Miss Representation

After watching Miss Representation ( you seriously need to watch this movie) I had so many different thoughts jumping around in my brain- so I'm going to try to write some of them out here and let me know what you think? 

First off- I need to get something off my chest.....

Here it goes.

I am a feminist- and I don't understand why in the Mormon culture we are so afraid of this word......

feminist, feminist, feminist, feminist feminist feminist, FEMINIST, FEMINIST, FEMINIST!!!!

See, it's not so scary. 

I think in in Mormon Culture we have a BIG misrepresentation of what this word means..

What is a feminist anyway? Well, according to good old Wiki,  "Feminism is a collection of movements and ideologies aimed at defining, establishing, and defending equal political, economic, and social rights for women.This includes seeking to establish equal opportunities for women in education and employment."

So being a feminist DOES NOT mean that I think that women are BETTER than men- it means I think men and women are EQUAL, and that they should have equal rights, equal pay, equal, equal, equal!

Sure, we have biological and physical differences...but we are still equal. My adopted brother has a different colored skin than me, and I'm sure you'd all agree with me that we are equals. Right? And you probably agree that women should be able to vote and have equal pay and stuff right? So what's the problem with being a feminist?

So really- you may not have thought you were a feminist, but the fact is you probably are. And you don't have to be a girl to be a feminist- boys can be feminist too. 

Now, why do I feel like this is important for me to point out???? Because the fact of the matter is, many women (especially in the church) aren't feminist.....I've known MANY that do "secretly" or not-so-secretly believe that men are better than women, and this is manifested in ssooOOOooo many ways in the world we live in, and also our religious culture...I'll let you fill in the blank. But all of these inequalities destruct a woman's sense of worse into a very simple paradigm making her think that her worth is in the way she looks, or the fact that she was born a woman, that's that. 

Do you want to know the secret have a good body image and self esteem????

Truly believing you are an equal, and just being yourself.....so BE a feminist for goodness sake!

We are ALL equal- I firmly believe this- but I still struggle in my brain everyday to apply it to myself. 

I think that if we all TRULY believed that we are all equal, we would have ZERO self-esteem or body image issues. 

That's my goal at least...to apply this fact to myself.

With the media's sea of lies we swim in everyday, as women (and men) but women especially- we need to arm ourselves every morning when we wake up- remind ourselves that we are important, we are special, we are beautiful TODAY. We need to stop wishing on tomorrow for that perfect self we have in mind, that's a size x,y, or z, and has that perfect hair and olive tone..... and we need to STOP LYING to ourselves that becoming that perfect shape or size will make us happy- because guess what- it won't. So just STOP IT!

As a disclaimer, this does NOT mean that we shouldn't try to be a healthy weight, or just eat chocolate all day everyday (like my natural woman I know would like me too).....but it does mean that we need to re-prioritize our lives, and really think about what is the MOST important thing about life. 

"What is the most important-thing-for-you-to-focus-on-for-your-entire-existence-on-this-planet????"

I never thought you'd ask....

The answer is simple.

Love. 

Yep, the Beatles had it right all along. Love is what life is all about. Love for family, friends, life, nature, hobbies, learning, laughter, cats - whatever floats your boat. But before you can love anything else, you have to love yourself.

So that's all I have for today..."and in case I don't see ya, good afternoon, good evening, and good night!"

(5 million points for whoever can name that movie)

Here is the trailer for the movie we watched in class- I HIGHLY recommend watching this movie- it's well worth your time. 

Miss Representation