Wednesday, December 14, 2016

I Found Feminists!

Post election day I was invited to a Facebook group by a coworker of mine who was surprised that I wasn't in it already. The group is for feminists in my area to talk to other feminists in the coal mining region about anything, politics, something someone said to you, the news or whatever. It is a space to come together, talk, listen and be respected. This is something I have been looking for since I moved back from graduate school. Upon joining the group I noticed several coworkers were in it as well whom I had no idea were rockin the feminist way of life. That alone was something wonderful especially since being an adult, it's a lot easier to make friends with coworkers because you see them 5 days a week. Perfect! Immediate reward for joining the group and since I am a millennial, I enjoy my instant gratification too. The group was very supportive of everyone's feelings and we helped each other from feeling complete despair at Trump's "win".

I was also luck enough to join before the holiday party! This, this is what I had so desperately wanted. A gathering of feminists where we could share ideas and meet new wonderful people. Not wanting to go alone I asked my new-found-feminist-coworker if she was going and if so if we could go together (I hate showing up places where I know no one by my lonesome). Luckily she has the same dislike and happily agreed. So after work we drove off to get to know each other and fellow feminists better. Settling down into the backroom of a restaurant, the wooden interior quickly reminded me of the restaurant my women's studies peeps and I would lurk in. After a few minutes of being there and doing an oh so fun ice breaker (which wasn't bad surprisingly) I started to feel like a warm blanket fresh out of the dryer was being wrapped loving around me. Both cozy and warm. What was even better was seeing all of these women from different walks of life coming together, presenting their ideas and being met with thoughtful questions, respectful discussions and those moments of "OMG I'M NOT THE ONLY ONE THAT THINKS THAT!?!?!?" That is what I wanted. Real live feminists in the flesh to help me stay sane. Oh and we got to stuff our faces which is a major plus to any social gathering. And we had a gift exchange. Yay presents!

I met so many AMAZING women that night that I never would have if not for this Facebook community. I feel so weird saying that. Like this must be how couples who meet on Tinder feel when they're asked "So how did you meet?" Only it's asking how you made this kickass friend instead of significant other. "We met through a facebook group". Even my eyes roll. There seems to be some sort of shame left over from AIM days where "geeks" could only make virtual friends. But this got me thinking: isn't this what social media is supposed to do? Allow us to see different sides of people we sorta, kinda know and meet new people who have similar interests as us? Am I in my late 20s now for the first time just using social media the way it was meant to be used? Mayhaps. But hey, it's never too late to learn something new.

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