Women’s History Month 2021: An Open Letter To Whoever Needs It

Ah, yes, it is the time where we give women the spotlight for a month and really hone in on all the amazing accomplishments that we credit to women as well as the many advances society has made thanks to women.

It is also time the "what-about-ME-ism" really ramps up...and for what?

Why can't we just build up women without always having to question it?

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If you haven't gathered, I am a feminist and I genuinely think more people are "feminists" than you'd think.

Feminism, as defined by Encyclopedia Britannica is, "the belief in social, economic, and political equality of the sexes" and that seems pretty straightforward...until it somehow doesn't?

As women, many of us know or at least feel that we often have to work twice as hard as our male counterparts to get even half the amount of respect, credit, etc.

I get it, "women are just so emotional" or whatever other excuses you may be thinking about as you roll your eyes reading this.

You're right, I am emotional, because expressing emotions is healthy and it's not just something that can only be attributed to women. It doesn't make you less of a man to cry or talk about your feelings but that's a conversation for a different day.

For example, I get emotional at the idea that I pride myself on being able to "fit in" with men in a stereotypical "one of the boys" kind of way but on the flip side I know that some those men often don't take me seriously.

I get emotional at the fact that some women resent other women for a whole bevvy of, honestly, pretty petty reasons and tear each other down so often instead of building them up.

Yes, you read that right, this post is not just a rant about men. It's not even a "feminist rant" at all. What it comes down to is that this Women's History Month, take a look within yourself and really grapple with the real reasons you may not respect women.

Maybe you just haven't had good examples of how to treat women in your life or maybe you just have this notion in your head that women are somehow worth less than you are, maybe it's simply just jealousy. If it is, that's okay, that's an emotion and you are free to express that, but admit it and work through it.

In life there will always be people who are more attractive than you, who are more successful than you, who have nicer things than you, etc...and it's okay to say "I wish I could be more like that."

However, if your "I wish you could be more like that" sounds more like "ugh, she should just shut up and quit already" or something along those lines, that's where the problem is.

Women are not here to be your mother, some of us don't want to be mothers at all. Women are not here to be just a pretty face in the background. Women are not here to be your laugh track. There's so much more we could list here but all in all, women are powerful. We can have a voice, we can be strong, confident, and don't deserve to be torn down for being who we are.

It's okay not to like someone. Take it from someone who absolutely knows (and has been increasingly shown) they are not everyone's cup of tea. But if the reason you don't like them is because of what's between their legs I don't know how to help you. I mean, I do recommend therapy to anyone and everyone so that could be a start.

People, no matter who they are or what they identify as, at the bare-minimum deserve respect. That goes for any women too...ALL women. Feminism is (or should be) intersectional and, contrary to popular belief, includes and empowers men as well!

So this Women's History Month, I challenge you to try your darn'dest to build up, support and empower the women in your life. Basically, just don't be a jerk.

In the spirit of empowering women, here are some incredible accomplishments in women's history, can you find ones from the year you were born?