W
omenhavecampaignedfor
generations,buttheyhaven’t
alwaysbeenlistenedto.The
internethaschangedthat.
Thankstothetoolsand
platformsofferedbythe
onlineworld,theeverydayvoicesofgirlsand
womenarebeinglistenedtonowmorethanever
before.Andthatcanincludeyourvoice,too.
Theinternetisa greatplacetomakechangesas
itfavourstraditionallysidelinedvoices,including
thoseofwomen.Atchange.org, oneofthebiggest
onlinepetitionsitesintheworld,mostpetitionsare
startedbymenbutthemajorityoftheirsuccessful
petitionsthatsecuretheirgoalarestartedby
womenandtraditionallymarginalisedvoices.Not
onlythis,butmostoftheir‘signers’whoaddtheir
namestoa campaignand‘sharers’,whorelaythe
messageontheirownsocialmedia,arealsofemale.
Thisissignificantbecauseit showsthatwomenare
beinglistenedtoonlinelikeneverbeforeby utilisingSPEAK UP!
WITH MAINSTREAM POLITICS IN
DISARRAY, THERE’S NEVER BEENA BETTER TIME TO STAND UP
FOR WHAT YOU BELIEVE IN.LAURA CORYTON, LEADER OF THE
CAMPAIGN AGAINST THE TAMPONTAX, LOOKS AT WAYS TO USE YOUR
VOICE TO CHANGE THE WORLDthe power the internetoffersthem.Italsoreveals
thatthereisa symphonyoffemalevoicessupporting
onlinecampaigns.Womenareempoweringwomen.
When I started a petition against the 5% ‘luxury’
tax rate we pay on period products (because we all
like to treat ourselves to a nice luxurious bulk of
tampons once a month, right?). I began to realise
how powerful our voices can be when we air them
online. My friends were signing my petition, then
one of their mums told me that she had campaigned
to end the tampon tax when she was my age, too.
I realised that generations of women have objected
to the tampon tax but only now do we have the tools
we need to be heard. I was more determined than
ever to finish the job they started. Soon my petition
reached 320,000 signatures. Petitions are important
and effective because they clearly document views.
While my friend’s mum could be ignored
individually, all 320,000 people who signed my
petition weren’t so easy to push aside. As a result,
in 2016 the UK passed legislation committing the