I Firmly Believe That How Feminist A Book Is Is Better Demonstrated By Its Background Characters Rather

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A common theme I see amongst young feminists, who are starting to understand the depths of male violence against girls and women, is a feeling of such hopelessness that it concentrates into a feeling of bodily inferiority; a feeling of being weaker, being rapeable, being impregnatable. And sometimes even, in turn, hating oneself and ones female body.

I want every woman out there to know that the physical ability to commit violence upon another person is not a superior trait, despite what generations of men would like you to believe.

Men give violence and brute strength value. So let's talk about where we should be giving value to the female body.

First, the reason men are on average stronger than women is also their downfall. Testosterone is a hormone that gives the ability to build muscle and maintain little fat. To simplify how it works, it burns hard and fast to build. This means that it burns hard and fast through the body as well. Mens bodies breakdown quicker- hearts fail, muscles degenerate, etc. They die younger than women.

Essentially, female bodies are more flexible and have a better endurance. This is because our bodies and systems are built for longevity - not power. Mens bodies are built for power and quick burn.

Our uteruses (and other hormonal regulatory systems in our bodies!) love us dearly. Our bodies regulate hormones, limit testosterone, and ensure we don't burn out quick. We experience menopause and men don't. We've been taught this is a bad thing.. But our bodies slow down and stop the hormones that would burn us out, and mens bodies don't. Menopause elevates our lifespan and quality of life.

In fact, this reproductive/regulatory system is so important, we have fat deposits that protect these organs. This allows us to be healthier for longer, too!!

It also helps a ton that we have a boosted immune system, much better than our male peers. On top of that, we have higher pain tolerances! We are better equipped to fight off things that ail us, and persevere through things that would bring us harm.

So we know women live longer, and in better health - but why is that? Is it just testosterone? Is it just to get pregnant? No! Our bodies don't exist to sustain a baby (though they can, and the fact that all life on earth exists because of women is an astoundingly powerful truth) they exist to sustain us - because we were and are community leaders, healers, caretakers, providers - we are immensely valuable.

Why, evolutionarily, are we this way? Because older women bring more value to communities than older men. Look up the Grandmother Hypothesis in evolution studies; it says menopause evolved because it allows women to live longer, because women (specifically grandmothers!) are key to community survival and kin relationships. Older women are key to our species survival; not just for the lifes they may or may not create, but for the relationships, the community, the reasons we live.

Some other miscellaneous thoughts...Sexually, we are the sex that has an organ made entirely for pleasure. We are the sex capable of multiple orgasms, and stronger. That's worth some thought.

So how do men play into all of this? Men are a genetic mutation of us that exist to provide sperm, if we'd like. Men who had more testosterone became stronger than men with less (therefore better at hunting, building shelter), making them more desirable mates, meaning that the next generation of men was stronger as well. And there they placed the value in strength. Which translated to the value of violence.

So the next time you find yourself valuing the capacity for violence, instead look to value the capacity for creation.

Womanhood is made vulnerable by males who choose violence. And that's why our work as feminists is so important. But I promise you - your body was not designed to receive conflict, but to outlast it. You were designed to build something better.

Habit shifts #8 - We are women

- practical actions that can be taken to fight internalized misogyny

Why: Are you a girl? A girls’ night out. Going out with the girls. The cool girl speech. Do you like girls? This girl I just met… Why? Why do we call ourselves girls? Why do we refer to other women as girls? We are no longer children. We’re grown-ups, out of our parents’ houses, fending for ourselves, carving up a life and living our dreams and being depressed and sick, but also falling in love and walking in forests and meeting up for coffee. We’re full human beings. So why do we keep calling ourselves children? Who’s really afraid? Men? We’re no girls, we’re full-blooded women. Calling each other girls infantilises us, destroys our credibility, makes us feel like we’re not in control, like we shouldn’t be in control. Being a girl denies us agency, denies us power, makes us feel smaller than we actually are.

How: Start calling yourself what you are, a woman. At first it feels weird, a foreign word in your mouth, but bear with it. This feeling passes, it becomes easier, you settle into it. The women’s team. The women’s bathroom. Two women from downstairs came up the other day. I’m attracted to women. The woman I love. Keep saying it. You’re a woman. You’re a young woman. You’re an old woman. You’re a woman who’s eating chocolate. You’re a woman dancing. You’re a woman taking out the trash. You’re a woman with short hair. You’re a woman emptying your menstrual cup. You’re a woman staring at the night sky. You’re a woman curled up under your blankets. You’re a woman walking on fallen leaves. You’re a woman when it’s rainy; you’re a woman when the sun is out. You’re a woman, not a girl. So are they; they are women. 

“The woman who doesn’t require validation from anyone is the most feared individual on the planet.”

— Mohadesa Najumi

Kitty Tsui

made a tiny picture book for class. i wanted to challenge the idea that girls loving other girls is somehow adult/inappropriate

Home workout time!!

a thirst trap for y’all in these trying quarantine times.

i’ve been saying this to myself this morning and i’m going to say it to you in case you need to hear it: you are not here to be physically attractive. that is not your purpose. you are here to learn new things and be kind to people and listen to your favorite music and pet cute dogs and read big books and drink good coffee. you are here to see beauty in the world and create it when you can’t find any. you are not here to impress people with how you look.

You don’t have to love your body. You don’t even have to like it. But you have to find ways to live with it, as well as you can, and be kind to it whenever possible.

Your body is not the outward expression of your soul. It is not a reflection or a representation of your worth or your True Self. It’s just inhabited meat. It’s a flesh machine with planned obsolescence, and you have to take care of it.

It’s good to love your body, if you can. It will enhance your timed experience of the world if you can appreciate it without too much resentment for the ways it fails or disappoints you. But if you cannot love it, strive at least for neutrality. Make truces with it, however uneasy, and treat it with the respect you would show to any other animal shape.