Why Speaking Up is a Superpower
Growing up as an Asian Canadian woman I was taught to be independent, but not too independent. To be assertive, but not too assertive or risk being perceived as bossy, bitchy, too aggressive, or unlady-like (whatever that means). As a girl becoming a woman, I was praised for obeying authority and following the rules. As a boy becoming a man, my younger brother was applauded for abandoning rules and being a rebel. The same behaviours that I was shamed for transformed my brother into a curious, creative leader in the making. My parents always had good loving intentions in raising me but systems of oppression have a way of camouflaging learned behaviours and beliefs as “natural”.
In her viral speech, House Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez addressed the verbal abuse she experienced from Republican party Representative Ted Yoho when he called AOC a ‘Fucking bitch’’. AOC’s speech was commended for doing the right thing and speaking up, not only for herself, but for what the act of abuse represented and allowed for men in positions of power. With eloquence, grace and composure she delivered her genuine and visceral speech on the House floor to express her disapproval of Yoho’s verbally abusive statements. Below are a few of my favourite excerpts from AOC’s speech worth mentioning
