Alec Bellis explains to me why he is a feminist, “They (feminists) don’t hate men, they hate men having all the power. Feminism is a broad term that is more often than not, misunderstood. There are radical feminists, who hate men for the patriarchy. I do not subscribe to those views. There are feminists, like myself, who simply want equality for everyone, everywhere.”

I am a feminist because there is no reason that men and women cannot be held on the same pedestal in political, social, and economic situations. I am a feminist because for some unfathomable reason, one in six women will be sexually assaulted. I am a feminist because in a corporate level job, a woman still gets paid 23% less than a man would in the same position. When it comes to the sexualization of women, I have been more enlightened to the horrible victim blaming that happens in our world. Why is it acceptable to ask a girl what she was wearing after she had been raped? Why is it ok to justify rape by saying that the girl was asking for it? Why don’t we worry more about why an assaulter thought it was ok to force himself upon another human being?

When I asked Senior Tally Ellis why she was a feminist, she replied with, “I am a feminist because I was cat called on the street starting at age 12, when I hadn’t even developed. Because at age six my chest was fondled by a boy a little older than me, but was shrugged off.” And this is where I show you that feminism isn’t just women being like men, it’s equality for everyone. For some reason, a girl can be raped but a guy cannot. Why is that? Although very few, there have been cases where a girl rapes a man, and most of those cases fly under the radar because it is not a common occurrence. Roughly 1 in 10 rape victims are men. Rape is not just a problem for women; it is a problem for humans. And now we go into the double standards. When a guy sleeps around he is praised, but when a girl does she is shamed. When a girl hangs out solely with a group of guys, it is assumed that she is having physical relations with all of them, and when a guy is friends with almost all girls, he is criticized and people claim that he must be gay. Why do we categorize colors and clothes by gender? Why is pink a girl color, but blue is a boy color?

To senior Jamie Stauffer gender categorization should not be a thing. “A woman should be able to be a leader and wear what makes her feel good about herself without being made fun of. A man should be able to be emotional and get his nails painted without being called names. Genders shouldn’t attach people to certain ideas and roles.” Although I firmly agree with her statement, I do want to point out that there are differences between both genders. Women do tend to have more maternal instincts and men do tend to feel protective over women. And men do tend to want to be the provider for the family, but there isn’t anything wrong with a person staying home or working outside of the house, man or woman. “Feminism isn’t about getting a job or exercising your rights, it’s about having the choice too. I’m only saying this because I have seen with my own eyes “progressive” feminists belittle mothers simply because they fill the traditional role in society.” Junior Josh Chrisman-Peer. Feminism is a very complex, yet simple subject. There is only one main objective; to bring equality to both genders whilst allowing people to form their own opinion, so let’s all work together to help make Gig Harbor community advance this movement.