In September 2014, Emma Watson delivered a speech at the UN Headquarters in New York, officially launching their HeforShe campaign. In her passionate speech, Watson, a British actress and UN Women Goodwill Ambassador, called on the men of our world to join the fight for gender equality: “Men, I would like to take this opportunity to extend your formal invitation. Gender equality is your issue, too.” Outlining the purpose of the HeforShe campaign, she urged for men to fight for gender equality, and not just for the benefit of women. As Watson mentioned, men are also imprisoned by gender stereotypes and the HeForShe movement is targeting those issues as well. Although this idea of involving men into the feminist movement is not a new one, it is the first of its kind in the UN that has seen a visible difference.Flash forward to present day and the evidence of change is everywhere. It seems that every week more and more men, especially those in the public eye, are calling themselves feminists, if not explicitly then implicitly. A recent example worth applauding is Canada’s new Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau. Last Thursday, November 5th, Trudeau unveiled his cabinet appointees in which exactly half of them are women. When asked why the gender balanced cabinet was so important he replied “because it’s 2015,” encapsulating his successful election in a now Twitter-famous soundbite. The move wasn’t just significant because of the equal representation but also because of who initiated it, as Trudeau must have realized that as a person with power and influence he was able to make an actual difference in the fight for gender equality. There have been drawbacks, such as the persistence of a pay gap in his cabinet, but Trudeau did not allow the fight to end there. Instead, he is investigating into the wages in government and planning to make a lasting change. This is incredibly important, because in the contemporary world where most professions and governments remain male-dominated, having only 50% of the population engaged in the struggle towards equality is not only frustrating but inefficient. Even though distinguished women standing up for feminism is not only essential but also inspiring, there’s a certain novelty to male celebrities speaking up for women that makes such declarations an important achievement. Those in a state of relative privilege, mainly white men, sometimes have a hard time discerning cases of subtle sexism and racism that affect their peers, so when they are able to not only see through the veil of the patriarchy, but also feel a sense of responsibility to act and say something they become some of feminism’s strongest allies and fill in for those women who refuse to identify as feminists. On October 4th 2015, when Jennifer Lawrence penned an essay discussing the American Hustle pay inequity she experienced, a conversation on wage gap in Hollywood was sparked. Not only did more female celebrities disclose their own pay inequities (Jessica Chastain told the Huffington Post that her salary is actually a quarter of the salary that was reported, which was already $18 million less than her coworker Matt Damon’s in The Martian), but men also joined the discussion, the most noteworthy being Bradley Cooper. Cooper reacted by saying “It’s really horrible actually, it’s almost embarrassing” when he saw how much his co-stars, Jennifer Lawrence and Amy Adams made. He then pledged to share his salary information with his female costars in the future to help them negotiate fairer deals.Other prominent figures and celebrities that have declared themselves feminists such as Daniel Radcliffe, John Legend, and Mark Ruffalo, who is an activist for women’s reproductive rights, are also receiving praise. At the end of the day, these men carry a lot of influence and are role models for younger men and boys. They deserve this praise for donning the helmet to fight for women’s rights and teaching other men to do the same. Of course there are those who claim that male feminists are being treated with more respect than female feminists and there might be some truth to this statement, but a dialogue would risk pitting women against men and that would be counterproductive. The fight for gender equality requires a united front. It's clear that nothing else will do because if we only raise our daughters to be strong and independent, without teaching our boys to treat girls and women with respect, then we will continue to watch women struggle for the same rights as men and men will continue to be barred from showing ‘feminine’ vulnerability. So to reiterate Emma Watson's inspiring words - I welcome all men, not just those in the spotlight, to join women in this important battle and use your privilege and status to point out the everyday sexism you see on the streets, to call out cat-callers or stand up for women’s pay equity. Become ambassadors for change so that your mother, sister, daughter, friend, coworker, or lover can feel free and comfortable to live their lives to their fullest potential.

This article was written by Ana Cicenia. Please contact [email protected] to get in touch. Photo Credit: SPÖ Presse und Kommunikation via Flickrvia Flickr