Feminism | Posted by Silby on 07/18/2009
feminist activism: high school edition
It can be hard to be a feminist in high school. I know, I was there. I’m very familiar with the strange looks that you get after stating that you’re a feminist. I’m very familiar with the way people might alienate you. But, sometimes there’s something even harder than being a high school feminist.. Being a high school activist.
When I was in high school, figuring out ways to be an active feminist was quite the ordeal. It took a lot of creativity on my part, and considering the fact that my parents are anti-choice and anti-feminists, I had to be sneaky about it, as well. My activism was limited to school. It can be tough to be much of an activist when a lot of options are limited to you. Donating to feminist/pro-choice organizations, joining a public protest/march, or joining the Young Women’s Leadership Council are all things that your parents can easily stop you from doing.
But don’t fret. There are ways that you can make a difference, even at your age. Here are some things that you can do.
1. Be educated about feminist issues. This is probably the most obvious one, but nonetheless it needs to be said. Try your best to be aware of what’s happening, and to help others be aware as well. Reading up on feminist blogs can really help with this one. I heard about Dr. Tiller’s murder on a blog before I heard it on the news, and blogs often cover material that you don’t really get to see anywhere else.
2. Educate others. I know, I know. It’ s difficult and often annoying to give a feminism 101 class to your friends. But hey, you were most likely just as ignorant as them on feminist issues at one point, right? Tell them about what’s happening. Tell them why that rape joke is horrible. Tell them why it’s not okay to call women sluts. Tell them why it’s still rape if the woman is unconscious (and, sadly, I’ve actually had to give that lecture before). It’s easy to be annoyed and angry when people don’t just know these things, but it’s better to teach them than to yell at them.
3. Protest and Counter-protest at your school. Even as a young feminist with restricting, anti-choice parents, I still always managed to counter-protest the anti-choicers every year when they had their “silent day”. And even better, I counter-protested in a way that we actually got our voices heard, instead of remaining silent. You can make t-shirts, wear bracelets or necklaces, or (my personal favorite) grab a marker and have a friend write “Pro-choice” on your face. I did all of those things when I wanted to protest and counter protest, and I got a lot of my friends to participate, as well. Every time, we made a bigger statement than the anti-choicers. We always won.
4. Be creative. Like I said earlier, being a high school activist took a lot of creativity on my part. Maybe you can make posters, or maybe you can use the opportunity in that dreadful English class to give a speech about feminism to your classmates. Anything that you can do to get your voice heard and to educate others is great. It may seem small, but it’s worth it. If you can bring awareness to even just one person, then it’s worth it.
Those are just a few ideas. I’d LOVE to hear your own ideas in the comments
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Robin S. @ at 12:56 pm, July 18th, 2009
What’s great about the Internet is that it can allow you to be an activist and nobody can do anything to stop you. It’s also a great way to keep up with the news of protests and counter-protests in the like, especially if you sign up for a newsletter that sends out e-mails about these things.
If your parents are anti-feminist and you want to get out and actually do/i> pro-feminist things, there’s also the option of, well, not telling them what you’re doing. I know that lying isn’t a good thing to encourage, but sometimes it’s okay if you’re lying for a good reason. If you’re going to spend your day escorting women into a Planned Parenthood clinic so that they don’t have to force their way through the protesters on their own, for example, then I think it’s fine to tell your parents that you’re just going to be hanging out with friends that day if they’re anti-choice.
The second point you made was really important, especially since a lot of people don’t like feminists simply because they’re uneducated about what they are. Too many times I’ve told people that I’m a feminist and they assumed that I hated women who chose to be housewives and things like that.