Strong Woman

How do we define that? Majority of the time we praise a woman that held on and kept quiet - when there was oppression, unfair treatment, and in some cases abuse – as ‘strong’.

But I want us to consider this; to hold on and keep quiet is to endure. And there is a difference between strength and endurance because strength should be liberating, empowering…and not painful!

The ‘strong woman’ narrative we need to be propagating is a woman that confronts, challenges and refuses pain, oppression, discrimination, abuse… We have to clarify that there is a difference between strength and endurance, and firmly communicate that the latter doesn’t help anyone but perpetuates a culture where women continue to not realise that they can be more, ARE more than just beings that endure…

We have to challenge the current narrative of a ‘strong woman’, because true strength is empowering and brings about positive benefit; if a woman would refuse a situation that was painful for her then this would communicate that the status quo needs to change, and people would have to take notice, get uncomfortable, change how they treat not just her but every other woman too. True strength should give you power to change circumstances for the better, it liberates; but endurance only makes people comfortable with the status quo; creating an unhealthy cycle of a disgruntled people… and I don’t see what’s so strong and praiseworthy about that.