Hashtag: YesAllWomen

The world is a really scary place.

It's a world in which nearly 300 schoolgirls are abducted in Nigeria. It's a world in which juveniles are sex-trafficked on a regular basis, most of whom are female. It's a world in which a drive-by shooter can kill six people after producing woman-hating and objectifying YouTube videos and his actions be labeled as mental illness rather than misogyny.

The world is a really scary place.

But it doesn't have to be.

***

In case you're unaware, some awful circumstances have played out over the past few days. Elliot Rodger, a twenty-two year old from Santa Barbara shot and killed six people and wounded thirteen others before killing himself. Hours before the murders took place Rodger posted a string of Youtube videos demeaning women and discussing his plans to enter "the hottest sorority house" in the area with plans of "slaughtering every single spoiled, stuck-up, blonde slut" that he sees.

You can read the rest of the story here. It's as terrifying, and incredibly upsetting as it sounds.

In response to all of these events, the hashtag #YesAllWomen began to trend on Twitter. What began as one woman speaking out against misogyny snowballed into thousands of female voices speaking up about rape culture, modesty culture, purity culture, and various other contexts in which women are marginalized, demeaned, abused, and dehumanized.

It may seem insignificant. After all, it's just a trending hashtag, right?

Wrong.

One of the glorious benefits of social networking, perhaps the most redeeming part at all is that channels such as Facebook, Twitter, and many others can be used to raise awareness of existing problems. Social networking can be used to help people all over the globe understand current issues in the world today, and this is incredibly important as understanding an issue is the first step in solving it.

#YesAllWomen began the night before last and continued all throughout the day yesterday. It was still trending when I checked this morning, and I doubt it will die out anytime soon. Almost as soon as it began it picked up followers, and for hours on end countless women tweeted their testimonies of abuse and/or harassment in 140 characters or less with the hopes of shining a bright light on the hell of a world that has been created for all women, everywhere.

A world in which misogyny is more common than many people think.

In which 1 in 6 women in the United States are victims of rape or attempted rape at least once in their lifetimes.

In which patriarchal men are shaming women for what they wear or don't wear-and then blaming women's bodies for men's lustful actions.

In our world, it's not unheard of for an eleven year girl to be catcalled while out walking.

My little sister is entering middle school next year, and all I can think about some days is how I wish I could wrap my mama dragon arms around her to protect her from any and all harm, because instead of teaching boys to stay the hell away we're coaching girls about self defense.

And like, yeah its not all men as many have already pointed out, but if that's your response to this issue then let me be blunt: you're missing the point completely.

It doesn't matter if it's all men or not. One misogynist man is one man too many, and the point of raising awareness for those who are marginalized is exactly that: to serve and empower those who are marginalized. At the end of the day, #YesAllWomen is not about men; it's about the women who have been hurt by a culture/s that demeans their, our existence.

#YesAllWomen has captured every reason why I am a feminist and word-vomited them all out into the Twittersphere. I spent most of yesterday crying off and on, because as I scrolled through and read the stories of those brave enough to speak up, a hard realization happened as my heart's spirit spoke to my being: these stories are hardly isolated incidents. Each story told is a testimony to what happens in the lives of women every day, all the time.

The systematic objectification and victimization of women are common occurrences that not only take place on a daily basis but have taken place on a daily basis for quite some time. This battle against such culture isn't new; we've been fighting it for years.

And it's time to start actively seeking change.

Because my friend's ex once chewed her out, in public, for wearing a shirt that "led him astray".

Because many women still flinch when you try to high-five them or hug them from behind.

Because let's be real: leggings are the most comfortable articles of clothing in existence, and no woman should be afraid or ashamed to wear them.

If you've never experienced marginalization, degradation, harassment, or abuse (which, honestly if you think about it you most likely have in some form), then I want you to take a moment and think about what it would be like. Put yourself in someone's shoes who has experienced one or all of those happenings, and consider how that must feel.

To be seen as primarily a sexual object. To be told how to dress. To be limited in your rights, abilities, worth, rights, or callings (newsflash: limited equality is still inequality). To be trolled and downplayed when all you're trying to do is claim a mere hashtag as your own.

How does it feel in those shoes? I'm sure you're quite ready to step out of them (women all over the world have been ready for ages). Before you do, lean in close. I've got a truth to whisper your way: it is terrifying, absolutely fear-instilling to have your humanity, rights, worth, abilities, callings, and freedom minimized to the skin on your bones when you're one hundred percent made of stronger stuff.

One day I want to write a book on this: humans are made of substance; not skin. I want to shout it from the mountaintops, because we still live in a world, we still create cultures that shout otherwise.

Rape culture is real. Modesty culture is harmful. Purity culture...well that one just sort of drives me nuts.

And I don't care what you think of someone's reputation; slut shaming is never okay.

These are conversations, among many others that need to happen. These words are ones that we need to discuss with one another. We need to talk to our sons about implementing healthy change. We need to ask our brothers to spread the news to their friends, the news that women are people too. Let's teach young girls that they are strong and bright, because little girls with big dreams grow up to be women with groundbreaking visions. We need to shift the conversations from "no means no" to "yes means yes". I want to have these conversations, because they are so worth having. These words need to happen.

They've been a long time coming.

***

One of my male friends, purely out of curiosity, asked me yesterday if I could explain specific instances in which patriarchy is in existence today. He wanted clarification, basically, because patriarchy as a dominating force is not something that he had even been aware of up until the women's empowerment movement took over Twitter. After explaining to him examples both past and present, our conversation turned to feminism in general and how he thinks it seems a bit unfair. Aren't men dehumanized, too?

Yes, men absolutely are degraded and demeaned, and feminism does not seek to downplay that.

Feminism simply seeks to advocate for women that are dehumanized, because all throughout history women have been seen as inferior and men as superior. So, though it's true that men are dehumanized in various ways, patriarchy still is a dominant force in the world today and women's inequality is still an issue. I'm a feminist because I can't afford not to be, because cultures still exist in which women's voices need to be heard loud and clear.

On the other hand, men also need to be heard. Everyone needs to be heard, because multitudes of communities are marginalized in their own ways. There are various reasons and contexts in which men need their stories to be told, transgenders need to be given voices, and gays should be listened to. Sometimes it overwhelms me heart and soul, that humanity has hurt ourselves as much as we have. We define ourselves and each other by our bodies and sexuality, and we forget that even though our bodies are super great, our eyes are up here.

And I don't know who said it, but I think it's true that the eyes are the soul's windows.

We've dehumanized ourselves right down to the bone, and that's incredibly disheartening.

So yes, men need to reteach and reclaim their identities most certainly. However, women should be allowed to claim #YesAllWomen, because for years many voices have needed a safe place to lament, a strong fortress to talk about hard things. That's what this hashtag was about: thousands of women crying out and relating to one another because of sexism, misogyny, and various other injustices that have been issues for years and are far too common today.

But. Hope.

The world is a really scary place, but I think over time it's getting a little bit better. Maybe it's not. I don't know. I'm a Christian though, so I seek to actively implement peace by moving with God to restore and redeem humanity, because that's what Jesus calls me to do.

Cause friend, let me tell ya: that Jesus love is so. sweet.

To every person out there right now, I wish I could take your precious face in my hands and speak this out to you, straight out: you are vibrant, beautiful, and worth every ounce of respect anyone can give you. Consider yourself validated because you are a human being, and you are brave and strong and all kinds of amazing.

You bear Gods' image, isn't that really cool?

Let's live this out like we really believe it. Let's change the conversation from oppression to one in which we break those terrible chains. Let's love each other faithfully and well. Let's begin to see each other as human beings, because no one is entitled to anyone else's anything. Let's promote equality, because that's maybe the most humanizing idea one can promote. Let's listen to one another, because we've all got stories to tell.

We've all got healing to walk through.

Let's be brave and free. I think we'd really like that. I think we're made for that life.

So back to where this began, because those feminism roots run real deep. Contrary to what many think, it's not radical to stand for women's empowerment; it's necessary. It's not against God's will to call for equality. It's not a sin to be a Shalom warrior, to actively be a peace-seeker. Being a feminist doesn't mean we all burn our bras or stop shaving our legs (I mean if you want though, you do you). Feminism doesn't preach "down with the nuclear family" or that to be a wife is to be submissive and wrong. We're all for wives and moms, and we're also for businesswomen and female engineers. We're for women all across the globe, because women are people too. We've been really hurt, and we're calling for healing and restoration. We're seeking change, because change was needed way back when the Bronze Age was still a thing. Sadly, patriarchy didn't die out with that time period as it should've.

If you'd like, I would love for you to join me and the thousands of others who've raised awareness for the world in which all women live in. Read our words and soak in our stories. Weep and lament, because they'll pull on your heartstrings.

All of these hearts can be mended, but it's overwhelmingly sad that they need to be.

#YesAllWomen is a vital conversation to tweet and raise awareness for, but it's even more important to talk about and live out in real life. Let's actively seek change, because God's plan for His children is redemption; not patriarchy.