I started our #WCW series last year as a way to highlight women I’ve met who have worked to overcome stereotypes surrounding their gender, race, body, background, etc. I thought it would be cool to reclaim a hashtag that normally focuses on a woman’s physical desirability as her overall value. If you search the hashtag on Instagram you’ll find that the top images are mostly of fitness models looking #Flawless in bikinis which there is NOTHING wrong with, women should be aloud to celebrate and express their bodies however they want. But by creating this series I thought, wouldn’t it be empowering if we highlighted women for what they’ve worked to accomplish and the fact that sometimes just living as themselves is an act of resistance?
It feels refreshing hearing stories behind the beautiful faces and perfectly manicured feeds that we are so used to seeing while mindlessly scrolling through Instagram- an app that thrives off of our addiction to physical beauty. When I started this series, I really was just interested in learning more about women who already inspired me. Our first #WCW feature back in August 2018 was my friend Beverly Argo. She had reached out to me about collaborating, and after hearing her story describing the casual racism she’s endured as an Asian American woman, I knew other people would resonate with what she had to say. Beverly’s post was received really well by our community on social media, and we started to receive comments, DMs, etc. about other women who wanted to share their stories. Since then, I’ve learned that my passion for helping other women to tell their stories is my greatest gift and passion. I’ve asked so many women with powerful stories to share what they have to say and every time I ask, I’m greeted with a resounding “YES.”
I find that giving women a platform to share their stories and be celebrated for something other than their looks is so powerful. My goal with this series is for it to continue to grow on our social media pages and website and eventually I’d like to turn it into a coffee table book. I hope these women inspire you all as much as they have me!
xo
Aly Nagel
