Comedy, acceptance and that "dreaded" word.

So I am just going to start by wishing everyone a happy International Women's  Day! (8 March for those of you who don't know). I thought today would be the most fitting day to post this blog as not only is it a Sunday so some of you might actually read it, but it's also very topical.

London has been buzzing this week, with International Women's day and Women of the World Festival running at the Southbank Centre. Now as an obvious feminist this has been an exciting week for me, not least of all because I had the opportunity to go to a talk by the one and only Caitlin Moran, but I also got to hear from two equally inspiring comedians Bridget Christie and Shazia Mirza. What better way to end the week than to have the chance to listen to them talk about the obstacles they have faced, the threats they have overcome and the progress they have made all for something which should be a right for everyone: equality. 

Now I don't know about you but sometimes I quite enjoy going to things like this by myself, yep that's right I am one of those weird people who completely ignores the social stigma of going to the cinema alone, going to talks alone and shock horror even eating in a restaurant alone. I know weird hey? It's like somewhere between being a teenager and an adult I decided I didn't always need someone to hold my hand - one day I promise I will go on holiday on my own and really shock you all! :p The thing is the auditorium was filled with people from all corners with an age range of about 15-85 it was great! 

Anyway that was completely off topic - the point I originally wanted to make is about this talk, and how it's opened my eyes even further to the world we live in and the problems that we are still being faced with. As Caitin explained - it's a bit like putting on feminism glasses which are likely to burn the first few hundred times you put them on as you start looking at things differently and thinking seriously what the hell is going on? Over time however you get used to the differnt perspective on life - and unfortunately most of this things you see are "the norm". However there is a shinning ray of hope out there, and it comes in the form of speaking up and basically not letting anyone be a dick to you because of your gender. 

Now this is not s blog post about why women and men should be equal because honestly if you don't know the answer to that one already I suggest you go home and have a long hard look at yourself and where your life is going. No, this is more about not letting it bring you down and not really being afraid to speak out. Somewhere along the line the word feminism has become derogatory and accusatory, which is weird considering the majority of people when you ask them out right are all for it. But there are those who can't say it, for example women in Bangladesh can't say they are pregnant because that means they have admitted to having sex and that is not acceptable. Imagine that - I'm lucky to live in a society where talking about sex is ok, and thank god for that because I take full advantage of it and talk about it the whole time. But then why should talking about one of the most natural things in te world be so frowned upon when talked about by a woman? 

I grew up in a country where women don't have control over their bodies, let alone their rights. I remember going on a school trip once to somewhere called Loita in Kenya, and one of the days we were taken to a Maasai village to see a local wedding. I remember the bride coming out of her mothers house dressed head to toe in beads and a shuka to meet the man I assumed was her father. I was wrong it was the man she was about to marry, someone who looked 40 - she was 14. On top of that the spokesman for the tribe told us about the rituals of circumcision that were in place for the children, yes children. For their way of life, it was a path to adulthood. I remember as a school kid not really understanding what they were talking about but I also remember no one said anything about it being wrong, it was a different culture and that's all that mattered. Looking back I can't help but roll my eyes at the obvious education system I was in where you can't possibly discuss anything which had a taboo mature to it. And unfortunately I feel that this is what has happened to feminism - it's a taboo subject now. Does that mean I also have to stop talking about sex, politics, religion and ethics and instead limit my topics of conversations to the latest recipe from Mary Berry and my new Dyson Hoover? I don't think so....just imagine how boring this blog would be

It's not just the big things that we have to question, but it's the small things too. The best question asked that night was - can a woman be funny? After hearing from there ladies my immediate answer is yes, I was in hysterics all night! However, because of their blatant use of comedy in their work, all three ladies have had death threats, hate mail and people leave the room before they even started talking -which admittedly they used as material - but how else can you respond? There are certain men and women out there who don't think feminism is a good idea, however there are many more who do. So at the end of the day I guess the question is not really are you a feminist but more are you a decent person? I'll let you decide...