This Wednesday is Veteran’s Day. It’s also the second week of the “19 Days of Suffrage“, an initiative created in honor of the 19th Amendment, which granted women in the United States the right to vote in 1919. As part of my work with the film Suffragette (you can read my review here), I was asked to write about a female hero of mine.
I had no idea who to write about. Do I choose someone like Clara Barton or Susan B. Anthony? Do I pick a modern-day hero like Sgt. Leigh Ann Hester, the first woman to receive the Silver Star? Do I choose someone like my mother, a strong and kind woman who made me the person I am today? Do I pick my Aunt, who showed me the world and fought her battle with breast cancer so bravely until her last breath?
There are so many women who inspire me to be a better person. It would be impossible to pick just one, but I had to.
And then it hit me. My hero is this little girl right here.
My daughter. My hero.
She’s brave and kind and smart. She sees the best in everyone and always wants to help out. She’s a ferocious reader, doesn’t mind singing like no one’s listening, and can invent the most impressive board games with a couple of pieces of paper and tape (you’ll never win against her, of course, but they’re amazing nonetheless.)
She takes life’s challenges head-on. It’s not easy being a military kid. She knows we’ll move time and time again. She’s sad to leave her friends, of course, but she knows bigger and better adventures await us around the bend. Her courage astounds me.
Most of all, she’s curious. She asks questions and doesn’t accept every answer you give her. She wants to know the hows and whys of life. She points out when things aren’t fair and tries to figure out how she can make them fair. To her, everyone matters. Everyone’s feelings matter. She recognizes what makes people different and embraces those differences.
I strive to be better every day because of her. I want to show her that women are important, what she thinks and feels is important, the issues that are important to her are important to everyone. She pushes me outside of my comfort zone by asking tough questions and forcing me to think outside of the box. She shows me, time and time again, that it doesn’t matter what others think of you, but what you think of yourself. These are things I should be teaching her, and yet, most days, she’s the teacher and I’m the student.
Most of all, my daughter inspires me to make sure her future in this country is a future that will see her as an equal, will provide her with the right to make her own choices about her body, will ensure she will be paid the same as her male coworkers, and will give her the same chances as everyone else.
When I vote, I vote for her future as much as I vote for my present. Our votes matter. Our voices matter. Because we need to be able to speak for those who can’t, whether they be the younger generation or those oppressed by our government and media. Even the littlest of heroes need our help.
I encourage all mothers, sisters, aunts, and grandmothers to take their daughters, sisters, nieces, and granddaughters to see Suffragette. Because this fight is not over, and we need every generation to know how far we’ve come and how far we’ve yet to go.
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Suffragette is in select theaters now, nationwide Thanksgiving weekend.
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