6 Ways to Encourage Girls to Speak Up
As women, we can be our own worst enemies. We tend to hide away and stay silent instead of speaking up and fighting for what we believe in. In this article, I am going to list six ways that you can use to encourage girls to speak up by including strong female role models, empowering them with knowledge, and showing them that feminine traits are nothing to be ashamed of.
1. Boosting Girls’ Confidence
When girls are confident in themselves and their abilities, they start to see that they can do anything. Encourage them to believe in themselves. You can do this by praising the little things they do well and telling them how proud you are of them.
2. Providing Role Models
A study found that by the time they’re 12, girls have seen 8,500 ads featuring female models who are skinny, glamorous, and just not like them. The result is low self-esteem and body consciousness. One way to tackle this is by providing more positive role models in the media, but then again, that’s not in our control. You have to make sure to provide your young ones with a comforting space where they are encouraged to speak up when they see things that seem to be unnatural. This brings us to our third important point.
“Never apologize for being sensitive or emotional. Let this be a sign that you’ve got a big heart and aren’t afraid to let others see it. Showing your emotions is a sign of strength.” — Brigitte Nicole
3. Establishing a Supportive Culture For Girls To Speak Up
When girls are surrounded by people who don’t believe in their ideas, they eventually give up on pursuing their dreams. When we allow our girls to thrive and be successful, they will continue to build confidence in themselves and the world around them. You have to have to nurture them with the utmost love and compassion. Remind them of their worth and give them the freedom to express how they feel. A supportive environment is vital for a girl to feel empowered and encouraged to speak up for herself and for others.
4. Raising Awareness of Sexual Harassment and Assault
Sexual harassment and assault are important topics to discuss with children. It’s important to know how to talk about these issues with girls because they may experience them at some point in their lives. It is not something that should be ignored or brushed off. Children should understand what is happening to them. They need to feel safe and know that people believe them when they say someone has hurt them.
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5. Celebrating Female Accomplishments
We see this happen in the world of sports all the time. Female athletes are celebrated for their work and contributions. There are a plethora of documentaries about their struggles, triumphs, and trials. And when one person is successful, there are suddenly five more just like her. This doesn’t happen for women outside of sports.
6. Promoting Gender Equality
No matter what country you’re in, men are always given more opportunities and voices than women. In order to change this, we need to promote gender equality by educating girls about the importance of their voice, which can only happen if they know enough about themselves and their rights.
