“I don’t only identify as a woman, but specifically as an African-American woman.”

“I don’t only identify as a woman, but I identify specifically as an African-American woman. So with that, I do believe that, too many of our rights as women are determined by male perceptions. For example, here in the state of Mississippi, legislators are trying to pass a bill that says women can only get abortions before they are five-weeks pregnant. But a lot of times, women don’t even know that they are pregnant before five weeks.

Also, equal pay is a big issue. I believe we’re at a point where women have not only shown their leadership, but have shown their value in societies around the world. So, we believe we deserve at least equal pay to men.

But it has been embedded in our culture for centuries, this double standard of what women should do, and the role that men should play. That’s what we have been raised to believe. However, I believe that eventually that perception will be eliminated, because various women in different leadership roles have been able to show that we are equal with men.”

– Ruqayya, a junior marketing major from Little Rock, Arkansas.