Letter from the editor: Independence
July 7, 2009 by Aimee Heckel
Filed under Letters from the Editors, Perspective
Destiny’s Child had it all wrong.
Good intention: In 2001, this all-women pop group released the song, “Independent Women.”
Bad execution: The song was about “all the honeys makin’ money” and “all the mommas who profit dollars.” It defined independence as no more than the ability to buy your own diamonds and your own rings.
So, that’s it? That’s what defines our independence — our strength as an individual? The ability to buy yourself some pretty shoes? No wonder independence gets lumped together with being selfish and lonely.
In light of Independence Day, I’ve been thinking about this word that we use so lightly. If what Beyonce sings is true, the deepest foundation that our country is built on is the capacity to make money. (Some cynics might argue that’s true.)
Yet as increasingly more of my loved ones lose their jobs in this economy, I have seen more flashes of independence and strength than ever before.
And that’s because defining independence by materialistic means makes you, in turn, dependent on those very means: on money, on your job, on your house — whatever it is that you use as a measuring stick for your independence, and, by extension, identity. Just because it’s not another person doesn’t mean you’re not dependent on it.
True independence is much deeper than that.
It is freedom from society’s roles. It’s a constant evolution. It is following your passion, even when prejudices stack up against you.
And on that note, all the women who are independent — that is, brave, adaptable and passionate — throw your hands up at me.
– By Aimee Heckel
aimee@womensmag.com
