Female Empowerment

“I believe women are at our best when we support each other." - Taylor Swift

When I started this blog, there was one topic I wanted to discuss that I had in mind from the beginning. Something I feel incredibly passionate about, something that has really brought about an uprising recently, something that I think is a very positive force. 

FEMALE EMPOWERMENT.

Now, those two words above are very closely linked to the subject of Feminism. It is a subject that I believe is incredibly important and has many facets to it. I have been working on a post purely devoted to it (and other terms that inform and feed into it - gender equality, sexism, misogyny etc.) for quite a while now. Because I do feel that it is such a critical, meaningful and far-reaching topic of conversation I don't want to bring it into today's post because I'll end up writing a 2000 word essay for you all to read its own separate post will be up soon!

Today, I'm looking at female empowerment amongst females ourselves. Girls supporting each other. A sisterhood.

Via You know, a pretty epic, badass sisterhood, that casually struts in front of an explosion in slow motion. Duh. Ok, but seriously. "She's not that pretty." "She only listens to Top 40 music…" "Did you see what she was wearing?" Via

I'm sure we've all heard and/or used similar phrases at some point.

I've always loved the saying “Promote what you love instead of bashing what you hate”. Similarly, the idea of cheering girls on, instead of tearing them down, is something I'm ALL FOR.

I try not to see girls who I think are smarter than me, more beautiful than me, more talented than me, as threats. I try to see them as people I want to be around. I want to appreciate just how great they are and make them realise it themselves. 

Via

I lose nothing by encouraging/applauding them, and gain everything by having their presence and energy in my life. I will openly say there are so many girls that I admire and obsess over, and I will happily tell that to them as well! 

Via

What amuses me sometimes is how hard of a time some girls have acknowledging another girl is beautiful! How does saying another girl is pretty detract from your own beauty?  (The answer is it doesn't. Not even the tiniest bit. In any shape or form. Promise. Haha.)

The thing is, now more than ever before, females tend to be pitted against each other (quite often by ourselves), in every aspect of life. 

"I aced all four of my subjects but I heard she only passed two of hers…" 

"She just posted a new Instagram photo and she looks so slim, I look nothing like that…"

Or even, 

"She has more likes on her photo than I do..." 

Comments like these stem from comparison - ideas that society, and we ourselves, create about what girls "should" be like, act like, look like - what we "should" have achieved as females.

One type of comparison that has really impacted our generation to a whole other level is the rating of girls by their appearance. 

"Who's hotter?" "Who has the better body?" Things like "Gigi Hadid vs. Kendall Jenner - Who's sexier?"

Gigi has it so right. 
Via 

We are all so different, there is no comparison.

I tend to reference Taylor Swift interviews and quotes quite a bit (Refer to the opening quote. Case in Point :P). Besides the fact that I just generally LOVE HER, I think she's so intelligent, eloquent and relatable - and in this case, it's no different:

“If we continue to show young girls that they are being compared to other girls, we’re doing ourselves a huge disservice as a society. I surround myself with smart, beautiful, passionate, driven, ambitious women. Other women who are killing it should motivate you, thrill you, challenge you and inspire you rather than threaten you and make you feel like you’re immediately being compared to them. The only thing I compare myself to is me, two years ago, or me one year ago.” (The Rolling Stone Interview)

I don't think anyone could say, or sum it up, better. 

Via

I've always said I've been blessed to grow up surrounded by very, very strong and intelligent women. They've been through a lot in their lives, and I've been fortunate enough to listen to their stories and learn from their experiences. They've maintained a sense of dignity and respect in the way they've carried themselves, and if I can say the same for myself in 20 years time I will be happy.

I also know that I'm lucky enough to have an epic group of  girlfriends in my life that own it in their respective interests and talents; from engineering to pursuing music, to studying science, or working towards becoming an occupational therapist. 

Via

Both sets of the females I've described above inspire me endlessly - not sure if they realise it all the time, but I want to learn from them, support them and follow them as they continue to achieve their goals.

FEMALE EMPOWERMENT. 

It's really started to take on a force of its own, thanks to quite a few individuals - whether they be people you know in your own life, or people in the spotlight that you've seen or heard. It's really changing and advancing, and it's so uplifting.

Let's all be kind to ourselves and supportive to one another.

P.S. I swear I don't only believe in supporting females, I have a lot of respect for the males in my life as well! Haha but that's for another blogpost :)

(New blog post will be up next wednesday!) 

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❤️, Raashi