‘Your genitalia doesn’t define your worth’ — Nancy Isime on feminism, equality

Nancy Isime, the Nollywood actress, has shared her perspective on feminism and gender equality.

In a recent Instagram post, the 33-year-old media personality emphasised that feminism is not about physical appearance but rather about mental, character and intellectual capacity.

In the post, accompanied by photos from an event organised by UBA to commemorate International Women’s Day, Isime expressed her disappointment that employment and job security are often based on gender rather than merit.

The film star argued that no gender should be regarded as inferior to the other, stressing that physical strength is not a yardstick for femininity or masculinity.

“I’d like for us to reflect on what the word Feminism and Gender Equality truly means. I understand that for some, it automatically means a woman doing what a man does, some will say, ‘Can you carry cement? Or can you lift a block to build a house?’ Whilst these arguments are very valid, it is baseless and ride on emotions rather than facts and logic,” she wrote.

“Physical Strength is not a yardstick for femininity or Masculinity. Grow up, please.

“I’m a woman, I want the best for myself, but I’m also a daughter, Sister, aunty, cousin and wife-to-be to amazing Men/boys also want the best for them. It’ll break my heart to know that a position or pay they were qualified for was snatched away from them because of the Gender Card.

“Gender equality, to me, simply means allowing people to BE!! Without bringing their genitalia into the equation.

“If a person is good/bad, they are good/bad regardless of what’s between their legs. We are simply All Humans!! Politics/Patriarchy has made many of us believe that one sex is better than the other. lol!

“Dear, we all need each other for this ecosystem to thrive. Even the cockroach you can’t stand is important to the functionality of the ecosystem. When you know this, you’ll relax.

“I’m a woman who basks in her femininity, but who also knows when to put her femininity down and bury herself into her work, putting in the requirements it takes to excel in my field. Using sleep when it’s necessary, as well as earning and applying the Laws of delayed gratification where necessary.

“On topic of Women Supporting Women. If there’s a room with a million women, 999,999 women will say Women don’t support women. Who then are the women expected to support each other if 99% of the women believe that the support that comes from their fellow women is either fake or non-existent?”

The actress encouraged women to focus on personal growth, learning, and self-improvement rather than relying on others for support or validation.

“Women, we must learn to point back to ourselves and take accountability where is necessary. You want others to support you, are you supportable? You want to be employed, are you employable? Some of us will read everything on a gossip blog, even the ones without punctuation marks and understand well, but will NEVER open a book to read. Some of us will sit on the phone for hours talking trash every day, but can NEVER sit to listen to a self-development podcast for an hour,” she added.

“We’ve been told “That’s how women are”. It’s a lie!!! Break free from that curse! Yes, it’s a curse! Unlearn every nonsense habit that isn’t adding to your life and watch your life blossom! Nobody is coming to save you Sis, not even your rich spouse or parents. All they can do is give you a tiny fraction of perishable materialistic possessions.

“They can not heal you, answer those nagging questions in your heart, or even give meaning to your life. Only you can! When you add value to yourself, the world has no option but to support you because then it becomes a privilege to support you.

“In supporting you, there’s also value added to them. Ladies, blaming everybody else but yourself is outdated. Let’s take responsibility for our lives with our actions, not words.”

Isime also challenged the notion of “women supporting women,” suggesting that it can be “misleading”.

“In conclusion, I genuinely think the people who created the phrase “women supporting women” and “What do you bring to the table” belong to the same dumb WhatsApp group. I’ve never heard Men Supporting Men, WTF does women supporting women mean?” she asked.