Sometimes things happen and blogging gets put on the back burner. Sorry about that.
March 8th is International Women's Day. It's a day we can celebrate ourselves in all our wondrous glory. This is me being nerdy about every woman who has gone before me and fought for the rights and privileges I have today, and the women still fighting. This is me being nerdy about feminism and the fact that I've been able to learn about what exactly that means and what it means for me. It's me being grateful for the women who have helped shape my life, my identity, my beliefs, and values.
I'm lucky to live in NZ, which was the first (European descended) country in the world to allow all women to vote in 1893. Two years ago on this day I exercised my right to vote by voting in the Flag Referendum. Last year in September I voted for our current Prime Minister. The historic event in 1893 included Maori women. In fact, there were many Maori suffragettes, not that history remembers them very well.
All too often in history, this is the case. The stories of (white, rich) men are recorded at the expense of women. The stories of women that are told are often those of the white and rich. All women's stories - women of colour, indigenous women, disabled women, queer women, transwomen, poor women, fat women, promiscuous women, skinny women, chaste women, religious women, atheist women - they're all important and all of them should be remembered today, and every day.
Yes, I am a Feminist. I want women to be educated, to be paid equally, to be offered equal opportunities, and to be treated the same as men. At the same time, I want to abolish toxic masculinity, kill rape culture and end racism - all of which are tied up in the oppression of women and all of which are inextricably linked with feminism. I want women to support other women.
International Women's Day must be about all women.
So what does that mean for us lady-nerds? It's hard sometimes - we get called fake nerds, fake gamer-girls, threatened and looked down upon. No matter that girls invented scifi. It means sticking together and standing up for each other! New fan or old, our nerdiness is more than valid.
I hope you've all had a great International Women's Day.
Deanna x
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