There is a lot going on in the world, it’s sometimes hard not to be dismayed by what is in the news:

A Russian Leader, an evil autocratic man with no regard to the future of his people (or humans in general), invading a country, committing mass murder and war crimes, for what? It seems like it’s for his own ‘big man’ ego.

Girls not being allowed to go to school beyond year 6 in Afghanistan. Thus turning a blind eye to half of their populations potential, adversely affecting their economy, and tragically destroying the hopes and dreams of millions of women, due to dogmatic, outdated ideas stemming from an interpretation of a religion with only male leadership…. blind.

And then in our own country of Aotearoa, we have had some of the toughest COVID 19 rules in the world, but we have among the lowest death rates, and highest rates of vaccination in the world, and there’s now access to good therapeutics. It is timely to open up and rebuild. This strategy has undoubtedly saved lives as we have options that were not available two years ago. Yet the mad, misogynistic vitriol against our prime minister is shocking. No one is perfect, and we should all be held accountable for decisions, however, she has led New Zealand through a number of unprecedented events in her time as leader, a global pandemic being only one of them. She gets comments such “she’s just a girl in a skirt on a power trip”, and she gets threats to her life! Come on! Such comments are not made about men. This is misogyny and this is toxic masculinity on display at its finest. Jacinda Ardern will go down in history as being a great leader through a time of complete uncertainty.

Will Smith! Where do we begin? I had never really thought too much about him, though he seemed like a wholesome sort of a guy. Fancy losing complete control like that! Chris Rock was not funny, but Will could have just given him a dirty look, and taken the opportunity to make statement later. Yet he showed a display of toxic masculinity, all that is wrong in the world right now. This manic tantrum overshadowed all the amazing achievements of women at the Oscars, including our very own Jane Campion. What does it teach our boys? That it’s ok to react with violence when you’re angry. What does it teach our girls? That they don’t have their own voice and need to be “protected” by a man.

I focus on what I can influence, but some days I feel angry. This invigorates me to try harder at ensuring women and gender diverse people have as many opportunities as possible to create the table they sit at, not just have a seat.