The election is over, but the ugliness it stirred up remains. Over the past 18 months we have been exposed to video clips, sound bites, tweets and Facebook posts illustrating that sexism is alive and thriving in our culture.

Last week at the Young Women’s Resource Center, I took a call from a very distraught woman. She was reaching out to find resources and a positive outlet for her anger. She laid out her concern bluntly and quickly followed it with, “I have to do something.” She’s not alone. We’ve seen many in our community express grief, angst and fear, as well as the urge to take action to promote gender equality.  

What can we do? What will our next steps be? Will we decide to sit back, or will we use this momentum to focus on eradicating sexism and fight against the power it still has to make women second-class citizens? We must have the courage and strength to pick up where our feminist predecessors left off.

It begins with awareness. We can continue to discuss with our friends, family, colleagues and acquaintances that sexism is very much alive and identify how it presents itself in daily life. We can each take the time to honestly examine our own biases and support others to understand and address their own. We have the opportunity to counteract the ugliness with knowledge, understanding and action.

At the YWRC, we work to teach our girls and young women about positive self-esteem, body image and healthy relationships. Unfortunately, many of them are feeling the stress that comes with seeing and hearing public figures degrade female bodies and roles. In hopes of combating this, we’re paying special attention to make sure we continue to reinforce how limitless their possibilities are, to uplift their spirits and to bolster their self-confidence. You can help us with this by joining our #everygirldeserves campaign and sharing what you think every girl deserves. Details of how to join this movement are online.

We must do all we can to uplift the girls and women of our community. We can challenge the status quo and protest inequalities. We invite friends, neighbors and others to join us. Find a way to become part of the fight, get involved with a community group and/or support a nonprofit. Let’s come together now to take advantage of our momentum and shatter glass ceilings. Let’s “do something” so the next generation is a bit closer to real equality.

Griffith can be reached by email or by phone at 515-244-4901.