Activism Redefined, Courtesy of The Pink Protest

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Photo Credit IG @thisisaliceskinner

For some, activism is something that comes naturally and is deeply rooted in your soul. You’re a do-er and a do-gooder; you like to take action and get things done; you stand up for what is right. For others, activism can feel overwhelming. It can be hard to know where to begin or how to even define what activism means. According to the Oxford English Dictionary activism is defined as “the policy or action of using vigorous campaigning to bring about political or social change.” While that definition isn’t necessarily wrong, it’s also not entirely right. Activism isn’t just crowds of enraged people shouting in the streets or marching for a cause. It’s not just people doing aggressive demonstrations or shouting about all that is wrong in the world.

Activism also means doing what is right. It means standing up for others. I means seeing something wrong, something you’re uncomfortable with, and making it better. It means never turning a blind eye to something that is unjust or unfair. It’s more important than ever that we all understand what it means to be an activist, and especially among younger generations, it’s important to know where to start in a more modern and accessible way.

Enter The Pink Protest

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Photo Credit www.pinkprotest.org/about

The Pink Protest is trying to change the way we look at activism, define activism, and encourage others to get involved and take action. This community is working hard to alter the way we all look at what activism means and our collective ability to impact the world through our actions. And it’s doing so in a way that is really resonating with a new generation of women on a mission.

The Pink Protest’s goal is simple: creating a community of activists committed to engaging in action and supporting each other. They see that the world is changing and the way we all connect and learn is evolving every day. Thanks to the Internet, social media, and the ability to connect with people all over the world at the click of a button or the swipe of a finger, it is now easier and more important than ever that we, as women, mobilize to make change happen. Our actions, big or small, are all meaningful and able to make a difference. And the women behind The Pink Protest are on a mission to ensure that engaged women are ready to get to work in a way that is not only accessible but also fun.

The Pink Protest was started by four women — Scarlett Curtis (Sunday Times Style columnist), Grace Campbell (Riot Girls, Channel 4), Honey Ross and Alice Skinner (Artist & Illustrator, The Revolution Handbook) — all with a shared vision: to refine how young people define activism and how they get involved in grassroots activism, fighting for causes and missions that directly impact them and what matters in their lives. It’s all about being true to what you believe, to your morals, and then finding simple ways to put those beliefs into action.

The Pink Protest isn’t trying to reinvent the wheel or come up with additional causes to distract you from the many important missions that already exist. Instead, it is a platform and a community. The Pink Protest does not rely solely on protests and marches to get their messages across. It’s 2019, and they know that if you want to reach younger generations of empowered people, you have to speak their language and you need to reach them where they are. So they are bringing the revolution to social media and are using their Instagram page to mobilize and motivate budding activists looking for daily advice and small actions to help them get started. And it seems that their nearly 32,000 (and growing) followers are listening and are ready to get sh*t done.

The Pink Protest is an organization using its reach, creative power and community to raise awareness and encourage action for important campaigns around the world. Through a range of mediums, from video series, to Instagram posts, illustrations, in real life events, and yes, even protests, The Pink Protest raises awareness and empowers others to make change happen through engaging content. Their tagline “the revolution will be pink and posted on Instagram” is no joke.

For example, their weekly Instagram series “On Wednesday’s We Wear Pink and Protest” (who doesn’t love a Mean Girls reference) highlights a weekly task to encourage activism. Some weeks it’s simply educating followers about important topics such as female illness, chronic pain, female genital mutilation and body positivity. Other weeks it’s a call to action, encouraging followers to get loud, to stay loud and to get involved.

And Their Efforts are Working

The Pink Protest’s Free Periods campaign, which started in 2017, not only engaged thousands, but it also ended up changing the law in the United Kingdom to ensure that menstrual products are freely available in schools and colleges. The campaign is The Pink Protest’s biggest campaign to date, and it called on the British government to take action, because education is a fundamental human right, and no child should need to miss school because she cannot afford menstrual hygiene products. They demanded change, and it worked. In March 2019, Chancellor Philip Hammond announced that the UK Government would fund free menstrual products in all secondary schools and colleges in England. It’s a huge step, but their work is not done, as they are still fighting to end period poverty for all children in all grade levels, from primary school to college.

If we can learn anything from this campaign, it is that activism works, and The Pink Protest is here to help you get started.

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