The other day, one of my sparring partners told me off for wearing nail polish. He accused me of going “girly” which is an interesting statement of position, because the last time I checked (and I had thought he’d have noticed by now) I am a girl. And while it’s amusing that he thinks that way, it’s also slightly worrying that there is such a widely held perception that female – or feminine, at least - and strong are incompatible. Regardless of the number of strong women in history, politics or even pop culture, we still seem to struggle, as a culture, with the idea that a woman can be both feminine and strong, can wear dresses and make-up and nail polish, and still think for herself, make her own decisions, stand up for and fight for her own convictions. And this in spite of celebrating women who do just that.
So, what’s a girl to do? In my case, punch him harder and walk out of class with my nail polish still intact and unchipped.
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