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The Future isn’t ‘just’ Female

I keep seeing slogan tees and accessories everywhere – in shops, in online stores and across social media – that say, simply, The Future is Female.

I have seen them so many times now that I just had to write about it because, as much as I’m for empowering women and wanting men and women to be treated equally, I really feel this isn’t the way to go about it.

You see, without men there would be no future. As much as without women there would be no future. Biologically we need both men and women for the world to continue and without that we would die out and cease to exist.

I really hope that women play a huge part in our future. I hope there will be many women leading the countries of the world, I hope there will be many women going into space, inventing things and making medical and scientific breakthroughs. I hope many girls grow up to have a passion for science, engineering, technology and maths and that the women they become have careers in the STEM industries. I hope that women are inspired to do great things.

I hope that women do so much now and in the future. Alongside men.

Our future is one of choice. It’s one where women will be able to have those same opportunities as men, have those same careers and even be the ‘bread winner’ – with their partner staying at home to care for the children. It’s a future where any family model works, where diversity is celebrated and where you really have the freedom to make the decisions that work for you.

But, the future is not just female. And in thinking that, men are being excluded. A future of just women cuts men out completely, it sounds like they are not important, that their achievements to date and going forward aren’t valid and that their role in the world isn’t meaningful. It disregards men completely.

Men are not the future – and neither are women. The human race, regardless of gender, is the future and rather than segregating men and women, playing them off against each other and comparing their strengths and weaknesses we should just strive for equality. An equal future, where men and women are treated equally and where our children and our children’s children can grow up to be whatever they wan to be – regardless of whether they are male or female.

When it comes down to it, our children are the future and I’m just hoping that their future is gender equal.

The Future isn't 'just' Female

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7 Comments

  1. This is so true. Sometimes it does feel like feminist thinking is being pushed to the extreme unfairly.

    I worry because N age 6 already thinks that girls aren’t as good as boys. This is despite me working as well as his dad, and doing all the things I do. Indoctrination from his dad probably, which could be taken as a joke if you’re an adult and answer back to his comments. I talked him through a recent BBC2 tv show about 7 year olds and how they changed expectations, language and tried out different activites in school with them. It proved that age 7, girls are just as strong and fast as boys, it’s only as they get older, physical ability moves apart. Hopefully it showed him that it is more equal.

  2. I completely agree! I’ve seen this EVERYWHERE recently and I think the same! Feminism is defined as ‘the advocacy of women’s rights on the ground of the equality of the sexes.’. This is going WAY past that and trying to tip the scales in the other direction. I think it’s easy to get caught up in the emotion of female empowerment and it’s something that I love but, in being so passionate about it, sometimes it can go too far and this slogan doesn’t give off the right message IMO.

  3. As the mum of two boys, you’ve summed up how I feel – both glad that women are being empowered, but dismayed that it’s always (seemingly) at the expense of men.
    What am I supposed to tell my boys? That they should be ashamed if they get a job and a woman doesn’t? That they should step aside to allow females to lead the way?
    I’m raising them to be respectful of women, and when necessary to stand up for equality.
    But too often I see “feminists” portray men as the evil oppressors who are their enemies. And in many cases, I come across women who seem to want special treatment because they are female – over and above their male competitors.
    Even in relationships, I see too many girls who expect their other halves to treat them like princesses, without them giving any love or respect in return.
    The message should be one of treating others as you’d want them to treat you. Equal respect.
    Sometimes I shake my head at my own gender.

  4. I love this so much and I have been thinking exactly the same thing. I am raising a son and daughter. I want my daughter to achieve anything she wants and to be valued highly for the attributes she brings to whichever path in life she chooses to take. But I want that for my son too.

    I’m concerned that as the next generation see these exclusionary sounding quotes of ‘girls are the future’ the boys will begin to feel how girls have felt for years. That there is no place for them.

    You can see why there is a growing, albeit masognistic at times, movement to push back against the #metoo and #timesup movements. We need to show that the world is wide enough for all of us to stand alongside each other.

    I’ve just written a post on my own blog about my son and his emotional intelligence which is making it hard for him to find a comfortable place for himself amongst his peers. I just hope that we can all come to a more compassionate place that shows that there’s a place for all types.

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