March 1 kicks off the start of Women's History Month, when we celebrate all the strong, intelligent, and creative women who have made our world better. But we know that despite the contributions women have made to society and the gains we have made, there is still rampant gender inequality worldwide.
That's why Procter & Gamble's new ad is the inspiration you need to fight for women and girls' rights all over the world. P&G, as the company is more commonly known, went all in for International Women's Day with one simple message: #WeSeeEqual.
The video shows various mundane situations in which many of us would associate a behavior with a gender. A father changing his baby's diaper. A grandmother trying bungee jumping. Two girls working on a science experiment.
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There's a common thread here: Objects and emotions have no gender. So, why do we insist on continuing practices and behaviors that promote inequality? Why do we keep believing the idea that men don't cry or girls aren't smart enough be scientists?
P&G understands its role as an advertiser, so the brand decided International Women's Day was the perfect opportunity to promote an equal voice and equal representation for the genders. Other ads for its brands have already commented on social issues (Always #LikeAGirl, anyone?), and this month gives P&G the chance to take another stand.
"We see it as a responsibility for us to use that voice to reach out and tackle some of these issues that we face today, not only in the U.S., but also all around the world," Allison Tummon-Kamphuis, P&G's program leader of gender equality, told Refinery29.
The end goal, after watching the ad, is for people to begin honest dialogues with each other about gender roles.
"We're aspiring to create a better world for everyone. We want a world that's free from gender bias and with equal representation and an equal voice for women and men," Tressie Rose, a P&G spokesperson, told Refinery29. "It's a big aspiration. But we hope that the #WeSeeEqual video will hopefully spark conversations and will continue some great discussions and progress."
Watch the video below.