I Will Stand Up For Women

Men. We think we understand women because we all have mothers and a few of us still have wives or girlfriends.

We also think we know how to run a restaurant because we eat.

I’d like to think I’m different, but I’m not. I don’t understand women. I don’t know what it’s like to be a woman.

Last year, I was invited to speak at the UN on gender diversity. I was challenged by the emcee to commit to do something—anything really—to improve gender diversity within my sphere. I agreed to ensure that 50 percent of the guests on my show would be women.

The first thing I learned is that only 28 percent of my guests had been women.

A funny thing happened when I started having more women on my show. I began hearing about women’s issues. For instance, I did three episodes of my show on menstruation. I learned that feminine hygiene products are a big deal. In the developing world, girls often miss school because they lack them. Some are even sexually exploited.

Celeste Mergens launched an NGO called Days for Girls to provide girls around the world with reusable pads, so they won’t have to miss school. She stands up for women.

Celeste Mergens in Nepal, courtesy of Days for Girls

After Donald Trump was exposed for bragging about sexually assaulting women, I learned that many—perhaps most women—have been assaulted. That doesn’t make it okay. That makes it a global crisis.

Nearly 20 percent of women are sexually assaulted in college. Laura Dunn, a lawyer and a campus rape survivor herself, launched SurvJustice to get the Federal Government to enforce protections for victims on campus rather than protecting the perpetrators. She stands up for women.

I still don’t understand women. I will never know what it is like to be a woman. What I do know is that women are smart, strong and powerful. They are the equal of men in every way that matters.

From now on, I will stand up for women.

#standupforwomen

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