24 year old Harry Potter star Emma Watson delivered a powerful and inspiring speech to the UN this week.
As well as her Hollywood roles, Emma has another important role in life – as a global goodwill ambassador for UN women. She presented a 13 minute speech in which she speaks about her stance on ‘Feminism’ and it’s importance among both women AND men. Emma is launching a gender equality campaign called ‘He For She’ alongside the United Nations in an aim to end imbalance among the sexes.
Describing her early experiences with gender inequality she said –
“I started questioning gender-based assumptions when at eight I was confused at being called “bossy,” because I wanted to direct the plays we would put on for our parents—but the boys were not.
When at 14 I started being sexualised by certain elements of the press.
When at 15 my girlfriends started dropping out of their sports teams because they didn’t want to appear “muscly.”
When at 18 my male friends were unable to express their feelings.
I decided I was a feminist and this seemed uncomplicated to me. But my recent research has shown me that feminism has become an unpopular word.”
Feminism has become a highly debatable topic these days with the perception being that any self confessed ‘feminist’ is a ‘Man-Hater’. This was alarmingly displayed after the #YesAllWomen hash tag began trending following a US shooting spree earlier this year. The media blamed the incident on the shooters misogynist Youtube videos posted in the lead up to the shootings. There is also an inner scoffing from both men and women when high profile stars speak out against sexism. Emma and her campaign recognise that this is not right – the meaning behind the word feminist needs to change.
The aim of the ‘He For She’ campaign highlights the need for both sexes to feel free to express themselves, receive respect and basic rights on the same level and more importantly for men to be a part of the movement too.
Men—I would like to take this opportunity to extend your formal invitation. Gender equality is your issue too.
Because to date, I’ve seen my father’s role as a parent being valued less by society despite my needing his presence as a child as much as my mother’s.
I’ve seen young men suffering from mental illness unable to ask for help for fear it would make them look less “macho”—in fact in the UK suicide is the biggest killer of men between 20-49; eclipsing road accidents, cancer and coronary heart disease. I’ve seen men made fragile and insecure by a distorted sense of what constitutes male success. Men don’t have the benefits of equality either.
We don’t often talk about men being imprisoned by gender stereotypes but I can see that that they are and that when they are free, things will change for women as a natural consequence.
If men don’t have to be aggressive in order to be accepted women won’t feel compelled to be submissive. If men don’t have to control, women won’t have to be controlled.
Watch the entire speech here:
