- Women start small businesses faster than men
From home-based micro-businesses to small start-ups and shops, women will create over half of the 9.72 million new small-business jobs Forbes is predicting we’ll have. Not only are women creating more jobs, the National Federation for Independent Businesses says women-owned small businesses weather recessions more effectively and show more adaptability than men-owned small businesses. You want to have more jobs and more stability in the workforce? Support women’s business!
- Insane innovation comes from women!
If the pee-powered generator built by a group of 14-year-old girls in Nigeria wasn’t enough, what about this Turkish girl who figured out how to turn bananas into bioplastic…or Ada Lovelace, who invented the first computer programme? Women have been innovating and excelling in the fields of Science and Maths for hundreds of years…despite facing harassment and discrimination. More empowerment means more women in science, which means more life-saving inventions.
- Half the world’s population are women
Literally half of the seven billion people on the planet are female, yet a white woman in the United States makes 80 cents for every dollar a white man makes (black women make 70 cents and Hispanic women make 60 cents, by the way). If 50 percent of global population suffers daily discrimination, increased risk of assault, and all kinds of other delightful problems just by virtue of being female, we can say that empowerment should be a top priority.
- Save your country’s economy!
Financial empowerment of women spurs economic growth within a country, which can lead to the country becoming more stable, reducing poverty, and becoming a bigger player in the global market. Having more bargaining chips on the table can help a country’s leaders make better deals with other governing bodies, as well as receive aid and support more effectively. Bottom line: More empowered women means more safety and security.
- We’ll see more and better food for everyone
The vast majority (80 percent) of agricultural workers in the world are female. Empowerment to grow, buy and sell the crops they want decreases malnourishment in producing countries and increases the amount of food available for export. Did you eat today? Thank a (female) farmer.
- Better lives for men!
If women are empowered, that frees men from the pressure to be the primary wage-earners, and shows little boys they can explore all aspects of who they are, without paying attention to roles that are traditionally ‘masculine’ or ‘feminine’. Men will have more freedom to work part-time or take care of children, which frees them up for other, more interesting activities. What’s the advantage to this? Society loosens up, and everyone is free to be who they truly want to be. Sounds pretty amazing.
- Political empowerment means more and better policies
When policy-makers are mostly men, it seems the needs of women (and a lot of other people) get thrown by the wayside. When women stand up in political fora, we get legislation that can save lives, protect young girls, and provide access to needed healthcare. If we want our daughters to have the care they need in the future, we need more women in political power now. Empowerment for everyone!
- Down with capitalism!
Are you a social activist? Do you hate big corporations like Coca Cola and Unilever? Did you camp out in Zuccotti Park with the rest of Occupy? The social, political, and financial empowerment of women would require massive shifts and changes to the status quo, you know, the patriarchal hegemonic white supremacist capitalist situation we have going on right now. What would we get in its place? Who knows, but it couldn’t be worse, right?
