Destiny's Child and Beyonce

It's official, this is my anthem of the moment. Just can't seem to stop listening to it. It sounds great, the lyrics are empowering to me as I'm sure plenty of women and girls around the world find it.

My own childhood was filled with Destiny's Child's music. 'The Writings on the Wall' album was a permanent fixture in the conversations I used to share with friends at school during 5th and 6th grade. At the ages of 10 and 11, I was learning assertiveness and not submissiveness, strength and not weakness and Kelly, Beyonce, Michelle, LaTavia and LeToya had plenty to do with this.

While there seems to be a lot of feminist backlash about the song being an inaccurate portrayal of the gender structure in society, I find the song favourable because as many of these types of songs, it is encouraging and empowering. Women may not occupy equal power positions as it is but with enough work, we could well be on our way to sharing equal footing. The debate is about whether empowering songs of this nature do more harm than good. I would have to argue that they play a positive role in fostering a healthy sense of self which is what most women and girls need anyway given the circumstances of being part of a marginalized group.

Girls running the world may not be the reality now but it sure as hell does not hurt to dream. When I listen to this song, I see images of all the powerful women I know who have made their mark. Though they have had to struggle and found themselves exploited at times, they have given as hard as they could give and that is an accomplishment in itself.