Emma Watson Feminist Book Club Exactly What The College Student Needs

By Victoria Robertson on February 26, 2016

Photo Via: http://media.thecelebrityauction.co

An outwardly spoken feminist activist, Emma Watson is one of the true advocates of women’s rights and equality.

In July of 2014, Emma Watson was appointed UN Women Goodwill Ambassador. As such, the actress agreed to dedicate her efforts towards the empowerment of women while also promoting gender equality.

She is also a strong advocate of the HeForShe campaign. Here is the mission of this campaign, as stated on their website:

“HeForShe is inviting people around the world to stand together to create a bold, visible force for gender equality. And it starts by taking action right now to create a gender equal world.”

The 24-year-old, recent Brown University graduate has promoted girls’ education, fair trade and organic clothing, served as an ambassador for Camfed International (a movement to educate girls in rural Africa) and visited Bangladesh and Zambia as part of her humanitarian efforts.

Not only that, but Watson is a well-spoken advocate that is widely respected. In response to her position as UN Women’s Goodwill Ambassador, Watson stated:

“Being asked to serve as UN Women’s Goodwill Ambassador is truly humbling. The chance to make a real difference is not an opportunity that everyone is given and is one I have no intention of taking lightly. Women’s rights are something so inextricably linked with who I am, so deeply personal and rooted in my life that I can’t imagine an opportunity more exciting. I still have so much to learn, but as I progress I hope to bring more of my individual knowledge, experience and awareness to this role.”

And now, Watson is expanding her reach, appealing to those that aren’t only intellectually interested in gender equality, but those that are looking for entertainment as well.

In 2016, Watson began a feminist book club known as Our Shared Shelf. The club is run by Watson on Goodreads, and at the beginning of every month, a new, feminist novel is chosen, and during the last week of the month, users are invited to an open discussion about the text.

It’s a fantastic way to become an avid reader while simultaneously learning about the issues that matter in modern society. While some of the texts may even be dated, they’re all applicable to the current state of the world.

In the book club’s introduction, Watson writes:

“As part of my work with UN Women, I have started reading as many books and essays about equality as I can get my hands on. There is so much amazing stuff out there! Funny, inspiring, sad, thought-provoking, empowering! I’ve been discovering so much that, at times, I’ve felt like my head was about to explode … I decided to start a Feminist book club, as I want to share what I’m learning and hear your thoughts too.”

The best part about the book club? No exclusions. Anyone can join in and participate in the discussions. You can be as involved or uninvolved as you want to be. You can skip months, read them all or pick and choose your favorites.

January’s choice was “My Life on the Road” by Gloria Steinem and February’s choice, “The Color Purple” by Alice Walker, is just about at the end of its journey. Still, readers can join the club now and begin reading whenever they’re ready to. The book club has no obligations, so it’ll fit perfectly into your busy college schedule.

So whether you identify as male or female or just plain like to read, this book club is completely open to you.

The only stipulation?

You be open to the idea of gender equality and be willing to read great feminist works.

So if you’re a bookworm that loves Emma Watson and/or feminism, this is the book club for you. Without a doubt.

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