I was in 4th grade
When I fell and skinned my knee
I cried
Nobody cared
I was told to man up

I was in 5th grade
When I had to run a mile in P.E. class
I lost my breath
A time or two
My coach told me
“you run like a girl”

It was a bad thing
To do anything like a girl
Even my 5th grade brain knew that

I was horrified
Had I really done that bad?
Why couldn’t I ever do anything like a boy?
Because boys are better.
Right?

I hated myself
I hated my body
My body
That isn’t good enough
That will be treated like a toy
Touched by men much older
That’s too fat and too skinny
And tries too hard
That’s a nuisance to the world
That gets made fun of
That will never satisfy you
This body
That can only ever do anything
Like a girl

I have picked at myself
Lived in insecurity for way too long
I changed my look
I changed my personality
I worked so hard
To be something I was not
But I can never beat a boy
Why can’t we be good enough, though?
We’ve broken barriers
Knocked down walls
Done things
Nobody ever thought possible
And it’s all done like a girl

1839
Mississippi allows women to own property

1920
White women can vote in the entirety of the U.S.

1974
The Supreme Court denies states the right
To exclude women from juries

1994
Women are taught the same way men are taught

2016
A woman was the democratic presidential candidate

Maybe it isn’t so bad
To do things like a girl
All these things
Fought for
Like girls
And yet,
We still have so much more to fight for

So we will continue to fight for our rights
Like girls
Until no longer necessary
Until assault is a crime
Women are human
And our bodies do not exist for the pleasure of others
Until I’m not forced into marriage
Until I’m not required to have a baby I’m not ready for
Until I’m able to see that the man sitting next to me
Has the same amount of money on his paycheck as I
Until I do not fear the presence of a man
Until the problem isn’t my shoulder or thigh,
But the fact that you can’t keep your hands to yourself

Until we are undivided
With liberty and justice for all

Because that 4th grade girl
Told to man up because she was crying
Deserves better

That 5th grade girl
So saddened by the fact
That she ran like a girl
Most definitely deserved better

Because she does run like a girl
And she now knows
It isn’t a bad thing
She’s proud of it
And she should be

Proud of it
Just like the Suffragettes
Eleanor Roosevelt
Rosie the Riveter
Maya Angelou
Malala
Oprah Winfrey
Emma Watson
And Hillary Clinton
Are proud of themselves

So yeah
I run like a girl
Train a little more
Work a little harder
And run a lot faster
Maybe you can too