BIG SISTER

Some people think that little girls should be seen and not heard, so the opening speech  to the X Ray Spex song  goes but putting it slightly more politely than dear old  Poly Styrene did , I say stuff that !

Saturday March 8^th marks International Women’s Day kicking off a month’s celebration of the achievements of the species that’s said to be more deadly than the male.

Born in the 1970s at a time when women were still stereotyped as  either being right old nagging  harridans or giggly brain dead  dolly birds it’s not difficult to see the advances that  girls have made even in just my lifetime .

Female prime ministers, astronauts, scientists, hell even James bond finally got with the times and has Judi Dench telling him what to do.

For while there are still those that think women should shut up and get back in the kitchen, and believe me I know from experience there’s still those who think it’s an acceptable point of view,  there’s a whole new sisterhood emerging  that aren’t about to let that occur.

Tired of being expected to be helpless pretty princesses or damsel in distress types waiting round for Prince Charming and the like to show up to save them, these ladies are instead climbing down from the high towers society put them in and going off to sort things out for themselves.

Women who are dedicated to helping others recognise their own worth. Giving them the tools and education to realise they aren’t the “weaker sex “  and leading a fight back against those who seemed determined to set the clocks back to a time before feminism was born.

They aim not only to teach girls on how they can protect and look after themselves but also educate boys and young men on how taking responsibility for their actions can be just as an important lesson to learn. After all there’s nothing more attractive in another than the feeling that they respect you.

With organisations such as the brilliant Pinup Payback using the best of new technology and great ideas to revolutionise and promote the safety of young women, creating an app for them so they can have the freedom to feel safe in the town they live in I think it’s high time we applauded these ladies (and the gents also involved in their organisations), stopped telling them to be quiet and shouted

Up the women

Because these big sisters are looking out for you.

GIRL FROM THE NECK DOWN COLUMN -MEDWAY MESSENGER 10/03/2014