The Public Sphere was a theory created by Jurgen Habermas which looked at a metaphorical environment where people come together to discuss issues and challenge them into a debate of conversation where opinions are formed. It’s an important concept within Communications and Media as it involves the discussion and movements of important issues and popular culture within society (Turnbull, S 2015).
He For She is movement for gender equality formed on the 20th of September 2014. It is an organisation supported by the UN Women fighting for equal rights all over the world for all women. Gender equality was first led by women for women which were a struggle due to the conceived idea of male and female roles in society. The good news is though that now a day’s men have started to address the inequalities and discrimination faced by women and girls around the world. The goal is for men and women perceptions of equality being met half way in order to remove any stigmas or inequality that there is in society. He For She is an organisation that is recognizing participation for Human Rights regarding all forms of violence and discrimination faced by females in the world. (http://www.heforshe.org/, 2015).
You can sign up if you want to join the movement by going to http://www.heforshe.org/, you also get a “Kit”, you can download this by clicking on the “Action Kit” tab which demonstrates how you can implement the actions of removing gender inequality.
This issue of equality for women and the He For She Movement has contributed significantly to the Mediated Public Sphere as it is a well known around the world and is a constant issue that is reviewed and discussed within the United Nations (UN). The UN has a group inside of it called UN Women which is the founder of the organisation and has dedicated themselves to the issue of gender inequality and the empowerment through women.
The He For She movement has many celebrities involved it is that well known. Having these celebrities like Emma Watson involved has made a huge contribution to the He For She movement as it has become even more well known as she has advocated for gender equality. Emma Watson has not only backed this campaign but launched it to the world and to the UN. Her speech was powerful, emotion and inspiring to ensure that this campaign is backed and that change starts to happen. Other key people involved with the movement are Kiefer Sutherland and Wolf Blitzer (let’s face it, I have no idea who these people are, do you?)
For those who haven’t seen or heard of Emma Watson’s speech to the UN and the world about the issue of gender equality, I strongly advise that you watch it, you can find the link below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p-iFl4qhBsE
‘After the speech she went public to Facebook and social media and here are some of the awesome, amazing, kick-ass points she made that I want to leave with you:
- “I think it starts young, I think it starts really young with girls and boys being told what they can be”
- “For women, it’s about feeling comfortable about admitting that there’s a problem”
- “If you believe in equality, you’re a feminist. Sorry to tell you”
- “We don’t acknowledge how much pressure we put on men to conform”
- “We need yin and yang. We need balance. We need female representation. We need female leadership.”’
The He For She movement has significantly contributed to the Public Sphere as it has 275,706 men that have joined the campaign and it continues to grow every day. The public sphere comes to show how important issues are now-a-days and how much they can grow through campaigns and the media.
References
Emma Watson UN speech, 2015 YouTube, viewd 4 April 2015 <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p-iFl4qhBsE>.
Emma Watson Gender equality is your issue too | UN Women – Headquarters. 2015. Emma Watson Gender equality is your issue too | UN Women – Headquarters, viewed 4 April 2015, <http://www.unwomen.org/en/news/stories/2014/9/emma-watson-gender-equality-is-your-issue-too>.
HeForShe. 2015. Home – HeForShe, viewed 4 April 2015, <http://www.heforshe.org/>.
Wikipedia, 2015. HeForShe, viewed 4 April 2015 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HeForShe>.
MTV, 2015. 10 Kickass Things Emma Watson Said During The He For She Facebook Conversation, viewed 4 April 2015 <http://www.mtv.com/news/2099403/10-kickass-things-emma-watson-said-during-the-he-for-she-facebook-conversation/>.
Sam I am 