I need feminism because...

I need feminism because of adds like this... 

Marlene Dietrich rocks a suit....
showing Lana how it's done. 

 I'm really tired of women's bodies being exposed and used as currency. I'm tired of seeing "healthy" women posing with rock hard abs in workout videos and their ribs sticking out. I'm tired of all the "get skinny" ads I see. I'm tired of people assuming there is only one kind of beauty and it comes in angles and clear skin and long hair and being edgy.

I'm tired of hearing arguments about "legitimate" rape and whether or not someone "should" be on birth control. I'm tired of fashion and style being more important than heart and character.
I'm tired of women's bodies being treated like currency, and seeing women treat men the same way... like beautiful, fashionable pieces of meat.

I'm tired of having flesh and some cellulite being high treason. I'm tired of the surgeries, laser treatments, scrubs, waxes, lotions, tonics... I'm tired of being human and having a human body being wrong, dirty, and unbeautiful. Sometimes I'm convinced we hate ourselves.

I know sometimes the "I need feminism because..." signs can be obnoxious, but they are women's hearts. Feminism is not saying men are horrible and we hate them. It is not saying men are useless and we don't need them. It is declaring that women are people just as men are people.

What would it look like to love ourselves and each other as we are? To respect each other so much we couldn't objectify one another. What would it take in our hearts to validate everyone's sacred humanity? To hold other people's hearts and feelings in our hands the way you hold something fragile and sacred and alive like a butterfly or a praying mantis.

I'm not blaming men here. Men and women have both gotten us into this mess. This mess where nearly seeing Lana Del Ray's snatch on the cover of a magazine is ok.