Dorota T ♥ Being a Girl

"I love being a girl, because it means being myself.

Generally, I do not perceive people as "men and women", instead trying to see individuals. That is why it saddens me to talk to girls who do not feel comfortable or are bullied just because they are not "girly". They prefer baggy clothes and short hair, and playing football. They feel like girls inside, and accept their sex, but they are not accepted by others.

Want to know what I tell them? I'll share my secret with you.

What is truly admirable, is the courage to stay true to yourself. To maintain your individuality. "Being a girl" is not about "looking girly". People - both women and men! - are different, of every possible kind. You all have the full right to be who you feel you want to be - it is your life, not anyone else's. If people only followed those around them, would we have Maria Skłodowska-Curie, who was a brilliant scientist when it was extremely difficult for women to get university education? Would we have Agatha Christie, who wrote mystery books instead of romances and "slice of life" novels? Many women broke the stereotypes of their eras, staying true to themselves - and that is what we all should admire.

"Being a girl" is to be proud of who you are and not be afraid to admit it, whether you wear dresses and make-up or baggy trousers and shirts. It is to have strength to do the things you love doing, and to be beautiful and special in your own, unique way. Always have this pride, and remember - the only person who can limit you in any way is yourself. If you are brave enough to admit who you are in your mind, it means that you are also brave and strong enough to fight for it. Always strive for self-development and improvement. However, never let the world forcibly change you. Instead, you change the world and prove them all wrong!"

Dorota T

+ as a soundtrack suggestion: True Colors by Cyndi Lauper

Girls & Education (Jacek)

"Its cool to be girl these days, but it was not always this way. Lets speak about education – nowadays equal access to education seems obvious to all, and in many states women are generally better educated than men are. But think about old times when education was only "men thing". Times when women were perceived as having to fragile brains to receive proper education. Think about this world of inequality where men had such gigantic educational advantage over women, making them feel inferior and really dependent.

Think about all brave women witch stood up to fight for this right, remind yourself about Maria Skłodowska-Curie – studying physics, chemistry, and mathematics at Paris Sorbonne, she was treated as „freak”. Woman studying sciences was something really unusual at that time.You can imagine all the social pressure against her, all those comments, and silly smiles suggesting that she should rather choose other way of life. All those people trying to neglect all what she was doing, turning that into
joke.
But she didn't gave up, she became first woman awarded a Ph.D. in research science in Europe and first woman professor at the Sorbonne. She continued her work, and soon she became first woman awarded a Nobel Prize and first person awarded Nobel Prizes in two different scientific disciplines. Showing all the people how wrong they were, and presenting that a woman with an education can achieve results as impressive as can a man with an education.

It is important to be brave, and to stand for your rights, its the only way to make your dreams come true. But it is also very important to be well informed to make proper,
responsible choices. Be brave, be open minded and eager to learn, so you can really enjoy being a girl, a girl aware of her rights, able to defeat all obstacles.

But there are still places in this world where young girls, are denied right to education, and that's not right, remember them!"

Jacek, YSAFE Chair