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Who run the world? Girls!
From calling out misogyny to advocating for women’s rights… these female celebs have been using the star status to fight gender inequality. As we reach the end of March, which means the end of National Women’s Month, learn which famous ladies are leading the feminist fight... ((c) BANG Showbiz)
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Lady Gaga
The actress-and-singer has been a proud feminist from the beginning of her career and never misses an opportunity to advocate for women’s rights. Gaga said: "I am a feminist. I reject wholeheartedly the way we are taught to perceive women. The beauty of women, how a woman should act or behave. Women are strong and fragile. Women are beautiful and ugly. We are soft-spoken and loud, all at once. There is something mind-controlling about the way we’re taught to view women. My work, both visually and musically, is a rejection of all those things. And most importantly a quest.” (©BANG Showbiz)
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Anne Hathaway
As a UN Goodwill Ambassador, Anne Hathaway is committed to the fight for gender equality. In November 2022, Anne spoke out against the gender pay gap in work places all over the world. She said: "As fuel and food prices rise globally, amid the climate emergency and sustained military conflicts, women’s incomes- as well as their contributions to businesses' success and the recovery of markets - matter even more than ever. "This year, in 169 countries and areas - that’s most of the world - women’s labour force participation is expected to stay below pre-pandemic levels. “Progress for women and girls is in dramatic reverse in many countries. Rights and freedoms that women and girls had experienced as normal - to work, to learn, to make choices about their bodies - have been abruptly taken away. “ (©BANG Showbiz)
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Angelina Jolie
The Hollywood star and UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador is known for her philanthropy, and works tirelessly to improve the lives of women living in war-torn countries. On international Women’s day in March 2020, she wrote: “Little girls’ softness, their openness and instinct to nurture and help others, must be appreciated and not abused. We must do much more to protect them, in all societies: not only against the extreme ways girls’ rights are often violated, but also the more subtle injustices and attitudes that so often go unnoticed or excused.” (©BANG Showbiz)
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Beyoncé
Beyoncé has made it her mission to fight for women’s rights through her music and actions. Her 2011 hit ‘Run The World (Girls)’ has become a feminist anthem due to lyrics like: “We're smart enough to make these millions, strong enough to bare the children, then get back to business.” (© BANG Showbiz)
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Emma Watson
Best known for playing the intelligent and outspoken Hogwarts student Hermione Granger in the 'Harry Potter' franchise, Emma is just as fearless in real life. In 2014, Emma launched the HeForShe campaign where she delivered a powerful speech at the UN headquarters calling for an end to the man-hating feminist narrative. She said: “The more I have spoken about feminism, the more I have realised that fighting for women’s rights has too often become synonymous with man-hating. If there is one think I know for certain, it is that this has to stop.” (©BANG Showbiz)
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Michaela Coel
The comedian was praised for her critically acclaimed series ‘I May Destroy You’ for tackling issues of consent and abuse. She’s previously spoken about the lack of diversity on British TV, calling for more roles that represent the female black community in the UK. She said: "I don’t see the experience of the black woman on TV. In order to write that, you have to understand it and I think it’s really hard to understand what it is to be a black woman unless you are a black woman. It’s really hard. "When I say black, I’m talking black, my dark– darker than paper bag skin. To live this life and for me, a working class, black female’s life, you can’t write that story unless you live that story. I think that we deserve to add our portrait to the gallery of life, to the gallery of television and we want that portrait to be accurate. In order for that to happen, we have to write those stories ourselves.” (©BANG Showbiz)
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Meghan Markle
Meghan went from being a TV actress to the Duchess of Sussex when she married Prince Harry in May 2018. But since becoming part of the royal family she has criticised the institution and her treatment within it. Meghan - who now lives in California with Harry and their two children - has claimed to have been battling sexism since the age of 11. She said: “'Women need a seat at the table, they need an invitation to be seated there, and in some cases, where this is not available, they need to create their own table. We need a global understanding that we cannot implement change effectively without women's political participation.” (Avalon)
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Viola Davis
'The Help' star has been a vocal advocate for women’s liberation rights for several years. Speaking about her mission, she said: "Every single day, your job as an American citizen is not just to fight for your rights, but it is to fight for the right of every individual that is taking a breath, whose heart is pumping and breathing on this earth. “I am speaking today not just for the MeToos, because I was a MeToo, but when I raise my hand, I am aware of all the women who are still in silence. The women who are faceless. The women who don't have the money and don't have the constitution and who don't have the confidence and who don't have the images in our media that gives them a sense of self-worth enough to break their silence that is rooted in the shame of assault and rooted in the stigma of assault.” (©BANG Showbiz)
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Jessica Chastain
The Best Actress Oscar winner has been vocal about the gender pay gap in Hollywood and other feminist issues. Jessica also wants the roles she accepts to demonstrate her feminist beliefs. For instance, Chastain would love to appear in a superhero movie but she wants to lead the action, rather than be a sidekick. She said: “The problem is, if I do a superhero movie, I don’t want to be the girlfriend. "I don’t want to be the daughter. I want to wear a cool costume with a scar on my face, with fight scenes. That’s what I’d love.” (©BANG Showbiz)
From calling out misogyny to advocating for women’s rights… these female celebs have been using the star status to fight gender inequality.
