just met a guy last month who casually told me he has a baby that’s only a few months old and asked me out (ick). Moments like that reminded me how differently parenthood is for women. He’s outside flirting and living life like nothing changed. Meanwhile the mother of his child is at home with his kid not even thinking about dating because her whole life has shifted. This is why nobody can ever shame me for choosing to be childfree.. these men don’t want a family unit & yall keep falling for it
Hot take: A man’s dream of becoming a father is made possible through a woman’s body, her health, her time, her career, and often, parts of her freedom.
Yet when a woman hopes for comfort, security, or a better quality of life in return, she’s often criticized for expecting too much.
it’s truly not embarrassing as a woman when a man plays in your face. That is out of your control. It’s only embarrassing when you continue to deal w that man or go out sad behind him.
If you avoid confrontation, you’re probably not one of my ppl. Unless, you’re aware of it and open to learning healthy confrontation. I don’t think people realize how your intimacy and bond actually increases with a person when you’re able to respectfully work through an issue.
Do not talk about discernment if you cannot recognise when someone needs compassion more than criticism and correction. There is a time to guide and a time to simply hold space for a person who is hurting. Wisdom knows the difference. And kindness knows it even faster.
Her name is Gina Martin. She was at a music festival in London when a man pushed his phone between her legs and took a photo under her skirt. She reported it to the police immediately. They told her it wasn't a criminal offence. There was nothing they could do.
She went home and decided that was unacceptable. With no legal background, no political connections and no funding she launched a campaign to make upskirting a criminal offence in England and Wales. She petitioned. She lobbied MPs. She spoke publicly about what had happened to her. The government initially blocked the bill.
She kept going. The Voyeurism Act passed in January 2019. Upskirting now carries up to two years in prison. Scotland followed. Other countries are following. A woman at a festival with no lawyer, no funding and no political connections rewrote the law for an entire nation in eighteen months.
This sentence by Van Gogh hits hard:
“If I am worth anything later, I am worth something now. For wheat is wheat, even if people think it is a grass in the beginning.”
The stories of mother to daughter abuse that are being shared as a result of this piece is the reason I hate those “give grace to your mother” tweets. Mothers are usually their daughter’s first abusers and we need to talk about this more. It’s a cycle that needs to end!