Remember that great speech Emma Watson gave at the UN a couple of months ago about feminism and its importance? Everyone thought it rocked – myself included – but there was one person who was less than impressed. That person is Game of Thrones actress Maisie Williams, who thinks Emma Watson needs to climb down from her ivory tower and broaden her world view.
From The Guardian:
Williams is a feminist, though it’s not an issue high on her agenda. “There are creepy things that people say online that I shouldn’t have to read,” she explains, “but there are bigger things going on in other countries.” We talk about actor Emma Watson’s recent UN speech, in which she talked about her reasons for becoming a feminist, and the need for men to be onside; Williams says she is impatient with this kind of “first-world feminism”. “A lot of what Emma Watson spoke about, I just think, ‘that doesn’t bother me’. I know things aren’t perfect for women in the UK and in America, but there are women in the rest of the world who have it far worse.”
Huh. I mean, I kinda get where she’s coming from – Feminism isn’t just for white, middle-class women, and yet that’s often where so many of the efforts are focused. Feminism is ALL women of all ethnicities, religions, economic background, etc, and the issues surrounding marginalized and often ignored communities definitely need more attention. That being said, I don’t think Emma Watson was being purposely exclusive, she just maybe needs to sorta expand her horizons. Plus, one speech doesn’t mean that she’s ONLY concerned about what she said within it, and I also don’t think Maisie was trying to diss or talk shit about Emma, just that their priorities are different, and that’s okay. These two should meet – they might learn something from each other!