EMMA WATSON GAVE another powerful speech about gender equality this morning at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
Speaking in her role as UN Women Goodwill Ambassador, the Harry Potter actress talked about the reaction to her original HeForShe speech in New York in September 2014.
In that first speech, Watson asked men to “step forward” and get involved in the fight for gender equality. Now, she is asking people to tell her what they’ve done to further the HeForShe cause.
“Everything from marathons being run, merchandise being created, 15-year-old boys writing to national newspapers deploring female discrimination, young girls collecting hundreds of signatures – it’s all happened in the last four months,” she said. “I couldn’t have dreamed it, but it’s happened. Thank you so much.”
Watson introduced a new initiative called Impact 10x10x10, which the UN hopes will “galvanise momentum in advancing gender equality and women’s empowerment”.
She said that there is a greater understanding of the need for gender equality in our society, and asked for stories from the ‘human beings’ who had taken steps to improve it:
Girls: Who have been your mentors, parents, did you make sure you treated your children equally? If so, how have you done it? Husbands: Have you been supporting your female partner privately so that she can fulfil her dreams too? Young men: Have you spoken up in a conversation when a woman was casually degraded or dismissed?
Businessmen: Have you mentored, supported or engaged women in leadership positions? Writers: Have you challenged the language and imagery used to portray women in the media? CEOs: Have you implemented the women’s empowerment principles in your own company?
Find out more about the campaign on the HeForShe website.
