student spotlight

Photo courtesy of Ava Heckman

Feminists of the Future

North’s young feminists work to fight stigmas, promote positive body image and create equality

It’s no secret that body dissatisfaction is on the minds of many tweens and teenagers, making it difficult for them to build healthy self-esteem.

Seeing this problem in the community, the Young Feminists club at Westerville North High School created the Dear Me project, an initiative giving students the opportunity to write letters with positive messages to their younger selves. The project soon began to expand its reach outside, with even the wrestling team participating in writing letters.

Seeing the widespread impact of the project, the club worked to create a video of participants who agreed to be recorded reading their letters. The video was uploaded to social media, and many teachers shared the video with students in their classrooms.

Ultimately, it began an important discussion about body positivity within the school and the community, says Beth Henman, club adviser.

“Our students are really impacted by reading their own letters … and then creating that video. It went out to the community and they were really impacted; we got so much positive feedback,” Henman says. “So it was a way to both engage them and to empower them so they could use their voice in a positive way.”

The club also hosts a menstrual product drive, making the products available in student bathrooms, and participates in efforts urging upperclassmen to register to vote.

Another goal of the Young Feminists club is to help educate others on what feminism is. Though feminism is often associated solely with women’s issues, club members emphasize that feminism isn’t just for women. In fact, some of the club’s members are men.

Junior Safia Raki says that, because of stigmas around feminism, some are misinformed about its ideals, believing feminists are “anti-men.”

“Really, it’s pro-equality and pro-being on the same level, rather than (on) an uneven scale,” Raki says.

For the Young Feminists at North, feminism is empowerment for all people, regardless of age, gender, sexual orientation, race or social class.

“Feminism is equality. It’s just having an even scale for everybody in our world, so that there’s no discrimination based on sex, or anything like that,” Raki says. “Issues like racism and homophobia … tie hand in hand with it.”

The club meets weekly to discuss these issues and create projects to better their school and community. Junior Kat Kojis says the club gives her an opportunity to make her voice heard in a supportive environment.

“It’s very much a safe space and just a happy place to be, even though there can be tough issues … because you’re doing it with friends and with people who support you,” Kojis says. “It’s not as hard to talk about anymore.”

Junior Trinity Cochran says the club has helped her be more confident in speaking up about feminist issues even outside the club.

“I know there is obviously misogyny in everybody’s lives every day. But as a feminist, I try to take that role on it saying it’s okay to challenge that,” Cochran says. “Even if our voice isn’t going to be respected, it’s good.”

While some still consider feminist issues taboo, Kojis says that the club has helped to foster within the school a culture in which students feel comfortable with discussing their personal experiences with feminist issues.

“People feel more comfortable to talk about overall community problems,” Kojis says. “And I feel like we’ve made it so men feel more comfortable with the idea of feminism, and they embrace the fact that it’s not just for women, that they can be a part of it, they can support women, while not like dragging themselves down.”

Ava Heckman, a sophomore, wears a T-shirt the club designed and sold for a fundraiser.

Maisie Fitzmaurice is a contributing writer at CityScene Media Group. Feedback welcome at feedback@cityscenemediagroup.com.