Society is always switching up on us, telling girls what is cool and what is not. When we were younger, they made us feel bad for liking pink and for embracing femininity. “Cool girls don’t do that,” they said. Cool girls wore sweatpants, hated girly things, and acted like one of the boys. Hollywood and pop culture demonised softness—whether in movies, music, or public discourse. Being feminine was not just uncool, it was portrayed as weak or even evil. But now, after a decade and a half, femininity is suddenly back in style. It is trendy. It is aesthetic. And for all of us who grew up pretending to hate pink just to fit in, we must ask—why now?
The 2000s and the Demonization of Femininity
Hollywood has always had a thing for villainizing ultrafeminine girls. Take Jennifer’s Body (2009), where Megan Fox’s character quite literally ate boys to “stay pretty.” Or Mean Girls (2004), where Regina George (the ultimate girly-girl) is portrayed as manipulative and cruel, while the “cool” girl from Africa (who magically has more depth because she does not own a pink shirt) is the hero. PLEASE. The message was clear: femininity = lack of substance.
Think about the media we consumed as teenagers. Every movie painted the beautiful blonde girl as mean and airheaded just because she liked shopping or getting her nails done. Every song back then glorified the messy bun and minimal effort while mocking the girls who put in time to look cute. Femininity was ‘extra,’ ‘shallow,’ ‘bimbo behaviour.’ And now? Now, soft girls are everywhere. The girlies are back, romanticising pink, delicate aesthetics, and hyper-feminine energy. But why the sudden switch? Why was it ‘insufferable’ back then but ’empowering’ now? Are we truly reclaiming femininity, or are we just falling for another internet-driven trend?
The Bigger Picture: Feminism or Aesthetics?
According to The Critic, “the rise of toxic femininity” is a reaction to past narratives that shamed traditional femininity, but it also warns against the dangers of defining empowerment through aesthetics alone. Are we finally free to embrace femininity however we want, or is this just another phase, another marketable trend to sell us a new look? Because let us be real—if society loved feminine girls so much, why did it take this long?
The Final Word: Let Girls Be Girls
Girls are beautiful in every way, whether they love pink and glitter or prefer sneakers and hoodies. We are not defined by our aesthetics or how well we fit into a trend. Let girls have fun. Let them be soft, loud, bold, quiet, girly, tomboyish—whatever they want. Because true empowerment is not about following what’s trendy. It is about choice, and every girl deserves that.