Sophie Trudeau Says Men Are Part of the Feminist Equation

On March 7, International Women’s Day, Sophie Grégoire Trudeau posted an Instagram image of her and her husband, Canadian Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau to “celebrate the boys and men in our lives who encourage us to be who we truly are, who treat girls & women with respect, and who aren’t afraid to speak up in front of others.”

Trudeau’s post set off backlash from people who didn’t understand why she was honoring men on International Women’s Day. At Tina Brown’s Women in the World Summit at Lincoln Center Saturday, Trudeau had a response to those who hit the “angry” button on social media that day.

“So, obviously, on International Women’s Day, we are honoring the achievements of women, but gender equality and feminism cannot evolve in our humanity if we’re not bringing our boys and men along,” Trudeau, whose husband spoke at the summit last year, told Fast Company editor-in-chief Stephanie Mehta.

Last year, Prime Minister Trudeau spoke about the importance of men’s participation in social change. He told Brown, who interviewed him, that there is more than one piece to the feminism puzzle.

“We can’t just talk about how women need to be empowered without talking to the people who, unfairly, still have more power: the men,” he said. “When we start realizing that including and promoting women is not just the nice thing to do, but the smartest possible thing to do, you start connecting it in more meaningful ways to the workplace.”

On Saturday, Sophie Trudeau also spoke to the youth-led activism happening across the globe, and emphasized that both girls and boys need to be encouraged and raised as activists.

‘There is no doubt that women and children on this planet are the people who suffer the most on many levels . . . Lots of boys around this planet are being taught right now that girls are lesser than them. This is toxic to everybody, and boys deserve better.”

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