“I’m no longer accepting the things I cannot change… I’m changing the things I cannot accept.” –  Angela Davis, 2013. 

In these unprecedented times, it is hard to make change instead of just accepting things for how they are. As a young woman, I continue to face challenges which I shouldn’t have to face and am constantly told to accept it, nothing more you can do, you are only 15, how are you possibly going to change how things are? That’s the big question, isn’t it? How can a 15-year-old young woman change things that seem impossible or too big to change? Many young women question this, the thought of trying to change something can be paralysing, where do you even start? Sometimes women will feel this way and will decide not to try because changing something is nerve-racking. Unfortunately, for a long time, I thought this way, until I learnt that I am not alone, women are not alone. How can we possibly change something by ourselves? As women we must stand together, fully supporting each other and only then do we have a chance to make change, whether that be in our family, school, or community.

What I have learnt and am continuing to learn is that no matter what age, women are fully capable to challenge anything they do not accept. If women have confidence and believe in themselves and other women, we can make change. If women are proactive and take risks, we can make change. If women actively support and encourage other women, we can make change. Women want to be involved in their families, schools, communities and their state for the better of themselves, families and people around them, but we have to do it together!

Some well-known women who have inspired me and other young women to believe in themselves are Malala Yousufzai, a young woman who risked her own life to be an advocate of female rights and female education in her school. Elizabeth Garret Anderson, the first female surgeon in the United States, the first British female mayor and a co-founder to a hospital staffed with women. Michelle Obama, a fashion icon, mother, and an accomplished lawyer and writer. All these women have something in common. They decided that they wanted more, to stop accepting what is and challenge what could be.

A problem that I see that needs to be changed within the community I live in is the idea that women can’t do a man’s work, that they must reside in the kitchen. So how do we change this? It isn’t going to be easy or simple, but I believe if women stand together to fight for our rights and our freedom that we can make positive impacts to change this problem in our communities. A woman’s role for this change will be to never be silenced, stand up for your right and to empower another woman to do the same. By asking why the world treats women the way it does and continuously fighting, we will achieve a resolution!

Let’s continue to challenge what seems so hard to reach, let’s do it together as a united force. Let’s fight for what should be and let’s not stop until we achieve it. Every woman has the power to make change, every woman has the voice to make others stop and listen. By empowering other women, we will be the change we all want, together.