5 Reasons why knitting can make a difference for Women’s Rights
Consider knitting a Pussy Hat to help make a unique collective visual statement which will help activists to be better heard at The Women’s March on Washington D.C. on January 21, 2017. The more we are seen, the more we are heard. Join thousands of other knitters and come together to support women’s rights in a creative and impactful way. If you can not be at the march, please consider making a PINK HAT for a person who will be there. The weather in D.C. that day will be a high of 35 – 45°F, so hats will be practically important to keep warm.
Knitting a pink hat is a practical thing to do, but here are 5 reasons why it is a POWERFUL action you can take:
1. Power in Numbers
Currently on Facebook, there are over 150,000 people pledged to go to the march. The site of the march – Washington D.C. – is iconic. If everyone at the march wears a pink hat, the crowd will be a sea of pink, showing that we stand together, united. By knitting a hat for a marcher, you are a part of a power visual statement.
2. Pink is Powerful
Pink is considered a very female color representing caring, compassion, and love – all qualities that represent a STRONG woman. Wearing pink together is a powerful statement that we stand together for Women’s Rights.
3. Power of Individuality
There is individual power in groups. The hat pattern was written to be easily made no matter where you live or what your level of knitting experience. Here is a video that takes you through the project step-by-step – you can use it to learn how to knit or just make sure you remember how to knit! If you are an experienced knitter and have questions about the pattern, this is a good reference. Check it out!
Please choose any shade of pink that delights you. At the march, with everyone wearing hats in different shades of pink, the overall effect will be beautiful. Please make any warm hat – you can knit, crochet, or sew. It can have ears or a pom-pom! The official “Pussy Power Hat” knit pattern is available for free! It is inspiration to help you get started in making as many hats as you can for the march.
4. Power of the Handmade
Knitting is traditionally a women’s craft and the art should be celebrated. Knitting groups are powerful gatherings of women and represent a safe space to talk, a place where women support women. Anything handmade shows a level of care. Women’s rights need to be cared for, so it is appropriate to symbolize this march with a handmade item, one made with a skill that has been passed down from woman to woman for generations.
5. Power of Pussy
The wordplay of “pussyhat” and “pussycat” is clever, but yes, “pussy” is also a derogatory term for female genitalia. This word is a loaded one and should be reclaimed as a term that empowers women. In this day and age, if we have pussies we are assigned the gender of “woman”. Women, whether transgender or cisgender, are mistreated in this society. In order to get fair treatment, the answer is not to take away our pussies, the answer is not to deny our femaleness and femininity, the answer is to demand fair treatment. A woman’s body is her own, her earnings should be fair, and she is an equal member of our society. The Pussy Hat is made to honor this truth and stand up for our rights.
