Elevating the Sisterhood
In a compelling address, Media Captain Mischa (Year 11) advocated for a student culture of mutual encouragement rather than competition and envy.
Each week, our student leaders share their insights with their peers in Assembly.
I feel that all-girls’ schools can be characterised by a pressure to compete with one another, rather than a culture of unity – that is, our friendships can become a source of pure drama.
I think many of these negative stereotypes stem from the media, which rarely portrays female friendships as warm and supportive, especially in dramatic TV show plotlines.
I worry that many of us take these stereotypes to heart and apply them to our own lives. We seem to assume that there is not enough room for too many successful women, who then all help each other to grow and prosper.
Sexism continues to be strongly embedded in society and it seems intent on keeping us down. It is therefore important for girls to support each other rather than look at each other as competition.
I can say that I have experienced girls putting one another down for reasons associated with envy and jealousy. Girls seem to go into defence mode if they feel intimidated. They think they need to prove that they’re as good or even better than others.
Maybe you can remember a time someone put you down, especially in front of guys, to make themselves look better than you. Maybe you have even done this to a friend. We’ve all experienced it. We all know that it feels horrible. It is a never-ending cycle of negativity and superficiality that nourishes a kind of internalised sexism.
But the truth is that one woman's success does not equal the absence of your own. We can all be liked; our success is not mutually exclusive.
Reflect on the times that you've built a friendship that is not competitive, one where you support one another and feel uplifted in each other’s company. This is how we should aim to behave and the sort of people we should surround ourselves with.
It’s important for us girls, to realise that we share similar struggles. Nobody quite understands what it feels like to be a woman, other than women themselves. We don't like being pettily judged. We all want to succeed.
So, next time you catch yourself or a friend bringing another girl down, please remember the words of Serena Williams, “Every woman's success should be another's inspiration, we are strongest when we cheer each other on.” In the words of the Prefect team, “Celebrate one another to elevate one another.”