Especially for young girls growing up, it would be lovely to see strong women who don't necessarily need to be sexy or find that interesting. Or have to be the girlfriend or the mother. They can play complex characters that you want to follow and make you believe that you can be strong as well.
People ask why do I write strong women characters, and basically, all the girls I know are strong; the girls I've had are strong. The women in my life are strong.
If I had killed somebody, it wouldn't have had so much appeal to the press, you see? But f-ing, you see, and the young girls. Judges want to f- young girls. Juries want to f- young girls. Everyone wants to f- young girls!
Women of all ages need to be present in the media to instill girls and young women with self-confidence about their futures. And women of my age need healthy role models. Otherwise, how can we build the future dreams we still deserve to have?
It's so important for young girls of color - young girls of any color - to see diverse women as the heroes of their own story.
I specially want to have young women not to wait as I did until my children were grown, but young women to come in to gain their seniority so they could be respected leaders at a much earlier age. It's important for all women to see young women who share their experience whether it's as a working mom with young children, who understands the struggle and the aspirations of young women in a similar situation. And if they don't have family and they're pursuing their career women should see that as well.
Investing in women, helping women to achieve their dreams, sending young girls to college. Trying to train young girls to be leaders. Sponsoring the Minerva Awards. All of these programs didn't exist before that help women day in and day out.
I think that young women and little girls need to see that they don't have to be the damsel in distress. They don't have to not show their strength. They don't have to be whatever the stereotype is or the tropes that we go to in our minds.
I believe that young lesbian women need to see themselves on TV. They need to see the representation, especially young black lesbians.
It's wonderful that we're portraying women in this way so that young women can see that women actually are strong and capable of accomplishing all kinds of things.
In many parts of the world, women and girls are especially vulnerable to HIV/AIDS because they lack control over most aspects of their life. Cultural expectations and gender roles expose women and girls to violence, sexual exploitation and far greater risk for infection.
I had this complex of being the perfect wife. This comes from the subliminal messages girls learn from a young age, so even independent, spirited women like me entertain such notions.
Linda Hamilton is my hero. She was so tough and so strong and so vulnerable at the same time. I think that's what woman action figures are allowed to be: vulnerable, in a way that women are.
How absurd it was that in all seven kingdoms, the weakest and most vulnerable of people - girls, women - went unarmed and were taught nothing of fighting, while the strong were trained to the highest reaches of their skill.
I prefer to avoid the phrase 'strong women' when talking about female characters and the lack thereof or the need therefore, because it's not about being strong, it's also about being vulnerable, funny etc.
What happens is young girls see images of women being objectified, and the more the woman becomes an object the more followers and likes she has - they see that as a role model and try to imitate these women, but they're not old enough to know what they're doing.