Malala Yousafzai Says Emma Watson Made Her “Identify As A Feminist”
“feminism is another word for equality”
As an 18-year-old human rights activist and winner of the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize, Malala Yousafzai is someone that everyone should look up to. At the premiere of her new film, He Named Me Malala, Yousafzai spoke with UN Women Goodwill Ambassador Emma Watson. In their engaging conversation, Yousafzai said that she initially struggled with labeling herself as a feminist, but after listening to Watson's "He for She" speech, she was persuaded.
"Interestingly, this word 'feminism,' it has been a very tricky word, and when I heard it the first time, I heard some negative responses and some positive ones, and I hesitated in saying am I a feminist or not," said Yousafzai. "And then, after hearing your speech, when you said, 'If not now, when? If not me, who?', I decided that there's nothing wrong with calling yourself a feminist. So I am a feminist, and we all should be feminist, because feminism is another word for equality."
Watson was clearly touched, and said that she was "moved to hear that." She goes on to explain how feminism is still a difficult word for people to digest, but it should be embraced by everyone because it is "synonymous with equality." Be inspired by these amazing women in the video below.
