“Be a badass girl boss.” “Be loud.” “Be you.” “Don’t let anyone tell you that you need to smile more.”
The list of feminist platitudes that are plastered across social media platforms are endless now-a-days thanks to a presidential candidate that talks about women as if they’re objects. And while the advice people share comes from a good place, a place that yearns for equality and self empowerment, it should really come with a warning label.
Standup comedian, writer and producer Sara Schaefer recently wrote a piece for Vox centered on the idea that while feminism is seen as the cool thing to be right now, actually being a feminist is incredibly hard.
“…I get people’s need for a feminist call to arms, for pep talks and poetry and Pinterest quotes,” Schaefer writes. “A string of buzzwords thrown about like life preservers after a shipwreck. Grab them. Hold on to them, try not to drown. But there’s often a hollowness to these messages. I get a tiny pang whenever I read them. Because these messages almost never come with a warning label.”
Schaefer goes on to argue, in the form of a handy list, that powerful sayings are great but they should be followed with a more realistic messages of what happens when you start being the awesome feminist they suggest you should be.
“…when I see these overly simplistic cross-stitch-ready instructives to ‘BE A BADASS WOMAN!’ … my heart lets out a tiny groan,” Schaefer writes. “Because the motto is never followed with, ‘But be ready for what that brings.”
So, with the help of Schaefer’s feminist warning label list, here’s a few things you should know as you navigate the world as a feminist:
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Be loud!
“Warning: Be loud, but, like, can you be loud in a cute, sexy way? That will make it easier.”
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Don’t let men interrupt you!
“Warning: When you stand up for yourself, they’re not gonna like that one bit.”
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Be a badass girl boss!
“Warning: When you start your new life as a Badass Girl Boss, you will constantly ask yourself, ‘What does this even mean? Am I allowed to take naps anymore?'”
