Happy International Day Of The Girl Child!!

International Day of the Girl Child: No more silence by Jennifer Chinenye Emelife

I read somewhere that subjugation has no gender and so women should stop acting like they are the only ones being oppressed in the society. While this might be true, we should not forget that there is the historic bias against women; that it took many years of agitation for a woman to have and say her own name, be her own person and up till today, this stand is still being negotiated. Oppression may have no gender but in my experience with young people and children, I've seen boys tease girls about their strengths and abilities because they are girls. I've seen girls try to cower under this teasing and turn away from the things they love. I've seen boys tease boys for "running like a girl" "acting like a girl" because somehow, weakness and triviality are being associated with the female gender.

In the years that I've lived, I've constantly being told that I'm strong like a man, determined like a man, act like a man, tenacious about my dreams like a man as though to say the fine and important qualities of life and living are reserved for men alone and every other woman who exhibits same is "like a man". But I'm not like a man. I'm a woman who is evolving and learning to be better every day and a man is definitely not the standard.

So, yes, I'm a feminist because I believe that children all over the world should be given equal chance to pursue their dreams, regardless of their gender; that a girl can, just as a boy can, and when she does, she isn't being like a boy, she just is, just as the boy is. That the world will be a better place if we treated people, women particularly, as humans in full possession of their rights to be.

It's the International Day of the Girl Child and it's exciting to live in a time where young people no longer take no for an answer; where people have refused to inherit the silence of their mothers and grandmothers and are speaking up against all sorts of ills, #EndSARS #EndRape, etc.

In all of these, let’s remember, like Maya Angelou puts it, none of us can be free until everybody is free. So in your tiny corner, do something to make a difference. Happy International Day of the Girl Child. 💓