Chances are that you’ve heard me rant or rave about Meghan Markle’s UN speech video in my last post. I was a little unnerved with all the coverage labeling her as ‘Royal Girlfriend’ . Not new , not surprising even. In her heartfelt address she shared her personal story about how as an 11 year old with a slight nudge her small voice found the confidence to reach the changemakers and she won her first of many battles of gender equality.

Click here to see how Meghan Markle totally slayed especially with her closing remark.

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.  – Meghan Markle – 2015 , UN Speech

I literally had goose bumps & before I knew it I was jotting down a list of Top moments in Feminism for the year 2016. 

1. Hillary Clinton got the Nasty Woman out in all of us.

During the recent US Elections , as she has perhaps done all her life , she gave some of the most inspiring speeches. She voiced issues that needed attention . She was interrupted , ridiculed and was at the receiving end of a lot of hate – especially by her unworthy opponent. She finally lost to him too and the only plausible reason for all that is that she’s a woman. Her speech asking every single girl to dream on will stay with a lot of us for a long long time. In Hillary’s journey and her eventual defeat we relived what a lot of competent women go through in their professional journeys – constantly prove our worth against an obviously incompetent male opponent eventually either falling out of the race to the top or being superseded.

2. Jennifer Anniston said she was complete just like we all are on our own too.

In any profession , it is so tough to hold on to your own and be super successful and look like a million bucks . Add to that of your fairy tale wedding ending on a sour note . Jennifer Aniston may not have won herself Oscars but she’s a star alright and she did all that on her own. So when she tells media to back off coz she’s done answering when is she getting married or having a baby or if she’s over her ex husband or trash like that , she became a star for me ! If you haven’t read her letter in Huffington post let me summarize it for you – Women don’t need anyone to complete them they are complete on their own.

3. Simone Biles is not a reference , she’s an original.

She’s only 19! I know I sound flabbergasted coz that’s how I’ve felt every single time I saw her do those seemingly impossible feats so effortlessly . You probably know about the world records she’s smashed and medals she’s collected , her life long struggle in foster homes and being body shamed and of course being a black woman in sports subjects you to a whole different level of prejudice. She made it to the Time person of the year shortlist & she is definitely one of the most influential women in 2016 . So when she’s reduced to a reference to another male athlete , what does she do? She acts like the superstar she is & proves she’s an original. Mic Drop , I say !

4. Sania Mirza served a fitting reply to a sexist question on national television

She single handedly put India on the Global Tennis map . She got married to a Pakistani cricketer amidst accusations hurled at her of being an anti national. She writes a book. And what does the world need to know? Just like the nosey neighbor , she’s asked on national television – her plans to settle down , have kids . why? because motherhood completes women you see. So our lady here slams the coveted journalist with a fitting response and finds herself on this very exclusive list!

There have been more interesting stories that caught my attention. Michele Obama supporting Hillary and tell us ‘When they go low , we go higher’ , Deepika Padukone giving mental health its due or Gigi hadid punching a psycho who tried to grab her . We had our heartbreaks but more or less 2016 was a stellar year for women showing who’s the boss. I am leaving you with this moment that defined a win for Feminism in 2016.

5. Ellen DeGeneres gets teary eyed as she accepts medal of Freedom from the man we all love.

What’s better than a kick ass woman , owing it? A self proclaimed ‘feminist’ and rightly so , as influential as Obama standing by her side.

When Obama spoke about her journey , Ellen DeGeneres got teary eyed . She won the medal of freedom & I got myself a stunning moment in the history of triumph of human spirit . Feminism isn’t just about women rights . Its about equal rights , equal opportunities and being respected irrespective of our gender , race , class or choices we make . Please watch this video if you haven’t seen it. We live in a tough world and a thing of kindness is a joy for the entire day sometimes.

Do you have a favourite ‘Feminism’ moment from 2016 that you’d like to add to this list ? Do share !

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Source:Meghan Markle , Simone Biles , Hillary Clinton , Jennifer Aniston , Sania Mirza , Ellen DeGeneres