EQUAL RIGHTS POETRY

If I Were a Woman

I’d reveal my beautiful inner-me

Photo by Alice Tulin with permission. Edit by the author.

“If I have to, I can do anything.
I am strong. I am invincible,
I am woman.” — Helen Reddy

If I were a woman
I’d fight for my rights
and call out the misogynists.
I’d bring a baby into this world
only if it suited me,
and not worship a male God,
or dominated
by men in suits
who are against
equal rights,
or equality
in the workplace.

If I were a woman,
I wouldn’t need to be
perfect, or worry
about my boob size,
thinking that my hips
were too wide,
lips too thin,
or get lipo or Botox
or compare my body
to every model
in Vogue
because I want to have
the ideal look.

I would cut my hair
and reveal my
beautiful inner-me.
I’d let my gray
grow in.
I…