Opinion: Women's rights movement has a way to go

Māori men and women congregate outside the Rotorua courthouse on election day. Photo / Auckland Libraries

I've always been a woman with a big voice and bigger opinions.

I was described by my parents as strong-willed from the get-go, often running around our front yard as a stark-naked toddler, for everyone to see.

When my mum would say 'Stephanie, ladies don't run around naked, come put clothes on' I would defiantly say 'No!' And keep running around.

Fast forward a decade, I did my Year 8 speech on women's rights, ignoring what I hope were just mock eye rolls by the male adjudicator, and won the competition.

In the same year I questioned why our male deputy principal always asked for "strong young men" to help him carry things when, at that age, the majority of girls were bigger and stronger than the boys.

Throughout my teens my dad and I debated on a range of topics, including why girls' sexuality was treated differently to boys and the changing role of women in society.

More recently, my husband and I have had discussions about him taking parental leave when we have children so I can continue advancing the career I've worked so hard for.

All my life I've stood my ground and voiced my opinions without fear - something I've taken for granted at times.

Had I been born in 1892, not 1992, these traits would have likely landed me in jail or a mental asylum; a fate sadly suffered by many strong-willed, opinionated women in history.

But thankfully times changed in New Zealand when a group of unrelenting, trailblazing suffragettes fought for the choices Kiwi women get to have in 2018.

Today we recognise not just those women who paved the way 125 years ago but also those who have fought for women's rights, broken glass ceilings and challenged societal norms in the generations since.

These inspiring women give me so much hope for what the future could be but they also show me there's still a way to go.

As a woman who has been called "sweetheart" by men I don't know, told not to be "hysterical" when arguing a point and been reduced to the term "bossy" more times than I can count, I know I have a part to play in making sure the next generations of women don't have to experience what I've experienced.

We've come a long way in the last 125 years. Let's hope in another 125 years women will be enjoying the standard of equality we are fighting for today.