Over two thirds of teenage girls identify as feminists and it’s wonderful

*does a happy dance*

Words by Jadie Troy-Pryde

It might be 2017, but feminism is often still seen as a dirty word. Emma Watson may be a confident UN Women Goodwill Ambassador and advocate for gender equality, but even she admitted that the negative backlash from her famous and inspiring HeForShe feminist speech was so bad that it left her feeling extremely vulnerable.

And it doesn't end there. Critically acclaimed actresses are still asked to audition in bikinis, the gender pay gap in the White House is worse than the US average, and according to a recent study most men think women are overreacting about harassment.

So it's easy to feel as though things aren't moving in the right direction. However, a recent study showed that the majority of teenage girls actually identify as feminists and they're literally here to save the day.

Media agency UM London asked women of all ages if they felt they related to the word, and found that while 46% of British women did, a whopping 69% of young women gave a resounding yes.

The survey asked 2,000 British females about their thoughts on feminism, and those who fell into the 13-18 year old bracket were the most likely to call themselves feminists. Of the women aged between 19 and 24, 54% agreed that they identified with feminism, and of those aged 25-34 a slightly smaller 44% said it was relatable to them.

The results suggest that the older categories are less likely to call themselves a feminist, with just 36% of women aged 55 and over would use the word to describe themselves.

Sophia Durani, managing partner of strategy at UM London told Broadly: 'It suggests young women are now growing up in a world where they can’t see why there should be any questions over equality.

'Young people are much more egalitarian-minded than ever before and we’ve moved on from empty ‘girl power’ talk to equality being a norm. This seismic shift could actually mean that a patriarchy that’s been in place for thousands of years could be coming to an end.'

So while it might feel as though things are pretty dismal for women right now, knowing that there is a whole generation of feminists about to make their mark on the world is very exciting.

Patriarchy: hold onto your hat.