The results are in! The survey run by the Ms. Foundation for women has revealed that Amandla Stenberg and Rowan Blanchard have tied for the title of Feminist Celebrity of the Year! Up against worthy competitors such as actress and trans icon Laverne Cox and actor Aziz Ansari, how is it that two teenagers won the title?
Let’s start with Amandla Stenberg. She stole all of our hearts in 2012 with her outstanding portrayal of the well loved Hunger Games character, Rue. Since then, she’s taken the opportunity handed to her to turn to social activism, speaking out about a wide variety of injustices, but focusing on topics such as cultural appropriation and racism. In 2014, she posted a video on her Tumblr titled “Don’t Cash Crop My Cornrows” and earlier this year, she cowrote the comic book NIOBE: She Is Life, featuring a mixed main character—like herself—who, as Amandla has said, “shatters the traditional idea of what a hero is.” At only seventeen years old, Amandla is no doubt one of the most influential voices of the youth.
Rowan Blanchard is newer to the scene, catching her big break when casted as the main character of Disney Channel show Girl Meets World in early 2013. Like Amandla, Rowan quickly jumped at the chance to talk about intersectional feminism and human rights to her fans—young and old—through platforms such as Twitter, Tumblr and Instagram, where she posted a powerful essay explaining the importance of feminism being intersectional. Over the summer she spoke at the United Nations “He for She” event at only thirteen years old, delivering a powerful speech about gender equality. Though she just recently turned fourteen, Rowan—like Amandla—is a role model for young people and is using the platforms provided to her to make a difference.
Both Rowan and Amandla are under the age of eighteen, which legally is the age of adulthood in the United States. How is it that two teenagers won this title over people that have been advocating for years? It’s a very simple answer, if you ask me, and I’ve already answered it. It’s because they’re only teenagers. Wise beyond their years, Amandla and Rowan are the voices of our generation. They understand the influence they have on the youth and are unstoppable in their activism.
Amandla and Rowan deserve this award more than anything. They have bright futures ahead of them and they’re sure to make a difference in this world. Congratulations, Rowan Blanchard and Amandla Stenberg, on being 2015’s Feminists of the Year!
