#WCW All Month Long by Jessica Smith

#wcw All Month Long

By Jessica Smith

As March is Women’s History Month, it is time to honor those women who have made a difference in the world.

But to me, it is also a time to honor and bring attention to some women whom we have grown up watching and who continue to strive for equality.

My top “women crushes” this month are Emma Watson, Beyoncé, Nicki Minaj, and, though you would never have heard it from me several years ago, Taylor Swift.

Emma Watson has been a huge influence in my life since the first Harry Potter film came out. As a lifelong fan of the series, I began to idolize Watson, who so faithfully portrayed the unapologetic brainiac, social justice advocate, and overall badass lady, Hermione Granger (let’s face it: Harry would have died, or worse, been expelled, long before Voldemort’s return without Hermione.)

Now, at age 24, she is a UN Women’s Goodwill Ambassador, Brown University graduate (with a degree in English Literature, might I add!) and will soon be acting as Belle in a live-action retelling of Beauty and the Beast. She is humble, extremely intelligent, and is using her fame for positive change in the world—not just in Hollywood, but across the globe. She is pushing for gender equality in the developing world, not just in the western world, and strives to rebrand feminism as what it always should have been: solidarity between all genders, for the benefit of all humanity. As a soon-to-be 22 year old, I am in awe of all that she has accomplished, and hope that I can achieve just one fraction of it in my own life.

Beyoncé is another woman who I grew up admiring, ever since the Destiny’s Child album “Survivor” was a constant soundtrack to the endless foosball tournaments between my sister and I. Songs like “Independent Women, Pt. I” taught me, as a young girl, to take pride in my accomplishments as an individual, not just my romantic conquests. They taught me to love myself with songs like “Bootylicious” and to let go of the petty conflicts and move on with “Survivor.” And, later, their song “Say My Name” taught me to confront dishonesty and value myself, not to allow others to treat me as disposable.

Beyoncé continues to act as a role model for all young women to this day. Though she is married to Jay Z, another artist, she still does her own thing and owns the stage in her own right. Not to mention, she fully claims the label of “feminist.”

Beyonce may be known as “Queen B,” but hip hop and rap have another queen as well: Nicki Minaj. While some women may discredit her for her overt sexuality, I think that her use of sexuality is definitely empowering. She owns her body and uses it to incite conversations. Exhibit A: the artwork of Anaconda, which caused a huge controversy and tons of censorship. Minaj immediately responded by comparing the reactions of people to similar depictions of white women, which are seen as acceptable.

Minaj always has control when she is being sexualized in her videos. In fact, Nicki is quoted as saying, in reference to an iconic moment in Anaconda’s music video: "At first I’m being sexual with the banana, and then it’s like, ‘Ha-ha, no.’ It was important for us to show in the kitchen scene, because it’s always about the female taking back the power, and if you want to be flirty and funny that’s fine, but always keeping the power and the control in everything.”

Her mission is not just about empowering and taking back female sexuality, though; she is also very into supporting young women, especially her fans, to empower themselves, get a good education, and take part in healthy relationships. “I love my females,” Minaj said in an interview. “I give them confidence to say ‘I am me, take it or leave it, I love it and I don’t care what you think about it.’” She is often telling her young fans to do their best in school, study for exams, and go to college if they have the opportunity—an opportunity Minaj herself did not have.

And, despite that lack of higher education, Minaj is wise and always ready to confront stereotypes and double standards, as well as encouraging others to do the same:

“My advice to women in general: Even if you're doing a nine-to-five job, treat yourself like a boss. Not arrogant, but be sure of what you want - and don't allow people to run anything for you without your knowledge.”

Finally, let’s talk T-Swift. When I was in high school, I had some seriously mixed feelings on this country-pop princess. I really liked some of her music, but she had a reputation for dating men, breaking up, and writing and singing her sob stories about them. Honestly, the biggest problem I had was with her song “Mean,” which struck me as petty, encouraging female-to-female hostility, and just immature.

But throughout the past few years, we have watched Taylor grow up and mature in so many ways. Whereas “Mean” seemed to call out and incite drama with whoever it is about, today she avoids petty conflict. For example, although she apparently has no love for Katy Perry, she refuses to feed the media’s fire by talking trash about the other singer. And while she was, in the media’s eyes at least, a little “boy crazy” for a few years, she now says that she wants to stay single for a few years and just have fun. What time she spent with boyfriends and flings before, she now seems content to spend with a group of gal pals, or all by herself, pursuing new hobbies: painting, working out, talking about cats...

Even looking at her lyrics side by side, we see true growth and maturity. (Link here) While older songs might have a hint of slut-shaming (“Better Than Revenge,” I’m looking at you), boy obsession, etc. there is much more to her songs, then and now.

What we can learn from Taylor Swift is that people won’t always get us, or even try to get us. For example, in a recent interview, Taylor addressed the talk about her ‘boy bashing songs’ which are really just songs of heartbreak from a female point of view. She said: “People have to simplify things. Everybody’s got busy lives, they don’t have time to form a complex opinion of me and my music.” In other words, people are always going to misunderstand you. The best thing you can do is “shake it off,” ignore the haters, get a strong group of girlfriends, and love yourself. Oh, and get a cat, or ten.

Who are your women crushes? Take at least a few minutes this month to think about your female role models, past and present, and think about what they have taught you about being a woman and a human being. And think about what kind of role model you want to be for the girls in your life.