I always thought that activism was a big gesture, something extreme that makes people talk. I believed that big-scale events that immediately change the course of the world is the only valid form of activism. However, after reading the Wendy Syfret’s How To Think Like An Activist and watching the documenter Vessel, I realized that it all starts from one person, one idea, and no activism is small or insignificant. The historical example of activism all started small, and what they later became was the amalgamation of many such people believing in the same thing and working towards it. Like Syfret says, “No one person can save the world. But every one of us can shape it”.

One such example is covered by Vessel, which shows how the ‘Woman on Wave’ started with a few women from Netherlands trying to help a few women and ended up changing the lives of thousands of women. Woman on Wave is a Dutch pro-choice nongovernmental organization that work for the reproductive health of women, more specifically, giving access to safe abortion to women in countries where abortion is illegal. It started out by turning a ship into a mobile clinic, the A-portable, and taking it to different countries, so that women could come aboard and take the abortion pills (through the loopholes of international water laws). Of course, it wasn’t as simple, since abortion is a very polarizing topic in a majority of countries. However, the dedication of the women involved to jump through every hoop, use every tactic they could think of, turned Women on Waves into a safe haven for women worldwide seeking information and resources for a safe abortion. Furthermore, they provided support to the women going through a scary, painful and frankly traumatizing situation on their own. Women on waves advocates and works for the reproductive health of women, and their right to safe abortion. This movement and activism is very important because women all around have been having abortions throughout history, for multiple reasons, risking their lives in the process. No matter what people’s religious or cultural beliefs are, one must acknowledge this is something that happens and that women have every right to make decisions about their bodies, their lives, in a safe manner.

After learning more about activism, I have realized that I have been participating in activism in my own little ways. I used to volunteer for organizations that work for the benefits of women back in Nepal. Since coming here, I have done no such thing and I used to feel guilty about it. However, I now know that holding my friends and family accountable when they make sexist remarks, making the little Twitter followers I have, aware about the gender issues in our society and basically, not being indifferent to the cause is also activism. Sure, I can, and I WILL do more, but now I also understand that no small activism is invalid or insignificant, and it all starts with one person willing to make a difference.