Almost a year ago, I made a personal decision to not post or share anything negative on the Internet about other girls and women, whether they were close friends or complete strangers. Snarky comments about a celebrity? Not from me. Joke going around about twelve-year-old girls who wear a lot of makeup? I won't share it. Don't like a girl in my life? I won't post anything about it. I promised that I would not say something even remotely offensive about other girls on my Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Tumblr, whatever.
Now, I can't say I'm perfect at this, but I tried very hard to be consistent with this. And a few things happened.
First of all, I realized that there is an overwhelming amount of negativity aimed at girls and women, whether they're jokes or straight-up insults, and double the amount of that for any woman who isn't white, straight or able-bodied. I always knew that, but I became more sensitive to it when I tried to not participate in it. Second, not only do some people see no problem with this, but they also find it totally acceptable. I can't tell you how many times I've heard someone say something blatantly sexist and stood in complete silence while everyone else laughed. It's uncomfortable and, to be honest, degrading.
Third, the less I shared negativity towards other girls, the less critical I became of girls in general. It takes a lot for me to say something really bad about another girl, even in real life. When the negativity left, it was replaced with an abundance of positivity. Any opportunity I have to give a complement, I take it. If I think someone's selfie looks cute, I will let them know. If I liked their poetry or Instagram photo, I tell them. If I just feel like sharing a nice message with someone, I do it. I don't hold back anymore. Why should I? Why should I withhold love and positivity?
In honor of International Women's Day, I highly recommend doing this. Refrain from posting anything hurtful or negative about other girls and women, no matter how much you want to. Even for just a day. It changed my viewpoints and beliefs dramatically, and it might change yours, too.
Being a girl is hard. Let's build each other up and help each other out.
(this is the part where I make the disclaimer that I try to not say bad things about anyone in general online, but this specifically has to do with what I say of other girls.)
