We need feminism.

This was not the topic I planned on writing about today, but something about this website, Everyday Sexism, has really struck a cord. I came across a video of Laura Bates discussing the website and her project today while looking for something else. (Isn't that always the way it goes?) She started the website after walking on the platform waiting for the tube (subway in London) when a man came up to her and grabbed her crotch. She didn't know what to do, where to turn, and was too embarrassed and so she said nothing. But after she spent some time thinking about what happened, she realized that this type of sexual harassment must happen to other women, too, and that women aren't talking about it. So she started Everyday Sexism so the women who faced these situations could have a place to tell their stories and be heard.

Laura was expecting maybe ten or twenty women to find their way to the site and post on the live feed. But 250,000 stories later, she's convinced it's a much bigger problem than she had realized. And while the project's mission states that it's a site for women in the UK, there are postings from women all around the world detailing everyday sexism that we face.

Now you can visit the site to read stories from other women or to post your own.

Finding sites like this is such a double-edged sword. Friggin' fantastic that we have women out there creating these spaces for other women, I want to scream because we have to. It reminded me of another site that I really like, Who Needs Feminism? This is a social media project - you can submit a picture of yourself holding a sign what reads, "I need feminism because..." with your completed statement. Solidarity around strength is always powerful to see - and this site is definitely one that you need to see (and you need to participate! My women's studies course will be doing this next semester!).