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| Photo by photographer Roger Kisby @Rogerkisby on IG |
This past weekend Jordyn and I took part in the Womens March On Washington in Las Vegas. It was equally amazing and inspiring to be a part of something so impactful. And while I looked down at my daughter who chanted and cheered loudly, I felt a sense of pride. She had just played a basketball game and was tired but she wanted to be there. I gave her the option of sitting out because I knew she was tired but she wanted her voice to be heard. So we marched and chanted alongside thousands of our sisters and occasionally looked at one another and smiled.
And I was proud because I raise Jordyn to be confident in herself, to know that she is in charge of her body and what happens to it and to believe that there should never be limitations on her success because of her gender and to see all of that coming to fruition, i've never been more proud.
I wasn't always a strong woman. I can't even say I was always a feminist. When I was younger, I was in a shitty relationship. I wasn't aware of my self worth and allowed him to run all over me. I dated him.....and he dated everyone else. While it was a bad time in my life, it did play a role in molding me into who I am today, so i'm thankful for it.. It took a while but overtime, I realized my self worth and learned to love myself. I became more and more aware of social issues surrounding women. I became more and more aware of women, who like me, didn't know their own self worth or their own power. I started to see the double standards, the slut shaming, the lack of equality and was outraged.
Feminism grew on me...but it was just in me...I never protested, spoke out to the people in my life or even posted about anything I thought would offend people on social media. I was afraid of coming off as rude or that people wouldn't agree with me so I would let sexist actions slide...I would let dehumanizing "jokes" go without standing up for myself.
It wasn't until I had Jordyn that I started to voice my opinion and stand my ground. It wasn't just about protecting me, now I was protecting her. My feminist stance grew. I was adamant in teaching Jordyn her worth. I taught her to never be afraid to speak up, ask for what she deserves, and that when boys are mean to you, it does not mean they like you!!
I did all of this but still....while the people around me knew where I stood on issues, I wasn't doing anything about changing them..... I never did anything about it....but I was a feminist I told myself. I care about womens rights, i'm raising my daughter to care about womens rights!....in all actuality I was just an idealistic young girl who was still afraid to get out on the front line and fight for my rights to be protected.
Jordyn is an inspiring little girl. She has never been afraid to stand up for what she believes in..she is much stronger at 9 than I was at 18, thats for sure. She never backs down, she lets her voice be heard, she stands strong in her beliefs even if her beliefs aren't aligned with the popular opinion.
And it was her that inspired me to not only label myself as a feminist, but to become an activist. It was her that made me realize that yea, while the idea of fighting for equality for all is nice, it means nothing if I am not out there actually fighting for it. She made me realize that my silence will not protect me and that if I wanted change, I had to do something about it.
And so now I do my part to fight for our rights..... I use my platforms to spread knowledge, i'm out there at these protest trying to change the world, I engage in actions and efforts and campaigns that are trying to bring about social change because now I realize that it's not just what I think, its what I do!
I may have taught my daughter feminism, but she taught me activism and with Donald now in office, activism is crucial.
The Womens March on washington to was a great first step but it doesnt stop there. If you're interested in creating change, head over to womensmarch.com to participate in a new campaign, 10 actions/100 days. Every 10 days, we will all take action on issues we care about. The first action is to write a postcard to your state senators about what matters most to you and how you're going to continue to fight for it. womensmarch.com is even offering free printable postcards to make it easy to get your voice heard!
We can do this, together.
Remember;
Justice, peace, and equality for all. Stronger together, we won't fall.
Xo, Jeanice