An Evening with a Female Activist
An inspiring evening with the outspoken and trailblazing activist, writer, founder and actress, Jameela Jamil.
Jameela Jamil is someone I was first exposed to during my instagram era (an app I deleted back in 2017). I can remember seeing her calling out one of the Kardashians directly for promoting a harmful weight loss drink, that undoubtedly would make one shit themselves. I remember reflecting on this as I had seen my mother trial many different weight loss remedies growing up, none that stick and likely a scam. Jameela was the first famous woman I had ever seen call someone out like that, on a big platform, for all to see. Many years later, I can still remember this moment. Must have been impactful, right?
When asked by a friend, if I would like to go to her show in Sydney, I remembered her right away. Although I had not been actively following her career and work, I was very curious. I had never been to an event such as this before. I had never seen an inspirational speaker in my adult life. The choice to go was an empowering one for me; to spend money to learn more about topics and views that aline with my own was not something I had ever done before. Potentially even minimising myself in exploring this space in a public setting for fear of coming across as too ‘loud’ about important issues. That is a sad reflection for me and something I am going to personally address and feel empowered more than ever to do so.
I purchased the ticket. Myself and three girlfriends made a night of it and headed to the CBD. We enjoyed a beautiful dinner together at The Grounds of the City where we shared some dishes and sipped on mocktails and cocktails.
Best hot chips I’ve ever had? Good start to the night if you ask me.
Steak tartare…drooling
After setting the mood… with delicious food, amazing ambience and having not spoken to a man in hours… we were ready for the event. We made our way around the corner to the State Theatre. Which as an architecture buff, I was overwhelmed by its beauty. And you can be assured we grabbed some yummy snacks and made our way to our seats.
Talk about a grand entrance!
Someone give us a ball gown!
The Main Event
The stage was beautifully lit with two dusty rose chairs ready for the show. The event was co-hosted by Australian, Hannah Ferguson who in her own right is making ground in the world of politics, media and feminism.
Hannah made her way on stage before introducing Jameela Jamil. Immediately when Jameela made her entrance I was struck by her beauty and poise. She was wearing a stunning, long white dress that she described as a ‘trad wife’ outfit. Quite a contradiction to her beliefs but sent the first important message. How you dress does not define you, your beliefs, your wants or give anyone else permission to put you in any type of box. Read that again if you have to.
The first hour of the show was Hannah asking questions and the second hour was questions from the audience. Questions focused on Jameela’s career path before addressing topics regarding fame, success, relationships, her beginning in activism, her mistakes and authenticity.
Jameela was so well spoken and I was utterly impressed at her authenticity and passion for what she believed in. This transcended through her answers to each and every question. Although some hilarious jokes were potentially rehearsed, you could see otherwise she was speaking from a place of such passion and experience, which you don't need a script for that.
I cannot write a summary on all of Jameela’s points as it could not do her justice. However, I encourage you to listen to her podcast, dissect her website, and follow her on instagram. This incredible woman has truly dedicated her entire platform to informing and educating people on important human rights issues.
To avoid mis-quoting the intelligent Jameela, I would like to highlight some of the impactful takeaways I left with.
Toxic masculinity is not masculinity at all - its misogyny
Toxic/hurtful men are hurt men - their behaviour and beliefs are learned through exposure and/or being hurt by others
Messaging on feminism/activism can at times be more impactful when delivered in a educative, respectful way - however not always possible or appropriate (don’t be afraid to call out shit for what it is, shit)
It’s okay to own up to personal mistakes within activism; we are doing something not many people have done before, if we didn’t grow within this space we would stop moving. Owning our past mistakes are key to advancing
It’s okay to have some contradictory beliefs to the mainstream ideals of feminism and still be active in the community, we are all unique
It’s okay to believe woman and men have different strengths and weaknesses that we can use to our advantage if we please
Femininity is a super power - intuitive, emotional intelligence to name only a few
Masculinity is a super power - protection and logistics to name only a few
The masculine wounds include a long history of suppressing emotions which in result act out in aggression
We as women can educate emotionally immature men and give them the space to express themselves authentically. This can help heal part masculine wound. However this is not our responsibility
Misogyny is woven into the fabric of the patriarchy and is a tool used by men throughout history to suppress a women’s power; collectively and individually
Diet culture and beauty ‘standards’ are dangerous distractions deployed by media that pit woman against each other and distract from more important issues (me too movement for example, we hear more about ozempic now than we do me too)
Women and girls are targeted by diet culture within the first 30 seconds on social media
Truly strong men are not intimidated by strong women; they should empower them
Society has created an environment where we have put an expiry date on women and are discarded as we age; but we must own our powerful crone era
Women have been programmed to minimise themselves in the shadow of men, but our time is now
Now, those seem like some very important topics if you ask me. Within the first ten minutes of the show, I realised maybe we should have made this girls night, a boys night. Men need to hear this messaging too.. and if I was hesitant to get myself a ticket, I can imagine a man would be even more so. But let’s unpack that. Why? Because they, previously similar to me, don’t want to be too ‘loud’ supporting the community they are curious about or support? Hmm.. sounds like these ‘powerful’ men have created an environment that is not just damaging for woman, but men too. Brew on that for a minute how bout.