Welcome

When did feminism become the new F-bomb?

When I tell people I am a feminist, there is a very common reaction that I get; people look at me like I just said something horrible. I know that they are imagining a radical feminist who believes men deserve no rights- that is not the case in any way. Feminists believe in equality for all genders. Even my mom, who worked daily to empower women, would not call herself a feminist until about a year ago because of the radical image that comes with that word.

My name is Seneca Peklo, and I am a Communication Studies student with a concentration in Public Relations and a minor in Women, Gender, and Sexuality studies. For as long as I can remember, I have wanted to work in a career where I get to help other women. In my time attending college, I have done research on the connection between birth control and Christianity

and made it my goal to study women and LGBTQ+ representation in media as much as possible. Before becoming a Women, Gender, and Sexuality studies minor, I truly feel that I didn’t understand the full scope of feminism and I am definitely still learning, which is why I am writing this blog. While I am in no way an expert, I hope to share with you some of the things that I have had the opportunity to learn and experience.

So how did I become a feminist? I am a pole dance instructor's daughter who grew up in a world where body image and sexuality came from how you felt inside and not of what the media or society told you to feel. When I was six years old, my mom opened her first pole workout studio that was exclusive to women. From then on, I grew up in those studios. I met different types of women from all sorts of backgrounds as I did my homework in the lobby or sat out sick days in the studio. I found empowerment through watching other women find their own sense of self love and I have been inspired to make the world like the studio that my mom created- a safe environment for women, where they can live lives the way they want with the support of other women.

In this blog, I will take on topics ranging from 2020 election, to the mental disorders that can come with periods, to owning your sexuality and so much more. My posts will be based off of my opinions or personal experiences, but they will be backed by research. I am a straight, cis- gender, white woman so I know my experiences are often times privileged, and while I have talked to people about their experiences and done my own research, there are many identities that I will never be able to fully understand as I have never walked in their shoes and experience what they do on a day to day basis; I can only hope to be a good ally.

A topic I believe to be central to feminism is intersectionality a term coined by Kimberlé Crenshaw. In my next post I will be discussing what intersectionality is and why I don’t believe you are a feminist if you are not an intersectional feminist.

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