Identity: Feminist and the various shades of grey that I identify with

"Feminism is a term without definition. It is defined by person and experience, by adding, subtracting, altering, redefining and identity that reflects a person's being, beliefs and lifestyle".

Although these are Lisa Ayuso words, I hold them and carry them with me always. Humanity is constantly evolving; it makes sense my feminism would evolve as I evolve.

Why I am a part of the liberation movement?

I have been born into this world with privilege. I am a white able bodied, english speaking woman who is university educated, living in a first world country, where I have the opportunity to learn, grow and empower myself.

With my acknowledged privilege; I feel that it is my responsibility to use my privilege to work towards positive social change.

I am a part of the liberation movement because I do not believe that a society based on hierarchy and patriarchy is the most efficient social structure.

I believe race is a concept and in order to abolish racism, freedom fighters need to engage in critical conversation with the general population about stereotypes used as racial identifiers. We need to recognize white privilege, challenge what identifies “Canadians” and open up safe space for the marginalized populations.

I believe education is central to individual and collective empowerment which is fortunate because the liberation movement advocates on behalf of educating women.

I believe it is important to reclaim women’s histories and feminist engagements. As a player in the liberation movement it is critical to my feminism and the survival of women to contribute to future history and to ensure past feminist labour is acknowledged and not forgotten by society, youth and institutions.

I believe every woman should be in control of her own body. She should be the sole decision maker in accordance with her reproductive health and sexuality. She should never compromise herself, politics and beliefs for anyone or anything. Her autonomy should never leave her.

I believe women and men should have equal pay, equal opportunity and equal treatment within the law, the workplace, in the home, at the gym, in the church, in the classroom, on the bus, on the streets, etc.

I believe that ending poverty is not just a “real nice idea”. I believe it is possible to achieve if people were willing to allocate their power to others, donate resources and think about the future of our world and the collection of individuals who make it uniquely different and how to best serve both entities—the people and the physical environments in which we live in.

I want people to recognize that consumerism is false power, that a positive body image does not come in a size and it is more important to empower yourself through critical thinking and self reflection rather than the options for empowerment given to women in a patriarchal society.

I believe that it is a lot easier to be positive, to live each day with the knowledge that world change is attainable and working for that change is the motivating factor for the joy I experience in my life.

One day I will die. I do not value if my name is remembered. However, I do care about how I used the time I have been given and what I did with my time to empower those around me.

For me, being a feminist means an ongoing fight for equity. It’s about freedom. It’s about individual and collective empowerment. It’s about being a woman challenging the philosophies of the dominate discourse of society.

I could not think of any better way to spend my time, energy, passion, excitement , --really my life, then being a part of the liberation movement.