Women’s Empowerment or Just Another Power Play?
M is for Marketing.
March…
The time of year when companies suddenly remember women exist. The logos turn purple, the emails flood in with “Here’s to strong women!” subject lines, and brands scramble to slap empowering slogans onto tote bags. It’s all very touching until you realize that most of these companies still pay women less, barely promote them to leadership roles, and, let’s be honest, wouldn’t care about “empowerment” if it didn’t boost engagement.
Don’t get me wrong, I love seeing women celebrated. I love the stories of resilience, the achievements, the progress.
But what I don’t love?
The way Women’s Month often feels like a PR stunt instead of an actual movement. Because here’s the thing: women don’t stop being women when April rolls around. We don’t get a break from fighting, proving ourselves, or existing in a world that still finds new and creative ways to underestimate, underpay, and overburden us.
Women’s Month should be more than just a feel-good reminder that we exist — it should be a wake-up call. A reminder that we still have work to do. Because no, we haven’t “made it” just because we can vote, wear pants, and theoretically become CEOs if we work twice as hard, never show weakness, and somehow balance it all while dodging questions about when we plan to have kids.
When Empowerment Feels Like a Joke
I’ve seen firsthand how “women supporting women” sometimes means absolutely nothing. I’ve had women tear me down, belittle my work, and act like success is a limited resource, as if helping another woman rise somehow takes away from their own achievements. I’ve seen women preach about feminism online while treating other women like garbage in real life.
And before anyone jumps in with, “Well, see? Women are the problem too!” — no, that does not suddenly erase decades of men doing the exact same thing, just with more power and privilege backing them up. Bad behavior is bad behavior, no matter who it’s coming from. But when it’s wrapped in the shiny packaging of “female empowerment,” it hits differently.
Because real empowerment doesn’t mean just putting women in positions of power, it means making sure those women actually lift others up instead of just replicating the same toxic cycles that held us back in the first place. It means that when we talk about breaking glass ceilings, we’re not just making room for a select few, we’re opening the doors wide enough for everyone, not just the most privileged among us.
It also means recognizing that not all women experience oppression the same way. A white woman’s struggles are not the same as a Black woman’s, or an Indigenous woman’s, or a trans woman’s. If your feminism only uplifts a certain kind of woman — the kind who looks like you, thinks like you, and fits neatly into your version of success — then congratulations, you’ve completely missed the point.
And while we’re at it, let’s be honest about what empowerment doesn’t look like. It’s not just panel discussions and networking brunches. It’s not just motivational speeches about “leaning in” while completely ignoring the structural inequalities that make that impossible for so many women. It’s not telling women to work harder when the system was never designed to let them win in the first place.
The Reality Check No One Asked For
Celebrating women shouldn’t just mean throwing around buzzwords like boss babe or girl power for 31 days and then going back to business as usual. It means actual, tangible action.
- Support women-owned businesses. Not just during March, but year-round.
- Promote women’s work without making it a diversity checkbox. If you only feature women when it’s Women’s Month, you’re part of the problem.
- Pay women fairly. No, really. Not just the white women. Not just the ones in executive roles. All of them.
- Call out sexism even when it’s inconvenient. When it’s happening in your office, your friend group, your own home.
- Actually listen to women. Not just the ones who agree with you. Not just the ones who make you comfortable.
And before someone chimes in with, “But what about men?” — please. Go sit down. Women’s empowerment is not about tearing men down, and if you think it is, that says more about you than it does about feminism.
Women advocating for themselves doesn’t mean men suddenly lose their place in the world. But if the only way your power exists is by keeping women down, maybe — just maybe — you were never that powerful to begin with.
Beyond the Hashtags
So yeah, post your inspirational quotes. Wear your “The Future Is Female” hoodie. But ask yourself “What are you actually doing to make the world better for women?”
Are you mentoring younger women in your field? Are you making space for voices that often go unheard? Are you fighting for policies that actually improve the lives of women beyond your own social circle?
Because if your feminism stops at hashtags and aesthetics, it’s not empowerment — it’s marketing. And women deserve better than a campaign that expires in 31 days.
So, what now?
March will come and go. The purple logos will fade. The corporate tweets will stop. And women?
We’ll still be here. Doing the work. Fighting the fight. Not just for ourselves, but for the next generation of women who deserve more than performative progress.
