The world needs more feminists. Some people hearing this might say “I don’t hate men so I am not a feminist” or “‘Feminazis’ get on my nerves”. This is from a poor misconception society has placed in our minds. This type of poisonous thinking will eventually destroy the human race.

Feminism is “the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes,” (Merriam-Webster). However, to some people it is “I hate men”. This is not the intention of the movement. They believe this because they either encountered a fake feminist or just read some uneducated person’s post on the Internet. There are people, women to be exact, who hate men. They only care about women’s rights, hate men and what they call patriarchy. The first amendment gives them the freedom of speech so they can say and post what they want. It is wrong of them to call themselves feminists when they are actually misandrist.

Celebrities like Taylor Swift are credited for being a feminist. She is not the model example of what feminism is about. Yes, she talks about not pitting girls against each other. Yes, she talks about how society judges women more and harsher than men. However, she only talks about one side to feminism---women. She doesn’t talk about issues people of color, LGBTQIA, or men face. This sends out a half given message on what feminism is to her young fans.

There are people who believe is already equal. They don’t believe that there are women who get paid less than men because they are women, people of color who get rejected from jobs for their skin color and/or race, or police that do hurt and/or kill African Americans because they do in fact believe that they are superior to them. That’s barely scratching the surface of the inequality ingrained in our world and hidden by society. They think that since the Civil Rights and Women’s Rights Movements are over everyone is equal. The war for equality isn’t over. It won’t be until the world starts to treat all people the same.

The feminism movement is known more for radical feminist that are willing to do horrible acts (like faking rapes and sexual harassment) than trying to achieve equality. This is wrong of them. It sets back the agenda of equal rights. Equality is what most people in the world want. Whether it’s to not be judged solely on their race, sex, or sexual orientation, it’s what they want. By educating the masses on what feminism is, we can show people that feminism is needed in the world. Once people are aware of what feminism is, some will want to fight for the cause. With more people fighting equality for everyone will be easier to achieve.

Over time, feminism hasn’t changed. It may not have been called feminism but the idea was the same. To society, feminism is terrible that only men haters participate in. Maybe no matter what happens in the next few decades being a feminist will just keep spiraling away from the true intention. If it will help, we can change the word feminism because it itself is not important. Equal rights for everyone is the main focus. What we cannot change is the mind of a corrupt, racist, prejudiced, and sexist society if no one can join a fight they don’t know is still happening.