UN Women Global Goodwill Ambassador Emma Watson co-hosted a special event launching the HeForShe campaign from the UN Headquarters in New York on Saturday. “The event aims to kick-start a global solidarity movement in support of women’s rights and full equality between women and men,” and “will put men at the center of activism and dialogue to end persistent inequalities faced by women and girls around the world. Over the next 12 months, the campaign intends to mobilize one billion men and boys as advocates and agents of change for gender equality.”
A highlight of the event was the unveiling of the HeForShe map, “a real-time map with a geo locator that captures men’s engagement with the initiative around the world.” UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced the first goal of mobilizing 100,000 people and became the first member by activating the map. I am number 64. What is your number?
Some photos from the event
And afterparty at the Peninsula Hotel
Emma’s speech and closing words (portion of the video thanks to Leonardo Ogioni on youtube)
Your excellencies, UN Secretary-General, President of the General Assembly, executive director of UN Women, and distinguished guests.
Today we are launching a campaign called “HeForShe.”
I am reaching out to you because we need your help. We want to end gender inequality – and to do this we need everyone involved. This is the first campaign of its kind at the UN: we want to try and galvanize as many men and boys as possible to be advocates for change. And we don’t just want to talk about it, we want to try and make sure that it’s tangible.
I was appointed as Goodwill Ambassador for UN Women 6 months ago and the more I have spoken about feminism the more I have realized that fighting for women’s rights has too often become synonymous with man-hating. If there is one thing I know for certain, it is that this has to stop.
For the record, feminism by definition is: “The belief that men and women should have equal rights and opportunities. It is the theory of the political, economic and social equality of the sexes.”
I started questioning gender-based assumptions a long time ago, when I was eight, I was confused at being called “bossy,” because I wanted to direct the plays that we would put on for our parents—but the boys were not.
When at 14 I started being sexualized by certain elements of the media.
When at 15 my girlfriends started dropping out of their sports teams because they didn’t want to appear “muscly.”
When at 18 my male friends were unable to express their feelings.
I decided that I was a feminist and this seemed uncomplicated to me. But my recent research has shown me that feminism has become an unpopular word. Women are choosing not to identify as feminist. Apparently I am among the ranks of women whose expressions are seen as too strong, too aggressive, isolating, and anti-men. Unattractive even.
Why has the word become such an uncomfortable one?
I am from Britain and I think it is right that I am paid the same as my male counterparts. I think it is right that I should be able to make decisions about my own body. I think it is right that women be involved on my behalf in the policies and decisions that will affect my life. I think it is right that socially I am afforded the same respect as men. But sadly I can say that there is no one country in the world where all women can expect to receive these rights.
No country in the world can yet say that they have achieved gender equality.
These rights I consider to be human rights, but I am one of the lucky ones. My life is a sheer privilege because my parents didn’t love me less because I was born a daughter. My school did not limit me because I was a girl. My mentors didn’t assume I would go less far because I might give birth to a child one day. These influencers were the gender equality ambassadors that made me who I am today. They may not know it, but they are inadvertent feminists who are changing the world today. We need more of those. And if you still hate the word—it is not the word that is important, it’s the idea and the ambition behind it. Because not all women have received the same rights that I have. In fact, statistically, very few have been.
In 1997, Hilary Clinton made a famous speech in Beijing about women’s rights. Sadly many of the things that she wanted to change are still true today.
But what stood out for me the most was that less than 30 per cent of the audience were male. How can we affect change in the world when only half of it is invited or feel welcome to participate in the conversation?
Men — I would like to take this opportunity to extend your formal invitation. Gender equality is your issue too. Because to date, I’ve seen my father’s role as a parent being valued less by society despite my needing his presence as a child as much as my mother’s.
I’ve seen young men suffering from mental illness unable to ask for help for fear it would make them less of a man — in fact in the UK suicide is the biggest killer of men between 20-49; eclipsing road accidents, cancer and coronary heart disease. I’ve seen men made fragile and insecure by a distorted sense of what constitutes male success. Men don’t have the benefits of equality either.
We don’t often talk about men being imprisoned through gender stereotypes but I can see that that they are and that when they are free, things will change for women as a natural consequence.
If men don’t have to be aggressive in order to be accepted, women won’t feel compelled to be submissive. If men don’t have to control, women won’t have to be controlled.
Both men and women should feel free to be sensitive. Both men and women should feel free to be strong… It is time that we all perceive gender on a spectrum instead of two sets of opposing ideals.
If we stop defining each other by what we are not and start defining ourselves by who we are — we can all be freer and this is what HeForShe is about. It’s about freedom.
I want men to take up this mantle. So that their daughters, sisters and mothers can be free from prejudice but also so that their sons have permission to be vulnerable and human too — reclaim those parts of themselves they abandoned and in doing so be a more true and complete version of themselves.
You might be thinking who is this Harry Potter girl? And what is she doing speaking at the UN. And it’s a really good question, I have been asking myself the same thing. All I know is that I care about this problem. And I want to make it better.
And having seen what I’ve seen — and given the chance — I feel it is my responsibility to say something. Statesman Edmund Burke said: “All that is needed for the forces of evil to triumph is for good men and women to do nothing.”
In my nervousness for this speech and in my moments of doubt I’ve told myself firmly — If not me, who? If not now, when? If you have similar doubts when opportunities are presented to you I hope that those words will be helpful.
Because the reality is, that if we do nothing it will take 75 years, or for me to be nearly a hundred, before women can expect to be paid the same as men, for the same work. 15.5 million girls will be married in the next 16 years as children. And at current rates it won’t be until 2086 before all rural African girls can have a secondary education.
If you believe in equality, you might be one of those inadvertent feminists I spoke of earlier.
And for this I applaud you.
We are struggling for a uniting word but the good news is that we have a uniting movement. It is called HeForShe. I am inviting you to step forward, to be seen and to ask yourself, “If not me, who? If not now, when?”
Thank you very, very much.
That’s disgusting, men are more subject to violence and deaths from violence than women. But still, men are supposed to not give a shit about themselves and just protect women instead? No way. You are not getting any support for this
Well “this is a man’s world”, or so the saying goes…so what you’re saying is because men have made the world the bad place it is women shall get their share of it too?
Let’s look at death from violence (murder) as that is more consistently defined. Yes, it is true more men are murdered than women, about 3 times as many. It’s also true that males committed murder about 10 times as often as women, so it’s easy to see that most of those male deaths are at the hands of other males. Most male victims were murdered because of things like drug or gang activity. Female victims on the other hand are more likely to murdered from domestic dispute or sexual assault. Gender equality may not do much for the male on male criminally related violence, but it may foster more respect between the sexes and lower the rates of male on female – and female on male – violence.
It’s also very sad to see Emma apparently buying into the “wage gap” myth, which has been consistently shown to be nothing but a lie. Women do get paid the same as men for the same work. On average, statistics bend the truth because they fail to take into account men getting paid more to do dangerous work and working more hours.
I thought she was supposed to be smarter than this. 🙁
And is telling again that despite Emma’s comments about trying to help men too, the name of the campaign is HeForShe.
Very disappointed to see her going down this nonsense road.
Hey Ian. Can you back your claims up with literature and/or other sources? I want to read what you have read, and decide if I should agree with you 🙂
Mirie, or anyone: Google Thomas Sowell and “gender or wage pay gap”. He’s been debunking this for years, but it won’t go away. Men and women make different choices and are never going to have perfect “equality” or pay “parity” in the workplace.
I like Emma and good for her for being passionate about issues, but she’s clearly swallowed a lot of false thinking. There’s a LOT of that in modern “feminism”, which is why I am not one.
db and others, studies of the gender pay gap have shown that once you take away “different choices” and other variables that there is still a 5-7% difference in pay (in the US). Sowell calls that trivial. A 5% pay raise would not be trivial to me.
You and others keep talking about minor points. This effort is about global concerns, not just the US, and not just pay rates.
When my mother was a young girl she was a bright student, good grades. She wanted to be a doctor. Instead of encouraging her, her teachers, and family members, convinced her she’d never make it. Maybe a nurse they’d say. Discouraged, she dropped out and never finished secondary school. Today things are much better. Here. In parts of the world they shoot young girls that want to get an education.
Warren Farrell.
I’m sorry, what are you statistics from? This is a global issue that she’s talking about. Globally it is indeed still very much an issue. In your specific country it may be much more mitigated than in others (which she mentions in her speech btw). HeForShe is a campaign for both genders. About men and women standing together to end the inequality on both sides, though her specific stance is generally more towards female issues, it doesn’t ignore the male struggles as well. Please tell me what appropriate name you would prefer so as not to discredit the entire issue.
“This is a global issue that she’s talking about. ”
And therein lies the problem. I agree, in some place women have huge issues. What about places where men and boys have issues, like in North America or the UK? Do you think it’s OK that 77% of women are awarded sole custody in the case of divorce? Does that sound like equality? Do you think it’s OK that boys are suffering badly in schools relative to girls, to the point that universities are now about 60% women/40% men? Do you think it’s OK that 90+% of elementary school teachers are females? I could go on, but let’s start with that.
If you want an appropriate name, how about WeForUS? And sorry, but it most definitely does ignore men’s issues. It only pays attention to them insofar as they are what women think are men’s issues; it never actually stops and asks men what their issues are.
Can you tell me the link of this video?
http://emma-watson.net/video/HeForShe-launch.mp4
Well, I’ve gone right off her. Citing Hillary Clinton – one of the biggest ant-male feminist bitch bigots out there, she who thinks war affects women more than the men it actually murders – is a great move. Love the swipe at normal male sexuality in there too. How dare we have found her attractive when she was a teenager (it’s not like that’s helped her career or anything)!
Jesus.
Your thinking that “attractive” has something to do with equal rights really disqualifies you!
Eh?
Pure courage. I really love her work. *thumbs up*
Wow your speech is empowering and true what you say about men & women is true not just in britain its happening but in the united states of america I have deppression my brother uncle die from deppression I support you all the way morally yes financially no I struggle with getting a job cause my disability please can we be friends on face book look me up loved your speech at the UN
Incredible speech and magnificently presented, respect. Sadly it is a subject that is a very long way off, and as can been seen from some of the comments here, you won’t convince the morons who clearly don’t understand the big picture. Things have drastically changed since the early 1900’s and in some areas equality does exist, however, in the corridor’s of power where changes are made it is still a male dominated leadership in all areas – break that and you may succeed. There are too many areas to cite as examples of inequality and to be brutally honest there never will be complete equality in some simply because the female of the species cannot perform that particular task as well as the male. I know as i worked in one all my working life.
Personally i believe that if you want to create equality you need to start with the basics, such as minimum wage for all. Get countries to enforce that and you might have a good start.
Great speech though and well done Emma.
Wow, I’m pretty shocked about all the negative comments on here. I am truly proud and thrilled and amazed by Emma for doing this. What a bunch of morons you are indeed.
“Wow, I’m pretty shocked about all the negative comments on here.”
Perhaps you’d be less shocked if you started listening to men and asking them about their issues.
“What a bunch of morons you are indeed.”
Oh oh. Not off to a good start when you insult people rather than listen to what they say, especially if you are looking for their support. Frankly you sound more like someone is really just wants men to do what they are told by you, rather than someone who is genuinely interested in equality.
I know that this comment is not really very intelligent, but it may be understood by those whom it is meant for: Why don’t you use your head and what is supposed to be in it for what it is meant for and not just to keep your ears apart and the rain from falling into your neck!?
The campaign aims at all those sore spots of inequality that so many just don’t want to see. It comes late, but still hopefully in time. All those negative comments are like “If you have an apple, you have to give to me, so that I have one too!”…It doesn’t work that way. Without looking at gender, a fair share is what is needed.
I hope that Emma doesn’t get discouraged by those negative (stupid) comments. Keep it up! It’s necessary!!
I am well aware there are significant problems for women in some parts of the world; are you also aware that there are significant problems for men and if you insult them rather than listening to them you’re not likely to get their support.
My husband signed it. He has always agreed with gender equality and one of the reasons I married him. 🙂
First things first: heforshe.
What does that mean? Male doings for female beings.
Now take a look at the website.
“The movement for gender equality was originally conceived as a struggle led only by women for women.
In recent years men have begun to stand-up in addressing inequalities and discrimination faced by women and girls”
So there you go, straight away, the implication is that this is a gynocentric movement. It’s about women. It doesn’t care about men.
Men should do this, men should do that. Women are just helpless. WTF?
It’s hillarious really.
What it all boils down to is the Feminist position that Women are inferior and Men are superior.
I know this is the opposite of what they claim to believe, but too many Feminist positions boil down to this. “If I’m drunk and so is a Man, he needs to be of stronger constitution, better judgement and stronger resolve than me, or he’s a rapist”.
“If a Man and I both consent to sex and I get pregnant, he is more capable than I am so he needs to pay for whatever choices I make regarding the baby”.
Or in this case “I want to live in the World where I can wear whatever I want, go wherever I want and have nothing bad ever happen to me. Men, make it happen for me”.
Because rather than being responsible for being careful where they go or who they assosiate with, or taking measures to assure their ability to defend themselves, or simply acknowledging that yes, Criminals are gonna Crime, they instead elect to throw a tantrum and just demand that Men create the World they want to live in, since they admit they can’t do it themselves.
Feminism.
“HeForShe”
As if centuries of woman pleasing hasn’t been enough she has the audacity to ask for men to do their dirty work and spread feminism.
@Chuck. Thank you for your message. It screams so much stupidity, it was hilarious. You made my day!
**As if centuries of woman pleasing hasnt been enough…**
probably has to be the dumbest sentence I have read.. haha.
Well that was certainly an intelligent way to gain his support or get him to think differently. Perhaps you might want to listen a little and think a little before blindly attacking people who you are asking for help.
Are you kidding me! Haven’t you read issues in history right? Where have you seen/ read/ heard men pleasing women as a norm? Such cases that is if they existed were only a handful… History is full with incidences of oppression of women. If a bright, spirited woman of today wants to do something about this dogma that still plagues many parts of this world, what is your problem??
That was addressed to Chuck..
Yeah, great comeback.
“Hahaha” is really a great way to disprove my claim. I really made me see how feminists are worth helping.
Keep those arguments coming.
Obviously bitter women are great thinkers.
Ms Watson quotes Edmund Burke as having said “All that is needed for the forces of evil to triumph is for good men and women to do nothing.”
Of course that is NOT what he said. The feeble insertion of “… and women” is a dead giveaway. Burke wasn’t a millionaire feminist like ms Watson.
Ms Watson just finds it convenient to lie. Doing so in front of the UN takes balls.
http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Edmund_Burke
If you actually read your own source, the quote is attributed to Burke, but no one knows for sure if he really said it, or what he really said. Many variations of the quote exist which include “and women”. Emma’s is as good as any of those.
When you have to pick on minor things to make your argument, you fail.
No quote by Burke includes “… and women”.
She just made that up to appeal to SJW’s like dook.
It’s a lie.
Would you believe somebody quoting Neil Armstrong going “It’s one small step for a man and a woman, one giant leap for mankind”?
Are quotes about what people said, or what they should have said?
Maybe Edmund Burke should have said “… and women”. Maybe MLK should have said:
“When we let freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God’s children – or children of an unspecified Goddess, or of a non-religious Entity, or none of the above -, black men and white men -and women-, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics -or none of the above – , will be able to join hands and sing – or choose not to – in the words of the old Negro spiritual, “Free at last! Free at last! Thank God – or Goddess or etc – Almighty, we are free at last – or enjoy the the illusion thereof!”
You still didn’t read your source. Scroll down to where it says “Disputed” and you’ll find the quote. Then click on Show Variations and you’ll see many different variations of the quote that all have been attributed to Burke. The point is no one actually knows for sure what he said, or if he even said it. Emma’s version of the quote is as valid as any of the others. And any of them get the original point across.
But you go ahead and remain blinded by your sexist attitudes because it “takes balls” to admit you don’t know everything, and grow.
So making shit up = OK because feminism?
Are we sure Chcuk U. Farley is not a troll?
It is possible of course (with that name), but unfortunately, I think it much more likely this is what he believes. Some people see only what they want to see, believe only what they want to believe, and nothing will ever convince them otherwise.
Typical how people need to rewrite quotes and history in order to suit their agendas. That is another reason why this speech of hers is just another BS statement.
BTW, I deserve a better chance in a divorce court and I should be able to keep the house, car, money, and my kids. Lets see that happen!!!!
@Chuck U. Farley. Yes, ‘making shit up = OK because feminism’ in the same way that ‘willful ignorance and mindless hatred = OK because sexism.’
Please point out a single source that includes the statement “and women.” Thanks.
I am very moved by your speech about not just woman’s rights but also men’s rights. It seems like in our society we have a double standard for men and woman “roles”. Our society has put presser on how men should acts and how woman should act. I myself, have a mother who struggles with depression and also maybe my father struggles with too.
The HeforShe movement is something I want to be apart of. As a young lady as myself I can see the prejudice on both spectrums deserve equal rights. I just thought I would share this to you in hopes that it brings you encouragement.
Funny how the “HeforShe” title is another way of telling men what to do. Why didn’t they call it “SheforHe”? I mean, this is about EQUAL rights?
If you are tired of double standards, then why enforce it with a double standard title?
Absolutely. The very title tells you everything you need to know, despite the sop to caring about men too.
Poor Emma. So much potential but it seems that university education did little other than brainwash her with the usual anti-male feminist bollocks so beloved of academia these days.
Exceptional speech Emma!!!!! I was impressed!!!!! Love you!!! 🙂
Super speech Emma. You completely made my day and that of many others. Take a bow!!
I just love everything that emma just said on her speech… Beauty and Brains… So smart, and because of that, I admire her brain and heart.. And loving her more for being such a wonderful person. I hope that all men will be participating for Heforshe. Keep up the good work Her-my-oh-nee (Ms. Emma Watson)
I would like to begin with a “thank you” for the invitation into the discussion; hopefully more males will be allowed into the discussion based on the hype from this speech.
Ecen so,I must confess, I am skeptical of this movement based on many of the observations previously listed. I appreciated the sentiments from the speech that gave some recognition to issues for women and for men, but the website seems to offer no such olive branch.
I would be more convinced to sign on if more attention was spent on differentiating between institutional sexism and social sexism for both men and women.
Are there any plans for expanding the website to meet the needs of both genders, or will this mainly focus on women’s rights?
There is plenty to discuss, such as the unfortunate truth that women may be unintentionally seen as inferior to male coworkers despite exhibiting the same behaviors due to gender role dissonance. At the same time, attention should be paid to men’s struggles such as the myth that men are controlled by their libidos.
I would of course like to congratulate you on a truly eloquent speech. If you can work towards truly making feminism a force for equality for women and men, rather than just an advocacy group for women’s inequalities, then I predict you may very well succeed in your goals.
Short addition:
Sorry for the typo; I am nowhere near a computer and autocorrect is wierd sometimes.
While I stand by the previous statement, I do want to clarify that it is important to recognize sexism on a global scale. I also think that just about anyone would acknowledge that women see great suffering around the world based on their sex alone. I did, however, wish to promote attention to men’s problems as well in the spirit of equality.
I believe this is the best way to make the world a better place. Thank you for everything you are doing. Bless you and peace be with you.
Highest Regards,
John De Montfort
Unfortunately Emma, I think you will never succeed with this one. Men and Women are not equal, in the same way that an apple will never be the same as an orange, and if you try to make an apple equal to an orange, you will in all likelihood just make a mess. Instead, I think you should be campaigning for fairness, not equality.
This is one example of why I think EQUALITY will not work:
i) Lets say you have 9000 calories of food, two average men and two average women. If you split it EQUALLY, the men and women will get 2250 calories each. Unfortunately an average man need 2500 calories of food per day and an average woman needs 2000 calories. This means that the men will starve and the women will get fat. Instead, it would be FAIR to split the calories so that the two men get 5000 calories and the two women get 4000 calories.
I suggest you give up on gender equality and campaign for gender fairness.
You’re making an example of equality with food and calories? Really? Of course men and women are biologically different in many ways, but that does not mean that we should not have equal rights.
Different genders, same rights. That is what I believe in. I wish that people could just let themselves see that feminism is just about that. There will always be extreminists shown in media and social media that will give you the wrong picture of what it is really about.
I think feminism is just as Emma said, “uncomplicated”.
Have you ever heard the expression, ‘the devil is in the detail’. Equal and Fair are not necessarily the same thing and feminism is asking for Equality not fairness (see definition):
“Feminism is a collection of movements and ideologies aimed at defining, establishing, and defending equal political, economic, cultural, and social rights for women.”
I don’t deny that her heart is in the right place, but she needs to be very careful. She is effectively addressing, and going to impact the lives of billions of people. My point is that if she isn’t careful, it could also have a significant negative impact for some people.
That quote sounds pretty good to me, what about it threathens you? Why would we not have the same social, economical, cultural and political rights? I think we need to see our differences, I am not saying that I think men and women should be like the same gender or something, but we should still have the same opportunities and free choices in our lives.
And I can’t see how her speech and commitment to this movement could have negative impact on some people? How do you mean? She is passionate about something, and people watching her take own responsibility for what they see and what they think about it? I think most people will rather be inspired and enlightened than negativly effected.
I do see your point though, as I assume you interpeted it as if Emma said that women and men are completely equal (as in the way I mentioned before). And I do see how this could hit back and make sceptics even more sceptical, but I still admire her for it and I think that it will reach out to thousands of people.
It’s the ‘equal’ that I don’t like, if it had said ‘fair’ instead, I would be much more comfortable with it. Also it’s too easy to jump on the feminism band wagon and say this is a wonderful thing when most people won’t actually spend the time thinking about it rationally and asking themselves will this really work ?
I do admire her for it, her heart is in the right place, and I do hope for a largely positive outcome, as long as it isn’t at the expense of fairness.
I think feminism fails to see the reality of the world. People are not equal let alone men and women.
for the avoidance of doubt, I am not saying that she is pushing for forced paternity leave or anything like that, I am just trying to highlight the risks that could arise from misinterpretation of the ‘Feminist idealism’.
This went in the wrong bit – sorry.
Feminism is indeed often about more than that, though. At one point in the speech Emma talks about political and “social equality”. What is social equality, exactly? Does the idea of men’s clubs and women’s clubs violate gender equality? Many feminists think so, which is why they were part of the effort to pressure the Masters golf club in Georgia to admit women, successfully.
I don’t see anything wrong with sexually exclusive clubs; sometimes men want to gather and socialize with each other and not women, and sometimes women want to do the same. It’s no comparison to exclusivity based on race, which almost everyone knows is wrong. Wolf Blitzer introduced her as an “actor”. This seems relatively new as well, the last few years-is ANY sexually exclusive language wrong now? What exactly is wrong with describing female actors as actresses? In Saudi Arabia, women can’t even drive! To say “gender inequality” is a problem everywhere or a global problem is really not so. It IS very serious in large parts of the world. In America and Britain and most of the West, it’s a very political subject, “gender equality”.
Everyone would be a feminist if it were as truly uncontroversial as you imply.
A very Marxist analysis that seems to suggest a world in which equal rights existed would necessarily have Politburo-directed rationing of calories. I get it, but the issue isn’t the false Utopias of both sides, nor the weird semiotics of the logo . . . it’s how people treat each other personally, in their family’s, at their jobs, in their communities. A little less intellectual rigamarole and a little more respect and compassion is in order.
I would also imagine that this is why quite a lot of men find feminism insulting. It fails to recognise the fact that women and men are just not the same.
Count me out. Women and men are of the same value but not equal. Feminism is a modern age dead-end, fuelling divorces and childless relations.
Many of the negative comments here are strong evidence for the need of the campaign that Emma and the UN are launching. Let’s hope this campaign helps to open up the eyes of many all over the world, although of course there will always those who refuse to see.
” there will always those who refuse to see.”
I see 90+% female elementary school teachers. I see boys and men committing suicide at 4 times the rate of women. I see 77% of women awarded sole custody in the case of divorce. I see violence against men being ignored (e.g., https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlFAd4YdQks) while the opposite is not. Do you see those or are you one of those “who refuse to see?”
I don’t deny that there is a need to campaign for Gender fairness, but she is pushing for gender equality, something that is fundamentally flawed and could do a lot of damage.
She has gone in front of the world with this and pushed for something that is unfair. Surely she should expect some negative responses as a result of that.
Some of the comments here show that some people are in serious need of some education.
Emma does not state we are the same, she states that we all deserve the same rights.
Woman everywhere in the world need to have the oppertunity to go to school and earn as much as men do for the same occupation.
Men need to have the right to show emotions or vulnerability just as much as women can.
Men need to be able to see their children as much as women if their is a divorce.
Etc. Etc. etc.
How can you not agree with this? I seriously do not get that.
It’s difficult to agree because you over simplify the problem, here are some examples:
i) See my previous example on calories.
ii) A man will never be able to give birth to a child and women will always endure more hardship in childbirth. Should men really have equal paternity leave to women’s maternity leave ? But if women are going to spend a longer time away from work, should they really earn the same ?
ii) Men have a hormone called testosterone which makes them shall we say slightly more competitive and aggressive. Do we really want to force men to bring up children against their will by forcing them to have equal paternity leave ? Surely you can see that dangers exist in equality, especially when it comes to children.
In my opinion the problem with Feminism is that it is all too easy to jump on the band wagon and say what a wonderful thing it is and miss the dangers that pushing for an equal system rather than a fair system would entail, and in all likelihood it would be the minority that feel the negative impact.
I believe her heart is in the right place, but I think pushing feminism is wrong.
I can only hope you spend as much energy insisting on ‘fairness’ in the treatment of all you come in contact with (including fairly allowing them to choose the terms of their own debate) as you do insisting on the vast and weighty difference between two words. (Especially as nowhere in Ms. Watson’s speech did she say that men and women were, should, or could be ‘equal.’)
Please read the title at the top of this page ‘Gender Equality Campaign’ it clearly has Equality in it.
I can only hope you spend much more energy reading and thinking about things in the future.
for the avoidance of doubt, I am not saying that she is pushing for forced paternity leave or anything like that, I am just trying to highlight the risks that could arise from misinterpretation of the ‘Feminist idealism’.
i. women and men are not the same, but should have the same rights. To me this means if both are doing the same work and put in the same hours, they are ought to have the same salaries. If either the woman or the man works less, they should earn less.
Furthermore this means to me that both can attend schools and get an education they want too.
ii. No, men can not give birth. Yes, there is a big chance a woman needs to recover from birth. It would be fair to give her the time to recover. Lets say the woman is recovered and wants to go back to work. The men wants to stay home and take care of the baby: what reason should there be not to allow this?
If you leave work, because you are pregnant, yes you should earn the same: it is not like you can CHOOSE to do it differently. Of course, you can not be paid endlessly while being away, and there has to be some sort of time-limit.
iii. Noone is saying the men have to go on paternity leave, but people are saying they need to have the oppertunity do that, if that is what they want. There is a BIG difference.
I am not saying everybody should do the same or act the same, but if there are men out there who want to spend more time at home to be there for the kids, they should be able to that – they do not have to. The possibility should be there – it is not that we need to push people in a certain direction.
No, Women should not earn as much as men if they work less hours on the same job. However, the should earn as much if they are doing the same work and have the same amount of hours.
What is a fair system to you?
How can a woman and a men both be a teacher and work te same amount of hours, but do not have the same salaries?
Why can*t a father stay home for the baby after birth, if he WANTS to? And the mom wants to go back to work?
Why is it that a lot of men commit suicide because they do not dare to admit they have problems?
In response to point i). This avoids the reality of the world. Two people, be them men or women have the same job title and role, but one of them is better and makes more money. Should they be paid the same for doing the same job. That seems unfair to me. You are trying to use the characteristics of individuals to justify a system that buckets men and women into a single unfair comparison.
ii) I am not saying that men cannot stay at home with the baby, however in the real world a man might find that a rather lonely experience as it is mostly women that do it.
iii) I am not saying that men have to go on paternity leave, however if both men and women choose not to go on maternity/paternity leave to ensure they have an equal pay, then it is the children who loose out on the emotional bond which is forget within the early years of their life.
How can a woman and a man both be a teacher and work the same hours and not have the same salary ? Well if the female teacher has 5 years more experience that the male teacher and her children have better exam results, I don’t think its unreasonable for her to get paid more, even though they are doing the same job. Again, you are making the mistake of failing to recognise individuality.
Women commit suicide as well as men, but the reason for this is well out of my ability figure out. Its also a bit tricky to ask them why they did it and find a solution.
The difference for me in this situation between fair and equal is that equal is easy to suggest and qualify, but unfair. Alternatively a fair system is almost impossible to implement. That being said, I could live with myself trying to make the world a fair place, but in the process make some mistakes. Alternatively I could not live with myself if I try to make the world an equal place that is unfair.
‘This avoids the reality of the world . . .’
I can’t tell you how long we’ve been waiting for an arbiter of reality to set us all straight.
Sorry, I missed your point about why can’t a father stay at home after birth:
I am not saying that he cannot. However in our society, the wealthy families, (e.g. Emma), would find it easy for both parents to give up work and stay at home with the children. It is much harder for families with huge quantities of debt to implement. Again this fails to recognise that the circumstances of individuals and families are not equal.
If you start a job and you know in advance that if you make certain goals you will get paid more than someone who reaches less goals – that would be fair (equal) to me. The same rules would apply for both men and women (equal). Both could thus get paid more than the other (equal). Unfortunately this is not the case in the real world. Often I hear that at the start of the job women start with less salary than men, eventhough there is no difference between the two.
In my country there are tons of jobs that bases salary not on how succesfull you are at your job, but what responsibilities you have; what requirements you need to have; etc. If you not meet this criteria during the job, you get fired. If you meet this criteria you earn a certain salary, and if you are better you can be promoted. The idea is that both women and men have the same chances in this system. To me that means equality.
Though in loads of countries this is not the case. Women can not even have a job or get an education. To me that is just wrong. There are no equal chances.
ii. The question is why are mostly the women staying at home with the baby? Is this because all woman want to? Or is this the case because society makes it easier for women to stay at home than it is for men? I would be a woman who would feel lonely at home (and I am guessing a lot are with me). In history women were ought to stay home with the kids, they did not choose to do that. There were huge protests by women against this for a reason. And it was not because they were having so much fun being at home and do the dishes ;).
In my opinion both men and women should be able to stay at home with the kids, as far as that is possible financially. If one of them has to work, they should be able to decide as a couple who it is that goes to work, it should not be decided by either one of them alone, or by society. This is equality to me.
Equality to me is having the same chances.
I do not mean by this we are the same. Of course, I sometimes dislike not being able to pee standing up ;). That would be damn useful at times ;). I do not ask of men to pee sitting down, because I can not. Though I am asking to be able to go to college just like men, working at the same jobs as them, getting paid as much (if everything else is equal (responsibilities, work hours etc)), etc.
I guessing that we are both from Western societies, and women have gain loads of rights during the years. Isnt this campaign more addressed about the situation of women in Afghanistan, African countries, etc?
Where the equality in rights is nowhere to be seen?
Would you not agree women there should be able to go to school? get a job? Be able to wear pants if she wants to?
I do not know if you are a man or a woman. If you are a man, do you feel the freedom to express your emotions freely? Or do you feel some sort of pressure to act tough? strong?
To me an equal world means having the same chances, which to means a more fair world. To me there is a difference to not be able to go teach a class, because I am a woman, then I can not teach, because I am not qualified.
It just wrong to denie men or women something, just on the basis of being either man or woman.
I see a lot of inequality because of money as well, and I would fight against this too. In my country intuition fees for colleges are quite low, and they want to raise them. I will protest against this, because I think both rich and poor people should be able to get an education.
I believe that you are miss-interpreting Fair and Equal. It looks to me like you believe Fair and Equal are the same thing, which they are not. Your point ii) is based upon an ideal situation where the whole world is equal, which it is not.
If you have evidence of women starting a job with a salary less than a man, surely you should be able to consult some kind of employment tribunal or in a worst case scenario take the company to court. That’s what these things are for.
I am also not against men staying at home with the children, but it has to be by choice and make sense within their relationship.
Why doesn’t she campaign to make the life expectancy of men the same as women. That would be a campaign that isn’t self serving because it would be to the benefit of men, rather than women. Again, another example of where the sexes’ are not equal. Unfortunately I believe this would be almost impossible to achieve (unless you use some large rounding that excludes a few million people).
Don’t get me wrong, there are a lot of places in the world that I think have some very serious problems with gender fairness, but if you go into the world with your eyes closed, you will never be able to find a solution. We are both from western countries and are relatively wealthy, but I am sure in some countries where food is scarce and people would commit violence to survive, gender equality will just be laughed at. It would be better to define the problem, communicate and listen to the people involved and then attempt to find a reasonable solution.
I am a man, I wouldn’t say that I am the worlds best communicator, but I have a scientific background and believe in rational thinking.
We are in a world that is not equal and people do not have equal chances. I am not saying women should be denied something because they are women, instead both sexes should appreciate that they are different and that in all likelihood will make different choices in life that will have different outcomes.
I see a lot of inequality due to money, but if all of the money was shared out equally in the world, you would have chaos. I don’t think Emma would be too happy about sacrificing all of her millions either.
Is it OK for women to be awarded sole custody 77% of the time when divorce occurs?
Is it OK for violence against men to be ignored while violence against women is not (e.g., https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlFAd4YdQks)?
Is it OK that 90+% of elementary school teachers are female?
Is it OK that men and boys commit suicide at 4 times the rate of women?
When I see feminist organizations getting upset over these issues, I will pay attention. At present, they dismiss such issues.
their is meant to be there, of course
Well done Emma!
There is overwhelming evidence in favour of this campaign. Anyone who denies it is walking around with their eyes and ears closed.
Don’t let any of these negative comments deter you. You have much, much more support out there from men and women than you might think looking at some of these comments.
I really love her speech
Thank you, Emma. I’m a middle-aged man who has been a feminist most of my life, but I really welcomed the invitation. I’m sure it will have a postive impact.
Having scanned these comments, I just want to remind you of Lewis’ Law, promulgated by the English journalist Helen Lewis:
“the comments on any article about feminism justify feminism”.
Loren – surely you are not serious?
That’s just not even sloppy logic – it’s downright ignorant.
Try these on for size
“the comments on any article about Jesus justify Jesus”.
“the comments on any article about nazis justify nazis”.
“the comments on any article about killing justify killing”.
“the comments on any article about eating puppies justify eating puppies”.
You feminists really must have piss-poor philosophers if that’s your trump card.
There are some essential biological and psychological differences between men and women, and for a certain kind of leftist, this is an intolerable heresy. If that truth cannot be suppressed or rebutted in a free society, its adherents must be stigmatized. Shaming, crying, name-calling etc.
It’s a lazy form of non-argument.
Please help emma. I’m worried about her 🙁 please…
can I ask why you are worring about her?
Because it
http://www.lexpress.fr/styles/vip/emma-watson-menacee-apres-son-discours-feministe-a-l-onu_1578194.html
Perhaps the problem is that as sexism, feminism in an extremism and is a natural reaction that generates any extreme behavior. So it should works for equality as something that should be naturally given. Women and men are different and understanding that we are absolutely complementary. That means that we must understand our differences to support us in to the other gender easily and naturally. This supplement is necessary and helps us to live in a greater harmony.
I come from Sweden which does color my view on this issue. Even so I am chocked at the lack of insight showing in some of these comments. The fact that we live in a world predominantly run by males is not an issue of debate. I do not understand how men (and a few women) can not see tgat the empowering of women is to tge benefit of us all. In many places acroas this blue dot we inhabit we have neglected to tap the potential of 50% of the population. Imagine the scientists, writers and artists that the world never got to see because a horrible norm was holding women back. The analogy with racism is easy to make. What we are saying is not to make women the gender incontrol of all the power, we are saying there is no goos reason for not spreading the power to influence around. I loved her speech and I think it was a very brave tgthing to do, sadly some of theae comments just demonstrates how brave she really was concidering the resistance she (and all other women are facing). I respectfully accept your invitation Emma, thank you for putting yourself in the crosshairs of those that unjustly feel threatened by your speech, I will gladly step infront of you in debates and take as many bulleta for you as I can.
“The fact that we live in a world predominantly run by males is not an issue of debate.”
Daniel, the fact that YOU cannot fathom being wrong, does not make your belief right.
a) what is “running the world”? Who has Obama’s ear? Who can tell Putin to sleep on the couch? Who decides what to buy in your house? Who do you wish to please by working?
b) do you really have anything in common with those who run the world just by being male? Would they ask you anything, invite you in, share a moment – just because you are male? Or would they just see a confused person with low social staus with whom they do not want to associate? Maybe those who you claim “run the world” share another trait than that which you believe is the key?
c) You claim the world is run by males, yet you yourself, a male, is ready to sacrifice yourself for a person you have never met (“take as many bullets for you as I can”) because she is female and asks you to. Doesn’t sound like you run very much at all.
Wake up, puppet boy
🙂
This is why Emma is my hero and role model. She is so perfect to way she is. If not me, who? If not now, when? I truly truly believe that Emma is the cleverest actress in the world. She is not started to use alcohol, not drugs or somehing what example Justin Bieber and Lindsay Lohan. She has her feet in the ground. She thinks that, she do not want to be famous. This is the reason why Emma Charlotte Duerre Watson is totally my hero, love and role model. And I am sorry about my English and that if someone did feel sad when I did say that drug thing by Justin and Lindsay.
I was so happy and proud when I listened to Emmma’s speech! But then I came here and read the comments.
Too many negative and completely asinine comments here that made me facepalm so hard I think I’ll have the outlines of my hand etched onto my face for six months! For f***’s sake, people! Get a grip.
A very inspirational speech, and is making people thinking about it.
I’ve been always proud of Emma and this is one more of the things why I admire her so so much, she is a real and unique role model, she is so amazingly beautiful outside and inside, she is my hero.
EMMA WATSON I LOVE YOU! greetings from Mexico City 😀
I am a father of a boy and a girl, and yes, I agree with Emma. Gender equality started at home, when we value our children equally. Surely they are different, but one should use same standard to value them. Man needs a woman as much as woman needs a man.
@wake up, your comment was flagged as spam for some reason. I meant to approve it but fat fingered the delete by mistake. I apologize.
http://youtu.be/rPDGRxFb7NY emma watson song 🙂 i keep on repeating the song… omg LSS
How did Emma become UN Goodwill Ambassador?
Emma said she was appointed 6 months ago. I don’t know but I imagine the UN Women organization asked if she would like to be involved and she said yes.
Young millionaires tend to have a lot of spare time.
This speech was just incredible…I give Emma all of my support and mega props…comments about female athletes are very true-believe it or not a lot of us females love to play sports. It is sad that we need to “watch” ourselves around guys.
Again GO EMMA!!!!!! 🙂
Important is, and that is what emma made clear in her speech, is that men and women are treated according to their nature and talents. The fact that so many British young men are committing suicide because they are unable to live up to the idea of “the way a man should be” is shocking.Aggression in a man should not be tolerated- nor in a woman. There are men that are physically and emotionally abused by women. We must respect life in all its phases. Right also the comment of all the untapped talent being lost because women being kept small in their social structure, society and relationships. This is intolerable at every level.I also see this untapped talent in the death of the unborn. How many gifts could have been given to mankind, but this individual was for whatever reason put aside- to put it lightly.
Emma’s speech opens many ethical questions.Behavior of women and men. Just because the society accepts and creates trends, it does not mean that these are healthy for human-kind. Right Emma, feminism is a human question, which need to be solved at all levels not just by women. Feminism is good, as long as women do not mean they have to become men and compete with a nature that is not theirs to have.
What does it mean to be human in all facets of life?
Emma’s speech was amazing and as seen by the comments here it’s something that definitely needed to be said. Emma actually addresses issues that both genders face and that this is a human rights issue that we should be working together to solve. It’s great to see how many people are supporting this and want to make a difference, and I hope this is leading to an age in which the viewpoints of some here become much more rare.
I can’t imagine how Emma must have felt to speak out bravely in front of the UN and to be doing something she believes in. She should feel proud as we are of her. :).