The performance that Beyonce Knowles gave at the 2016 WMA is still considered to be one of her finest hours. In fact, many refer to it as a watershed moment. The woman as an entertainer embodies the finest aspects of the term feminism. The impression that the word feminist leaves depends on your orientation and beliefs. While there are those who have a negative image of radical man haters who protest at the drop of a hat, true feminism is lived and experienced and shared by both men and women. Beyonce gets her point across with a blazing sign that leaves no doubt about her convictions.
The significance of her endorsement
Beyonce is one of thee most powerful entertainers in the world today and her endorsement of the movement somehow gives it a different flavor. It didn’t take long after the performance for social media to light up with comments and observations. Her performance served to crank the volume to the top with Tweets on Twitter. She rendered the cause of feminism a definite solid, and it was on national television to boot. What would have at one time been impossible to conceive as acceptable was delivered to millions of viewers without apology. Beyonce has possibly transformed a word that many women find distasteful, along with the men who have been the butt of feminist jokes.
The previous war on feminism
It hasn’t been that long ago that feminism was a hot debate in American society. Animosity between the sexes, or more precisely, feminists and anti-feminists flowed like a river of acid. The battles escalated to ridiculous levels and went far beyond addressing the need for equality of the sexes to gender bashing, name calling and on occasion, violent encounters. Religious leaders denounced the movement as an evil that could pull down the structure of the family unit and leave the country in total ruins, without social order.
Serious discussions about the F word
Feminism is a word that has been dragged through the mud and sorely abused by both sides of thee movement. Feminist leaders have opened conversations about rebranding the term or losing it altogether to gender a more accurate description of what feminists represent today. There has been a decline in the number of women who are willing to associate themselves with feminism because of the negative connotations. Only two out of ten women who are interested in furthering the cause of equality for women are willing to be classified under the persuasion. Many women who believe in the cause do not realize what it really stands. played the speech of feminist Nigerian writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie for more than 10 million viewers to give the real story of what feminism has evolved into . The author has it right when she declares the definition of feminism as follows: “Feminist: the person who believes in the social, political, and economic equality of the sexes.”
Could Beyonce have been the medicine that feminism needed?
Beyonce appears to be the dose of magic that feminism has needed to give it a face-lift. She doesn’t come across as a man hater. She knows how to be a tender mother and a powerful wage earner all rolled into one spectacular woman, but she knows how the world works in some sectors and there is still room for a lot of improvements. Gender rights are a hot topic in American society and the so-called battle of the sexes, in the struggle for equality does not only apply to heterosexual men and women. The issues are much broader. In some sense, the feminism of thee 1960s and ’70s has almost become antiquated. There must be a way to proceed with the greater issues at hand without past baggage slowing the progress of the pursuit of equal rights for the genders. The history of feminism is complicated but it appears that there may be a revitalization of the basic premises on the horizon.
The embodiment of womanhood
Beyonce is a married woman who understands what family life is all about in the modern age. She’s informed about current issues but she’s also living the life and has an experience based view of both sides of the coin. Whether you loved her performance or hated it, she made a powerful statement that was timely and necessary. It is the sincere hope of all who only wish equality without the need for struggle, debate or animosity to see the core values change for the better for women and all genders
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