You Are Among Friends

(via l.e.t.)

I might throw the word "feminism" around here, and I want you to know what I mean when I use it. Basically, if the ideas in this book excite you and make you feel powerful and ready--even if you don't know yet what you are ready for--that's feminism in the pages. You should never be denied any opportunity simply because you are a girl. That's all it means. My personal brand of feminism also insists that: you should be allowed to feel excited and proud of your girlhood; should foster sisterhood instead of petty competition; should be always aware of the millions of possibilities waiting, hushed and giddy just beneath the surface.

I am a feminist, for one, because I couldn't be happy with myself without constantly acknowledging the strong women who, far before I came along, fought hard for the rights and recognition for themselves and for all the girls who would come after. That's you. That's me. I also just flat-out love being a girl and always have. Girls are complicated and fiery and mysterious. We have odds to overcome, every day, and every small victory makes us stronger, smarter and more interesting and funny. And that's why this book exists. The sooner that we start acknowledging those odds and calling them out for what they are--outdated ideas of girlhood! People threatened by challenging new ideas! Criminal companies harvesting dangerous insecurities so they can make a buck!--the sooner we can begin to destroy the odds, expand the dangerously small minds, and pave wider, brighter paths for ourselves and for the girls who will come after us.