Summary

Emma Watson begins her “HeForShe Speech”, by announcing the launch of the HeForShe campaign and asking the audience’s help to end gender inequality.

The HeForShe campaign is a new initiative at the UN which seeks to get men and boys involved in promoting gender equality. Watson has noticed that the term feminism has come to be seen as synonymous with man-hating, and she reminds people that feminism is, in fact, about both sexes having equal rights.

She recalls how she began questioning gender roles when she was called bossy at the age of eight, when she began being sexualised as a teenager, when her girlfriends dropped out of team sports, and when her male friends could not express their feelings.

She believes that people see feminism as an uncomfortable word and feminists as aggressive women. She argues that feminism is about equal pay, women having freedom over their bodies and being actively involved in socio-political issues, as well as receiving equal respect. Watson claims that no state h...