Interview of Teen Feminist and Gender Equality Filmmaker Lara Chen
10th December 2021 by Kimberly Thio
Lara is a young aspiring writer and filmmaker who is passionate about gender equality. She dreams of a world where men are women are able to pursue their dreams and aspirations.
We talked about her advocacy for gender equality and the future together for a fair and just society.
KT : Hi Lara! I am impressed by your “I dream a dream” video. You are a published author, filmmaker, and a full time student. Is there a specific moment in your life when
you began to consider championing womens rights?
LC : During my high school year while studying in Shanghai, I had the opportunity to speak at a youth leadership conference in Chicago. Despite hailing from 17 different countries and vastly different backgrounds, my fellow participants of the Global Youth Ambassadors’ Leadership Summit and I bonded over our mutual passion for feminism and advocacy. In one such conversation, what was meant to be a lighthearted sharing session gradually evolved into a profound heart-to-heart about our long-buried insecurities. When I complimented one participant on her winged eyeliner and red lipstick, she shared a heartrending story of how she applies makeup with painstaking attention to detail to cope with OCD.
Listening to my friends’ heartbreaking anecdotes about being ostracized for everything from height to mental illness, I felt like I was intruding on a conversation, as my own experiences paled in comparison. While Singapore is not a utopia, compared to many countries, it embraces various forms of diversity and is a norm of women’s equal participation in society. I worried that my new friends would think less of me for not having confronted the worst of the mental and psychological threats many women around the world face daily.
KT : How can we work towards achieving gender equality?
LC : That one conversation reframed my entire worldview and cemented my determination to continue my advocacy work, giving a voice to those who have been silenced. While it may be impossible for me to truly understand the oppression that many women face or to appreciate the privilege that I experience as a Singaporean woman, I aim to leverage my position to raise the status of women globally. In the near future, I look forward to contributing to dialogues that push me out of my comfort zone to understand social injustice, driving me to change the world for the better. I aim to use my training to further the cause of women’s rights, applying my knowledge to my advocacy work on a global scale.