As the months of the year pass, so do social media trends. It feels impossible to keep up with every trend, on every app, in every part of the globe. However, these past few months, a particular trend has seemed to be everpresent: the “unlocking your feminine energy” trend.
This trend consists of women explaining to their audiences how they can leave their “masculine energy” behind and instead learn to live in their “feminine girl era.” This trend is snowballing into a dangerous movement that could potentially harm the millions of young girls who are exposed to this kind of content.
Women have been leading feminist movements for hundreds of years in hopes of achieving equality and the right to lead a life free from men’s control. Today, some women may believe that these movements are no longer necessary and that the fight for equal rights between men and women is a thing of the past. This could not be further from the truth.
To truly recognize how precarious this trend can be for young girls, it is important to understand exactly what it entails. Its original intention was to explain why many women were not receiving the “treatment” they feel they deserve from the men they date. From there, several content creators decided to explain to their audiences how they can be “treated right,” or in other words, receive the “princess treatment.”
“Basically, to truly be in your feminine energy, you need to feel taken care of and secure,” said a TikToker with two hundred and forty-seven thousand followers.
Phrases like “taken care of” and “trusting and receiving” should raise red flags. They should not be synonymous with female traits. It pushes a narrative that, in order to be “feminine,” you should embody an energy that resembles that of a powerless child.
The more one scrolls on this trend, the worse it gets. “Feminine energy relies on the masculine to provide, solve her problems, and protect her,” read another TikTok of hers.
“When a man asks what you are looking for, tell him, ‘I’m looking for an old fashioned man…that means somebody who [is] paying!” said Youtuber, SheraSeven, whose videos generate millions of likes, and positive comments. She has amassed a large following, mainly of women and girls, who feel inspired by her view that women should only go for men who pay for everything.
These posts give off a kind and innocent message. Nevertheless, behind their heart emojis, and pink bow ties lies the perilous implication that to be loved women must embody an antiquated role.
Young girls need to recognize the danger that comes with being financially dependent on a partner. Allowing one person to have sole control of money leaves the relationship at a major unbalance. Since the financially dependent partner is unable to support themselves on their own, they are much less likely to be able to leave the relationship in the future.
It is time that content creators take responsibility for the dangerous content that they are promoting to young girls and stop encouraging ideas that can perpetuate a cycle of abuse that women have fought so hard to eliminate.
