An organization known as HeForShe is campaigning to engage both men and women to fight for gender equality.
According to their website, HeForShe.org, the organization urges men to “join [their] country” in standing up for women’s rights. The goal of the organization is to bring the issue of unequal rights between the genders to light and to fund oppressed women in third-world countries. So far there are over 198,000 men involved in the cause worldwide, and the number is rising quickly.
The website states that 100 dollars “will provide shelter and life skills training to 12 women in Zaatari refugee camp in Jordan.” The program also assists women in ways such as offering loans to fisherwomen in Zimbabwe, providing seed funding to female farmers in Côte d’Ivoire, and helping indigenous women in Guatemala to gain national ID cards.
Emma Watson has proved herself a valuable public figure for HeForShe through her work as a United Nations Women Goodwill Ambassador. During a press conference, she spoke out about her beliefs pertaining to gender equality.
“Men, I would like to take this opportunity to extend your formal invitation,” Watson said. “Gender equality is your issue, too.”
This speech, which was posted on Youtube on the United Nations’ channel , currently has over 470,000 views. Other famous faces have contributed to the HeForShe cause, including David Tennant (of Doctor Who fame), Tom Hiddleston (who played Loki in The Avengers), and Harry Styles (a singer for One Direction). These actors have posted pictures of themselves on Twitter holding signs that say #HeForShe, voicing their support of the work of the organization.
A poll was conducted in which MHS students were asked about their opinions regarding their beliefs on feminism. Out of 80 students, 94 percent said they believed women and men should have equal rights.
Additionally, students were asked if the word “feminist” creates a negative or biased image of women in their minds. 48 percent of students said yes, with the remaining 52 percent saying no.
“Through stereotyping, feminists are seen as ‘femi-nazis’ by people who don’t understand what feminism is,” sophomore Maria Fee said in response to the question.