Women Arise!

-By C.J. Singh

As a young lady of colour I have always been desperate to see real girls like me represented, and more than that, thriving in what they do. Us gals have traditionally got the short-end of the stick in society, and for a while things were looking bleak on the progress front. But if the #metoo and #muterkelly movement is anything to go by, the end of grinning and baring it, is neigh. Women have proved they are most powerful banned together, showcasing a new era where ladies are here not just to be seen, but heard without apologies for who they are, and what they represent.

Our ideas of beauty have changed, with the Lady Gagas and Lizzos of the world showing us that the sexiest thing a woman can do is just be herself. Gone are the days of cowering away from the bright colours on your eye shadow palette and wearing what’s body appropriate because of some female fantasy a bloke in his mum’s basement made up. Women are celebrating who they are with stretchmark’s and cellulite, and embracing their inner goddesses that have long been oppressed in Spanx. Seeing other women live so freely in their own skin is a discourse on its own, forcing us all to take an uncomfortable look at the gorgeous people in the mirror, who we’ve been covering up in filters, and remind them of how sensational they truly are.

Today we celebrate women. All women who have been, and remain unstoppable, and remarkable in every corner and crevice of the world. We have seen women shine through with political prowess in young activists dominating the UN to pass laws against child marriage in Egypt, Tanzania, and Indonesia. Alaa Saleh led the charge in areas like Sudan where the female voice grew from a whisper of hesitant suggestion to a roar for change and inclusion. Artist’s like Boushra Yahya Almutawakel became the first female photographer from Yemen to be featured in international publication, while Greta Thunberg put her foot down and made the earth shake with her cry for climate change.

2019 has seen parts of the glass ceiling shattered with the exposure of sexual predators and demands for the gender pay-gap to be addressed. The events have proven that collaboration, and support from other women has been the fire that’s kept the female flag burning strong.

Now, as 2020 starts with NASA having an all-women walk on the moon and the first female president elected in Greece. We hear the constant beat of rebellion that will bring that pesky ceiling down. Today feels like we are on the cusp of a great revolution that has began to stir in the souls of women who are recognising that they are worth more than they’ve been given.

No longer do I find myself pining for representation as a notion only found in fairy tales. I finally see women emerging with clarity and a vision for what they want and how to get it. Every journeys is different, all stories beautiful and complex. The aim for gender equality should be highlighting the magnificence in every woman’s existence, and revealing the revelry in every obstacle a woman overcomes. So lets today celebrate where we’ve been, how far we’ve come and the women that make possibilities seem endless with every foot forward. Happy Women’s Day!