Feminist Club Promotes Equality In #MeToo Age

The fight for equality is what fuels all activists. For centuries, women across the world fought for their rights -- and they still do today. Unequal pay, domestic abuse cases unsolved, and hatred against women are some subjects activists fight for.

The Nation Ford Intersectional Feminist Club seeks to fund charities, educate students about worldwide events, and promote activism within the school, and outside. Sponsored by Mrs. Carly Pierce, a Digital Art and Design teacher, the club meets every other Wednesday during FLEX in N111 and regularly invites guest speakers to talk to students.

“We talk about issues locally and worldwide,” Club President Olivia Kuebler ('19) says. “Either about women, the LGBTQ community, or minorities -- we want to give a voice to those who don’t have one.” However, the club has not addressed a new hashtag that resurfaced on Twitter.

The #MeToo tag, along with #WhatWereYouWearing and #SurvivorPrivilege, were originally formed in 2006 on MySpace by Tarana Burke, a 45-year-old activist for civil rights and gender equality. Burke began using the phrase “Me Too” after not knowing what to say to a 13-year-old girl who confided in her about a sexual harassment incident. She began the campaign not long after that for women of color who experienced sexual abuse or assault, particularly in impoverished communities.

Last summer, the tag reemerged on Twitter. Alyssa Milano, activist and actress, tweeted about sexual assault in American society with the tag “Me Too.” The tweet spread to millions of people, including famous stars such as Jennifer Lawrence and Amber Liu on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram just a few days later. Women all over social media started to apply the hashtag in churches, workplaces, politics, and government -- which started the Me Too Bill in the US Congress.

This topic is not only prevalent nationally, but locally.

Jasmine Hope (‘20) has been a member of the Intersectional Feminist Club since freshman year. “I have heard about [#MeToo], and I think anytime sexual assault is brought up, people tend to push it down when it’s a very serious topic,” she said. “It needs more recognition, more people need to take action because it is not okay.”

Jackie Speier, an American Representative for the Democratic Party in California’s 14th congressional district, proposed H.R. 4396 (Me Too Bill) on November 15, 2017, asking the Congress to change how the government treats sexual assault cases.

The process usually took months to file the complaint, and once filed, $15 million of tax money was spent in one decade.

Congresswomen are still fighting to pass the law, but it would simplify the process to a 180-day period and give the victims of the assault the right to safely move to another department without losing their jobs.

The law also applies to interns, unpaid workers, and pages. Along with justice for the victim, the assailant would have to pay for their own harassment settlements when the case is published.

As of right now, the Feminist Club has yet to discuss what they are doing to help push the bill. The club members are watching with interest and planning what they will do.

“I’m really looking forward to guest speakers, like our first speaker from Time Out Youth Center. I want to listen to someone talk about [#MeToo] and try to make a change.” says member Elana White (‘21).

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