This Article Though

I stumbled upon this literary masterpiece, "18 Things Women Shouldn't Have To Justify,"  while scrolling through my Facebook feed and even though I'm not usually one for overt feminism, the points Brianna Wiest brings up are so basic and fundamental that I couldn't ignore sharing this. Seriously, I just want to scream at everyone 'look look! finally someone got it right! this girl knows what she's talking about everybody listen to her she should tour i would pay to see her talk about this!'

1. Putting themselves first. To put another person first, one must first put themselves in first place.

2. How little or much they're eating, especially if it's 'unhealthy.' Why is it that when men get a second serving its considered normal because, oh he's just a guy, he needs all that food to be strong. Whereas if a woman helps herself to seconds, she is immediately labeled as 'overindulgent' or something of that nature. Do women not need food for energy jus tas much as men do?

3. Healthy eating as a means of actual health, not weight loss. This has always baffled me because I simply don't understand why a person would judge another person because they choose to fuel their body with the nutrition it needs versus some half cooked flash frozen preservative. I myself struggle with this and I find it incredibly off-putting when friends, or even people I don't know, squirm or make snide comments about my food choices. I'm sorry that I choose to eat foods that will actually support my immune system and not one day kill me.

4. Not having baby fever. I can't say I have first-hand experience with this one, however I live by the motto that everything comes in it's own time, and if you believe it is not the time for something, such as having children, then it's not and nobody can tell you otherwise. Our society has become too focused on transforming women into mothers.

5. Having baby fever. Again, I'm not quite at this stage. But my opinion is pretty much the same: it is your own body, do as you please, as long as you take responsibility for your actions.

6. Whether or not they're having sex, and to what degree. Again, your body, just measure responsibility and safety.

7. Enjoying what would otherwise be guilty pleasures because they're 'girly things.' I am not ashamed to admit that I read 'girly' books every once in a while. I enjoy them, and there's nothing wrong with that. A woman's value should not be degraded just because she enjoys to pamper herself with 'girly' indulgences for whatever reason. Let's not forget, men get manicures too.

8. "Looking like shit today." You want to wear your hair up, with no make up, and your baggiest sweatpants? Go for it. And you rock those sweatpants because you don't need an excuse except that you wanted to. It's your decision and there is no need to justify it.

9. Experimenting with sexuality. Isn't this the norm?

10. Weight. Just no. Haven't you heard the universal rule to never ask a woman how much she weighs?

11. Amount of makeup worn on any given day. Some women layer it on, some go au natural. It's a personal choice and people have no authority to dictate how much makeup a woman can and should wear.

12. Sometimes conventionally frowned upon clothing choices. I have mixed feelings about this one, but ultimately a woman's body is her own and she can make her own decisions about manner of dress. As long as her decisions do not infringe on another person's rights, within reason, then there is no argument.

13. Being upset about something that warrants an emotional response. It's okay to cry at the commercial about animal shelters. It's perfectly normal to be affected by loss and pain and grief. Don't ever feel you are denied an emotional response just because something that warrants feelings in you doesn't warrant them in someone else.

14. Moving for a relationship if one is invested and ready. Nobody can determine for another person when said person is ready to take their relationship to the next level. Only you will know when the time is right for you and your partner to progress farther in your relationship.

15. Wanting to get married young. All the more power to you. Just as correlation does not prove causation, divorce rates in this country do not predict a marriage's failure. So go for it, get married young and prove everyone wrong.

16. Not wanting to get married young. Nobody is rushing you to have the white picket fence and the two and a half kids. Take #1 to heart and put yourself first and focus on your career, or whatever it may be until you are ready for marriage. Or don't get married at all! That's perfectly ok too.

17. Attractiveness despite something. This is one standard that I find incredibly frustrating - why should someones beauty be depreciated just because one aspect of their appearance or personality does not match up with another's standards of measuring beauty?

18. Passing social deadlines for things. I feel like this especially has grown from something beyond 'getting married by the 26-27' and 'having a family by 30'. Even beginning in middle school, I felt as if if you 'hadn't been to your first 'party'' by 8th grade, you would be judged, or something just as menial. And although those social deadlines are not as severe as the ones encountered when people are older, it's the idea that unfair judgement begins that early on. Everyone goes at their own pace.

Before finding this article, I had no idea that I was looking for it. But after reading it, it feels like a relief to know that I am not the only one to have these thoughts, and to consider some of our society's engrained expectations of women to be outrageous, and even disrespectful at times. So, mark this one under my feminist-rant-of-the-month tally and we'll call it a night.