3 Powerful Feminist Lessons From My Dad

1. Education is your freedom pass.

I owe my feminism to my dad. He raised me as a feminist before I was old enough to understand what feminism was. My dad knew what feminism meant before I told him. He just didn’t know the word for it.

My dad is an immigrant. He didn’t go to university, and he comes from a place where women’s education is largely thought to be shameful and a taboo.

Now don’t misunderstand me. My father is well-read. He speaks fluent English. He values education. He knew what he was doing whilst raising his four daughters.

I sometimes wonder if things were different had his first three children been boys. But something tells me nothing would have changed.

Here are the feminist lessons my dad taught me.

Education is your freedom pass.

Growing up as a Muslim BAME female means that the odds are stacked really high against you. Sometimes in subtle ways and sometimes in glaring manners.

But dad always taught us that education is how we make social changes. Education is how you free yourself from the shackles of racist and sexist stereotypes.

I was a nerd growing up (still am) and I buried my nose deep in a book frequently.

When I was 10, a family acquaintance came over to our house and he saw me reading. He went and ‘snitched’ to my father. He told my dad I was corrupting my brain.

My dad only laughed.

Some people are brainwashed to think knowledge is corruption.

But it only dawned on me then how lucky I was to have a dad that values knowledge and education.

Growing up, my dad always pushed us to get better grades. I came out of secondary education with grades to be proud of. But one lesson still sticks with me today.

“You are only as good as your last achievement”.

Knowledge is not a zero-sum game. There is always more to learn about and there is always room for knowledge.

Women make up over two-thirds of the world’s 796 million illiterate people. The odds are stacked against you. But education is power.

Education is your freedom pass.

Your voice matters.

My family comes from a culture where females are seen and not heard. Sometimes, they’re not even seen.

Back home, my voice would never have mattered.

But my dad raised us in the UK.

He always reminded us of our freedom of speech. It was a privilege that we should never take for granted.

Never be afraid to speak your mind. Never allow yourself to be speechless.

But there is one caveat.

Loud voices are just noise. If you want to be heard, you must speak with good points.

This goes back to not taking your voice for granted.

And it’s not just your literal voice. It’s also your writing voice.

Back in 2015, my dad encouraged me to start a blog. He could see that I was a writer. But I did the stupid mistake of not listening to him. Today I pay the price with regret.

Writing on Medium is your privilege. It is your voice. Don’t waste this amazing opportunity to show gratitude that your voice matters.

Always be fierce.

Being fierce doesn’t mean you’re hard, emotionless rock. It means you’re strong.

My dad put me up for Tae Kwon Do at 12. I’m forever grateful for that.

Tae Kwon Do didn’t teach me how to fight or how to be physically strong. It taught me confidence, mental strength and persistence.

Having these qualities makes you fierce.

As a feminist, being fierce is your strongest asset.

You set the tone to which others treat you.

Being fierce means you don’t let anyone tell you what you can or can’t do. You shape your dreams and you never give up on them.

Because education is your freedom pass and your voice always matters.

I’m grateful I have a supportive dad. I never would have been able to be where I am now without him.

Happy father’s day, baba. You’re the best.

Fatima Sultan is a writer, tutor and self-proclaimed nerd. She writes about life and its many excitements and disappointments. She also apparently likes referring to herself in the third person. You can read more of her writing by subscribing to her free newsletter.