Why I am a feminist

For a long time I used to dislike the word "feminist". I just thought the world didn't need it : no one have to fight for equality between men and women, men and women are equal, right? Then I grew older and realised I knew nothing. In the western parts of the world, men and women are equal on paper but we still live in a men world. And there is a long way to go to sex and gender equality.

The other day a girlfriend told me one of her colleagues called her "a lazy cunt". She had to tell him he overstepped. Because, guess what, he was just kidding and went over the line, he told her a few minutes later, bringing her cookies. She's the only woman working with males and hear sexist jokes all day long. Most of the time, she tries not to react because she would hear contemptuous comments.

This is not a side note. And this is absolutely not a joke. We encounter these kind of situation every single day.

And those awkward moments when you don't raise your voice because you don't want to be called a lunatic, or to be asked if "this is this time of the month"? And I not even talking of wages, late meetings exactly when you have to pick up the kids, house chores, or political representation.

I do live in Sweden and I know that I am lucky because being a feminist here is allright but in a lot of countries it still isn’t.

So yes, I am a feminist not because I am a woman but because I do believe that men and women have equal rights and I would love my daughters not to discover otherwise.

Photo: Print People I've Loved