However, I believe anything that brings inequality to the forefront is necessary and recognize that some activities are more sensibly organized and better funded than others.
Using celebrities to chant they have been given ten million dollars to act in a movie instead of the twenty million dollars given to their male counterpart is certainly a first world issue slightly above my pay grade.
Using those same female celebrities to recount ways they have been sexually intimidated, sometimes twenty or more years ago, seems rather disingenuous to me as well. They knew what was happening and chose, or were forced, to go another way. For those who didn't move on and stayed in their inferior position, they recognized the choice they were making.
As a woman, I have been sexually preyed upon, I have been belittled, I have been overlooked for promotion, and I have been denied the bump in salary that I deserved. I meet all the criteria for crying #metoo; but many years ago, I made a conscious choice to rise above finger-pointing and name-calling and to continue to try harder.
That is why I am quite pleased with the International Women's Day 2018 theme: #pressforprogress.
We must #pressforprogress in the way that best suits our style.
During the Academy Awards Ceremony, someone said that the celebrities were mentors and role models and by them taking a stand, the world would take notice. Perhaps. I merely hope that their struggles to overcome million dollar inequities can positively impact all women including those who are unpaid and enslaved in situations that are not as glamorous as those who are being heard the most.
Ida B. Wells was a journalist, feminist, and an early leader in the Civil Rights Movement. She said, "The way to right wrongs is to turn the light of truth upon them."
In one sentence, she captured my belief and my mission for International Women's Day 2018. I will #pressforprogress by not only speaking of the popular women's movements that are trending today but also, by not being afraid to call bullshit when appropriate as well.
