Redefining feminism

For my final creative project in Media and Cultural Studies, I decided to interview women of various ages to hear what they had to say about what it means for them to be women and what feminism means to them. I was curious what others thought because before our last lecture, when I thought of feminism, I thought angry, man-hating, bra-burning, hairy armpited women. Talk about stereotypes! I am embarrassed to admit it but that is the image in my head. But Jaigris' simple statement on feminism completely changed my perspective and I am so grateful for this. She said that feminism is about wanting equality between men and women--simple as that! I am grateful for all the hard work women before me have done to allow my generation and those to follow all the liberties my baba and great-baba did not have.
Even though women have overcome many limiting barriers, I would consider myself a third wave feminist because we still have so much work to do in creating equality and eliminating sexism. Air-brushed male fantasies on the cover of magazines or young famous and spoiled starlets are not setting positive examples for teenagers. According to a Maclean's article, girls appear to be doing well in school but their self-esteem is low and they think they have to do whatever it takes to place the boys. Shouldn't this younger generation be moving beyond this? It appears sometimes as though we are moving backwards--that even though girls have more power through choice, they are still trying to please men.
The one step towards change, that I can see, is changing our perspectives, so our society stops nurturing these stereotypes of what it means to be male or female. It is time to get rid of these labels and acknowledge that we are all people that deserve to be treated equally with respect. It's time to shed these limiting beliefs that are not helping the next generation move past these patriarchal roots.