People

Sometimes I wonder if I'm a feminist. There's nothing that bothers me more than being talked down to because I'm a woman. I don't get offended by very many things, but this offends me because people who don't know me assume something about my personality and ability merely because of my gender. They think they know me because they think they know women. I don't like people to assume things about me. I am my own person. Yes, I'm a woman but that doesn't mean I love pink, I'm not competitive, I don't know anything about sports, or I just want to grow up and have babies.

However, I'd never claim to be better than men, or that my life would be better without them. I feel like saying that would be going against everything the "feminist" is striving for, which is no discrimination. If they claim they are better than men, or they don't need men they are just making the gap between male and female even bigger. I don't think the answer is glorifying the status of women, or bringing the status of men down. The answer is focusing less on gender roles completely and start viewing men and women as people. Obviously, we are different. I'm not ignoring that fact. But how much of those differences are because of the gender roles little girls and boys are conditioned to? From the moment they're born little girls and boys are treated very differently and are given different expectations. If we want to empower women, maybe we should stop coddling our daughters and treating them like princesses. That's telling them their worth is in their beauty and their life depends on their hansom prince to rescue them. Little girls need to be told they are bold, brave, and able. They can get dirty, be tough, and strong just like boys. They won't turn out to be masculine, they will grow up to be strong women who aren't afraid to stand alongside men as companions and friends rather than helpless damsels in distress.