13-year-old “Girl Meets World” star pens powerful essay on intersectional feminism: "The way a black woman experiences sexism and inequality is different”

The young star also recently spoke at UN Women's annual conference as part of the #HeForShe initiative

Published August 24, 2015 6:20PM (EDT)

  (Kevork Djansezian/Reuters)
(Kevork Djansezian/Reuters)

13-year-old "Girl Meets World” star Rowan Blanchard has already proven herself wise beyond her years, speaking about the #HeForShe campaign at UN Women’s annual conference about gender inequality in June.

Now, in a powerful essay posted to her Tumblr and Instagram, the Disney star shared her thoughts on intersectional feminism, writing "The way a black woman experiences sexism and inequality is different from the way a white woman experiences sexism and inequality. Likewise with trans-women and Hispanic women. While white women are making 78 cents to the dollar, Native American women are making 65 cents, black women are making 64 cents, and Hispanic women are making 54 cents.”

After name-checking law professor Kimberlé Crenshaw and 16-year-old "Hunger Games” actress Amandla Stenberg, who made waves earlier this year with a video on cultural appropriation, Blanchard concludes: “To only acknowledge feminism from a one sided view when the literal DEFINITION is the equality of the sexes is not feminism at all,” Blanchard continued. “We need to be talking about this more. Discussion leads to change.”

UN Women Ambassador Emma Watson tweeted her support for Blanchard’s essay yesterday, writing ,"This is called 'hitting the nail on the head’. Read the full essay on Blanchard’s Instagram, or embedded in the tweet below:


By Anna Silman

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Related Topics ------------------------------------------

Emma Watson Girl Meets World Intersectional Feminism Rowan Blanchard