We're researching digital violence against young women in Scotland.

Digital violence refers to harmful behaviours that take place online or through technology and it is not separate from violence in the physical world.

Online and offline violence against women and girls are deeply connected: they reinforce each other, and apps and digital tools are increasingly being weaponised to intensify abuse.

We have just launched the survey for our eighth Status of Young Women in Scotland research, looking at digital violence and its real-life impacts on young women in Scotland.

Our survey is open to young women, trans women and non-binary people aged 16–30 who currently live in Scotland. After completeing the survey, you can enter a prize draw for a £50 Prezzee voucher and a limited-edition YWM lambswool scarf. ✨

By sharing your views, you are directly taking part in changing things for the better. We will use the findings to engage with the government, decision-makers and service providers to make sure young women’s voices are listened to.

Complete the survey

Our 2025-2026 Impact Report is ready! Here’s what we have achieved together:

• 323 young women attended our programmes

• 580+ people attended our events

• We received 707,000+ social media impressions

• 191 young women co-designed our work

• 96 volunteers contributed their time

“The programme helped to build my confidence and restore my faith in community organising. I felt heard and empowered, and working in a group of peers instead of a strict corporate hierarchy enabled my leadership skills to really improve.”
– Young Women Lead participant

Thank you to everyone who contributed this past year, we couldn’t have done it without you 💚

Read the impact report

Do you have views on post-abortion contraceptive information in Scotland? We need you! 💪

We're collaborating with a group of researchers from the University of Edinburgh who are leading a project called SCOPE+. The aim of SCOPE+ is to create a new website with clear, helpful, and honest information about contraception after abortion.

Your experience matters. If you're 18+, based in Scotland and have experience with post-abortion contraception (directly or indirectly), we want to hear from you.

How to get involved:

1. Complete a short anonymous survey (around 20–30 minutes): Anonymously share your views on what information a national website on post-abortion contraception should include.
2. Join a small group discussion about your experiences of looking for post-abortion contraception information and share your views on existing online resources (60–90 minutes). It will take place either online via Microsoft Teams or in person. You will receive a £30 voucher as a thank you. Travel expenses covered if attending in person. Register your interest online or email SCOPE-Study@ed.ac.uk.

• Free storytelling workshop: Want to make your voice heard online? Learn about media literacy, ethical storytelling and how to create your own blog or podcast with Be the change Media Network. Book your free place and join us on Wednesday 2nd September, 6pm – 8pm at Ground Floor Café, Edinburgh.

• Free music photography & filmmaking workshop: Curious about photography, filmmaking, or simply want to explore a new creative career? Gain hands-on experience using professional creative techniques, learn how to capture compelling visual content, and explore the production roles that make the music industry thrive. Book your free place and join us on Saturday 24th October, 10am – 3pm in Dumfries (venue tbc).

• Free mixed media workshop: Reflect & Manifest is a mixed workshop using elements of creative writing and mood boarding to help participants understand what brings them joy and how to project that into future aspirations. Book your free place and join us on Saturday 21st November, 1pm – 3pm at Lockerbie Town Hall, Lockerbie.

Subscribe now

Status of Young Women in Scotland is our flagship research project that highlights the pressing issues affecting young women and girls in Scotland. This time, we’re focusing on digital violence against young women and girls and its real-life impact on young women in Scotland.

The results of this report will be directly shared with Holyrood and the decision-makers who impact all of our lives. This is research that creates real change.

According to The Open University, more than one in six women in Scotland have experienced online violence. One in nine, of those who experienced it, say it progressed to offline violence.

Taking part in SYWS survey is one of the easiest ways to get politically involved and help change things for the better. It takes no more than 20 minutes, all responses are anonymous and you can choose to enter a prize draw for a £50 Prezzee voucher and a limited edition lambswool scarf, made in our custom centenary tartan.

Be part of the research

The Kiltwalk is one of Scotland’s most loved fundraising events and we need you to represent The Young Women’s Movement at the Edinburgh and Dundee events this year.

In May, Nicki Fenton ran the full 26 miles of the Edinburgh Marathon for The Young Women’s Movement. Her husband Paul and their three sons (pictured above) ran alongside in the Hairy Haggis relay race.

Paul shared some important words:

“As men we want to stand (and in this case run) publicly in solidarity with what the Young Women's Movement are trying to achieve. We are conscious that young women and girls face discrimination and inequality in ways that we, as men, are often immune. We see it online, in the workplace and on the streets. We hear it in conversations between our peers. And we know that we - as men - need to model something different that challenges the discrimination experienced by women.”

Nicki, Paul and their sons raised £400 for young women and girls rights in Scotland.

Whoever you are, the Kiltwalk is your chance to show up.

Sign up for the Edinburgh Kiltwalk

Sign up for the Dundee Kiltwalk

Scotland has a new parliament… we have thoughts.

Our Young Women Demand post-election analysis series breaks down what the results means for young women and girls across Scotland. From humans rights and the Misogyny Bill, to the Women’s Health Minister role being removed, to violence against women in public spaces, we are not letting politicians off the hook.

Check out part 3:

Follow us on Instagram and TikTok to keep up with the series.

• Free storytelling workshop: Want to make your voice heard online? Learn about media literacy, ethical storytelling and how to create your own blog or podcast with Be the change Media Network. Book your free place and join us on Wednesday 2nd September, 6pm-8pm at Ground Floor Café, Edinburgh.

• Thinking about a career in politics?: Connect with other women as you explore your pathway into politics. Seven free sessions focusing on building confidence, communicating your story and growing your public presence. Open to women from every party. Apply on the Elect Her website by Friday 4th September, with sessions running from 1st October to 19th November.

Do you need help SIFTing through the CRAAP post Scottish Election? Let a local feminist library professional help you! Your first step should be judging why you should listen to me - credibility is a huge part of information literacy. I’m Leah Higgins, and I currently work for the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals in Scotland, and have delivered sessions on conspiracy theories and information literacy for information professionals and most recently my contributions to the sector have been published in the book Feminist Librarianship: Principles, Provocations and Practices. Convinced?

Libraries and librarians for centuries have been trusted spaces for democracy, conversations and fact-based, evidence-informed information, in fact the IPSOS Mori polling routinely finds that Librarians fall in the top three most trusted professions in the UK. Conversely, Politicians routinely fall in the top five least trusted professions. However, systems and methods we once used to gather information, especially about important concepts such as politics, news and events have been complicated and fragmented by the rise of mis and dis information. Simply put, misinformation is incorrect information that is shared with good intentions, by someone who believes it to be true (think about a relative sharing fake health advice with you on facebook because they are worried it might impact you). Disinformation is false information which is shared with the intention to deceive someone, usually to proliferate a specific negative idea against someone or something (think about a smear campaign against a political candidate for example, it’s being done from one end to persuade political gain on the other).

Thinking more specifically about how this impacts young women, especially in the year of something like a national election, it’s crucial to ensure that we have all the facts in order to make autonomous decisions and hold our elected individuals to account. Another dimension to this story, if we take the 2026 national election as an example, is how female politicians, young women and transgender women are targeted online by fake profiles, targeted hate groups, online users and the press. In 2025, Holyrood surveyed 22 female MSPs and at least half of this sample said they had experienced targeted disinformation, the nature of these attacks are pointedly misogynistic and intentionally gendered. A year on from this report, we have already seen a high volume of targeted attacks on the women sworn into our new cabinets. Highlighting the very real fact that mis/disinformation, trolls and false artificially generated content can interfere with any point in the political calendar, we need to be on high alert and robust against false information sharing, especially the kind that targets minority groups. The very real threat that comes from mis/disinformation is that young women will be discouraged from engaging in politics. We are already on the defense with our own personal wellbeing when it comes to navigating the online world. Why would young women put themselves forward when they know this is almost an expectation of the job? Importantly, the information in this blog is intended for young women, but it is also essential reading for our allies, and those with integrity invested in sharing truthful, evidence-based information. This problem is not for young women to solve, especially when we are so often the ones most impacted by it.

As young women navigating the world, we have an interesting relationship with trust. We have to trust ourselves even when other systems and people don’t. But what role does trust play when it comes to information exchange, and how is this complicated in a media landscape which is increasingly designed to overwhelm and mislead us? Thankfully organisations like the Young Women’s Movement exist to magnify our experiences, and create resources like ‘A young women’s guide to misinformation’ developed by the Young Women Demand steering group to support democratic participation.

Looking at this excellent resource, compiled by young women, for young women, what
practical tactics can we deploy to create a more robust defence to mis/disinformation online?

Emotions can be really powerful, and that’s why often bad actors use inflammatory tactics and phrases or figures that create heightened emotional impact, often used as a distraction tactic to make you react quickly. Especially online, any engagement with misinformation is problematic, no matter your intention because the algorithm pushes it regardless of whether it was a positive or negative reaction. If we look at step 1 of the guide we will see that ironically enough, being emotionally attune with your gut is also the way to combat this type of misinformation. You should let these instincts guide you by trusting your gut feeling - if something sounds preposterous then it probably is OR you shouldn’t believe it until you have hard proof.

Sharing what you believe and speaking about causes important to you is a fantastic way to engage with your peers and create a sense of who you are. Most importantly however, remember nothing that you share online has to be done immediately - sharing it 5 minutes later won’t lessen the impact of anything you share but it could be the difference between sharing something misleading and sharing something true. Misinformation and conspiracy theories thrive under pressure with highly emotive content, so don’t let the information overwhelm create a false sense of urgency.

What I’ve discovered since researching this topic is that perhaps unsurprisingly, the reason that people gravitate towards mis/disinformation is because it scratches a certain itch in our brain. Our brains are used to filtering and collecting information, and mostly relying on its accuracy, making connections between pieces of information. If we see something presented to us by a media outlet, shared by a friend/family member, or in an infographic format we’ll automatically give it a degree of credibility. One possible reason is a phenomenon called Pareidolia, the best way to describe this is through example:

Look up into the sky at the clouds, now I’ll ask you to not find anything in the clouds, don’t let your brain make out any shapes or animals etc- it’s pretty difficult right?

Pareidolia is the phenomenon where our brains see faces and recognisable shapes within other things, similar to the ink blot test. So at times information, when shared a specific way, relates to this part of our brain, which seeks to find answers, connect facts and explain information. Social media churns out so much information accredited to anyone with a phone, so the chains of connection which once served us accurate information, can no longer contend with the amount of false information we’re accustomed to seeing.

We have a running joke in my friend group that, to their great annoyance, I always try to play devil’s advocate, seeing both sides of any story in order to understand the full picture. The YWM’s guide outlines a similar tactic which is actually very helpful in this scenario. Step 2 is to ‘leave the echo chamber,’ and challenge yourself or the belief that you hold. Make it a challenge to prove yourself wrong, and if you can’t then you can probably and safely assume you are correct. And who doesn’t love being right?

Step 3 in the guide maintains that you should check with a trusted source. Below, I’ve shared some handy acronyms to help you consider all the different angles that might relate to a piece of information and its purpose. Helpful fact checking charities like Full Fact for the UK and in Scotland, The Ferret Fact Service are also fantastic and easy to use resources for on the go.

In the library sector, we love an acronym so why not SIFT through the CRAAP? Here’s two acronyms, widely used in the library and information sector that you can use to decide whether you should share information online or not:

The SIFT Method, created by Mike Caulfield is mostly helpful in deciding whether or not to share resources or information you’ve found when scrolling social media:

S is for… Stop - again nothing will be so time sensitive that it can’t wait a few minutes to run through the rest of the steps. In fact if it is being presented as time sensitive then there’s even more of a reason to be suspicious of the information.

I is for… Investigate the source - have a look at who wrote or published it, are they a well respected voice in that field, do they have qualifications to back up what they’re saying?

F is for… Find better coverage - are multiple verified and established sources saying the same thing as the initial source you encountered? If so then you’re probably safe.

T is for… Trace the claim to its original context - some stories can be victim to a game of telephone, being further embellished the more they’re shared. If you can find the original source, video, audio etc then you can better understand the context and why someone might have shared the piece of information. You might decide that the original source is biased or spreading disinformation, in which case tracing it back can help you make an informed choice.

The CRAAP test is better used when you are researching a specific topic or perhaps looking for an answer to a question:

C is for… Currency - is the information you’ve found the most up to date version, have the research or findings moved on since this source? An easy way to spot this is broken or outdated hyperlinks. Certain things may have been debunked since, so it’s always worth checking.

R is for… Relevance - consider whether the source actually answers the question you’ve asked, don’t make information fit just for the sake of convenience.

A is for… Authority - as above, consider the author’s qualifications and more importantly reasons for writing this article/research/post. Have they been sponsored or are they affiliated with a person, group or organisation which might impede their ability to be unbiased?

A is for… Accuracy - Has the information been clearly sourced or cited, have others with credible backgrounds peer reviewed the source? Are there other pieces of evidence that corroborate what the source is finding?

P is for… Purpose - think about what purpose this information is serving, why does it exist? Is it there to support an agenda or do the findings of an unbiased piece of research come to a natural conclusion about the topic? You can usually come to this conclusion clearly by following the steps above.

Now that you’ve SIFTed through the CRAAP and established if the source is credible or
unreliable, you can make an informed choice about whether or not to share the information. The more times that you follow these steps the more ingrained it becomes in your information seeking and sharing behaviour, and you can move forward with confidence in what you choose to share.

It can feel wholly overwhelming at times, and you might not always get it right, but the
important thing is that you try your best to do your due diligence. If young women are given the choices, resources and information to learn how to harness information effectively, they can be the antidote to so much of the poison we see shared online. They can be the ones disseminating the information which truly reflects their experiences, and furthers interest and research on issues that disproportionately impact young women. They can function with an immediate confidence which in turn might influence a positive wave of information, successfully mirroring young women’s experiences, allowing them to more fluently function in democratic society.

Author’s bio

Leah Higgins

(she/her), 26, from Glasgow

Leah Higgins is currently the Digital Officer at the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals in Scotland. She holds an MA in History of Art from the University of Glasgow and a HNC in Media and Journalism from City of Glasgow College.

In 2017, she organised the Women’s March for Scotland at age 16. This protest saw over 5,000 supporters create a united and public front against misogyny in Scotland. In 2025 Leah was named as one of the Young Women’s Movement 30 Under 30 in Scotland. The following year, Leah authored two chapters and an accompanying podcast for the Book Feminist Librarianship: Principles, Practices and Provocations (Facet), as well as acting as the New Professional Advisor for the text.

The results are in and the new Scottish Government has been formed. We’ve been watching closely… and we have thoughts.

Scotland now has one of the most diverse parliaments in Holyrood’s history. That’s something to be hopeful about. However, there is still a lot of work to be done, and young women’s rights cannot be taken from granted in this new political landscape.

Young Women Demand has put together a full breakdown of what the results mean for young women and girl’s across Scotland.

Read our post-election analysis

The ballot box is not the only place young women’s voices belong. Here’s how to get involved all year round:

• Look into local grassroots groups or start one

• Stay informed: follow us

• Join a national campaign

• Contact your local MSP and attend their surgery.

• Sign a petition and attend a protest

Not sure where to start? ElectHer recently released their My Political Futures Toolkit, a free resource to help you explore activism, campaigning and a life in politics.

Young Women Remember is our newly launched digital archive, brought to life by our staff and volunteers, that lifts up the voices that shaped this movement.

Inside you’ll find oral histories, written accounts, archival materials and behind-the-scene reflections from the researchers themselves.

This is more than a history project. Movements like ours grow stronger when they know where they came from.

Explore the archive

Every year, 30 Under 30 celebrates young women and girls from across Scotland who are making positive change in different ways. This could be you or someone you know.

We often hear that young women are their own biggest critics. This year, we’re asking you to be your own biggest champion (or the loudest cheerleader for a friend or colleague).

Are you, or is someone you know, challenging the status quo in your school, your workplace, or your local community? Whether you’re in the heart of the Highlands or the middle of a city, your work matters and we want to hear from you.

Want to see what our 30 Under 30 alumni are up to now? Read the article.

Nomination Deadline: 9am on Monday 8th June 2026.

Pro-Tip: Sometimes young women are their own biggest champions - we love a self-nomination. Don’t be shy!

Nominate today

• Free henna workshop: Join us in Glasgow to learn about the history of henna, see a live demonstration and learn how to use henna cones and create your own designs. Book your free place and join us on Sunday 28th June, 2pm - 4pm.

• Be a councillor workshop: Only 35% of Scotland’s councillors are women, we want to change that. Join our free online workshop, in partnership with Elect HER, to get advice from current councillors, learn how to put yourself forward and connect with other women. We have two sessions available on Wednesday 24th June, 1pm - 2pm or 6pm - 7pm.

Over the summer and into December 2025, I found myself in the National Library of Scotland (NLS) looking at lots of varieties of archival documents mostly dated from 1949 through to 1987.

My project involved creating an archive report as part of the Young Women Remember (YWR) research project, which aims to revive and commemorate the history of the Young Women’s Movement. This report involved cataloguing archive materials, producing detailed lists and descriptions of documents and highlighting potential routes for future research. The YWR project provides an opportunity to platform influential women from the organisation’s past and emphasises the importance of collective action. It also encourages previous members to reflect on their experiences and offers insight into how the organisation’s history continues to shape the YWM today.

Historically the Young Women’s Movement was known as the Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA). They were a Christian organisation which provided a wide range of services, including hostels for working women, field trips, missionary activities, prayer groups, sports clubs, coffee days, crafting events and leadership training. In 1969, the organisation shifted its aims, moving from working primarily with Christian women to ‘recognising the equal value in God’s sight of all human beings without distinction of race, nationality or religion.’ This change resulted in the opening of the organisation to all women, girls, men and boys over the age of eleven.

For my project I selected materials from the 1960s through to the 1980s as this was a period shaped by significant cultural transformations. Notably, the process of secularisation (religion losing influence), the Women’s Liberation movement (Feminist campaigns) and sexual liberation movement. While the archive had lots of potential research routes, by contextualising these materials within these wider cultural shifts, I identified four themes of research. This included, response to secularisation, protests and resistance to sexual liberation, combating alcoholism in youth and the evolving social freedoms within hostels. What interested me the most was the organisation’s fluctuating responses to cultural change. At times, the YWCA appeared to embrace new social attitudes, while at other moments resisted them. My report discusses where these clashes or divergence with social attitude appeared, and how they were shaped by religion, location, and young women’s advocacy.

This placement was so insightful; from handling previously untouched archive material to doing further research on secularisation and working alongside the welcoming heritage team, this experience was very rewarding. Although the amount of material in the archive was initially daunting, reading through the projects YWCA completed, personal correspondence and newspaper clippings, the time flew by!

This work contributes to filling a wider gap in discussion about religious organisations working on the periphery of the Women’s Liberation movement, particularly in Scotland.

The YWCA demonstrates that despite conflicting beliefs around rising secularisation, they remained a vital source of support for many people, and highlight how collective action can lead to meaningful and lasting change.

Explore the archive

About the author

Iona MacMillan

(She/Her), 23, from Falkirk, living in Glasgow

Over the past nine months, Iona has really enjoyed completing her applied dissertation placement with The Young Women’s Movement.

This involved producing an Archive Report, cataloguing materials from 1902 to 1989 and highlighting potential routes for future research. Alongside this, Iona has also written two profiles on influential women in The Young Women’s Movement’s history, including one on Stella Jane Reekie, and a joint profile on Isabel Fleming and Jessie Service.

Imagine if you were given the opportunity to ask other women these questions and create a shared dialogue through time…

Well, that is what a group of us have been working on for the best part of two years now! As a team of young women, we have co-created an Oral History archive of the stories and experiences from women involved in The Young Women’s Movement. It has been incredible to be a part of.

What is Oral History?

Oral History is an academic method of recording memories and experiences, through semi-structured interviews. These oral history interviews are then transcribed to make them fully accessible and stored in archives to inform our understanding of the past. The interviews we have recorded as part of the Young Women Remember project will be shared and preserved through a digital archive we have created together as part of the project. The project has demonstrated to me just how important oral history can be to feminism. It has been an opportunity to centre women, and by doing so, challenge mainstream historical narratives. In the words of feminist Oral Historian Sherna Gluck:

We are affirming that our everyday lives are history. Using an oral tradition, as old as human memory, we are reconstructing our own past.[1]

When we are taught history at school, we are taught about the big events – wars led by men, imperialism, and royalty. Little is said about everyday life and the women doing the work in the background. Having the chance to sit down together, and interview women about their life is empowering. It is taking back that narrative of history as made by men. Throughout the project we heard from women that have made such an impact – from pushing forward policies that protect women in parliament, to teaching women computer skills, and travelling the globe in the name of feminism.

In their own words, they could not have done it alone. The Young Women’s Movement, previously known as the YWCA, provided community and opportunity for these women. Within the interviews, we asked about their journey through the Movement. So many started their involvement by participating in a programme, later volunteered, and some even went on to work for the organisation. This demonstrates how an organisation focused on women can have such a positive ripple effect. Women who were empowered by the programmes went on to empower other women. This has had a lasting and lifelong impact for all the women we interviewed:

‘I mean, there’s absolutely no way I would be able to do the job that I do now without the Young Women’s Movement…’[2]

As a history nerd, I have been curious about oral history for a while, but it was not until I saw the opportunity posted on the Young Women’s Movement website that I had the chance to go and do it myself! We worked as a team every step of the way during this project. From the website design to the questions asked in the interviews, we met up − either in person or online and collaborated. It was my first time working on a project that was completely co-created, where everybody’s ideas were considered before moving forward. It is a radical way of working by removing hierarchies and roles. By doing this, we were brought together, a team of young women across Scotland sharing our own experiences and making connections with each other. Through this process, it created a sense of ownership of our shared history as women in Scotland. A history that we as women have rarely had a chance to participate in.

I have fallen in love with oral history, made lifelong connections, and the stories we uncovered will always inspire me. Thank you to The Young Women’s Movement and The National Lottery Heritage Fund for facilitating this opportunity.

Explore the archive

[1] Sherna Gluck, ‘What’s so special about Women? Women’s Oral History’, Frontiers: A journal of Women’s Studies, (1977), 3-17, 3.

[2] Oral History Interview, Emma Crawshaw, April 2024.

About the author

Katie Field

(She/Her), 25, from England, living in Edinburgh

Katie has found working on the Young Women Remember project invigorating from the outset and has especially enjoyed developing new skills in Oral History theory and practice, data analysis and videography.

New to co-design, Katie has found the experience of working with other like-minded women to uncover hidden stories very empowering.

We’ve pulled together the opportunities and resources that will help you to navigate a busy month ahead. You’ve got this.

Nominations for 30 Under 30 are live!

Every year, 30 Under 30 celebrates young women and girls from across Scotland who are making positive change in different ways.

We often hear that young women are their own biggest critics. This year, we’re asking you to be your own biggest champion (or the loudest cheerleader for a friend or colleague).

Are you, or is someone you know, challenging the status quo in your school, your workplace, or your local community? Whether you’re in the heart of the Highlands or the middle of a city, your work matters.

Nomination Deadline: 9am on Monday 8th June 2026.

Pro-Tip: Sometimes young women are their own biggest champions - we love a self-nomination. Don’t be shy!

Find out more

Scottish Parliament Elections

Get informed

30 Under 30 isn’t the only vote we’re asking you to use this week. On Thursday, Scotland goes to the polls to vote for a new Scottish government.

Our Young Women Demand steering group have been working hard to make sure that young women have the tools to meaningfully take part in politics.

Knowledge is power, and young women are very powerful. Here are a few resources to help build your political confidence:

• Young Women Demand’s guide to the party manifestos

• What is tactical voting?

Check out the resource hub

Get voting

Young Women Demand want to see YOU voting! 🗳

We’re collecting photos of young women exercising their right to vote, and we’d love you to be part of it.

Here’s how we’d like you to get involved on or before Thursday 7th May:

• On Instagram - Tap our “Add Yours” sticker on our story and share your pic

• Post it to your own story and YWM will reshare it

• If your account is private, but you still want to feature, just send us your photo directly or via WhatsApp (07344 454582)

Remember - please don’t take photos inside the polling station or of your ballot paper.

Find us on Instagram.

Girlhood in a digital age

The Young Women’s Movement, in partnership with Edinburgh Napier University, is looking for young people to join us for a co-design workshop in Glasgow: ‘Girlhood in a Digital Age: Social Media and Wellbeing.’

We provide a free lunch and fully reimburse all travel costs.

Details:

• Saturday 23rd May, 10am – 2pm

• The Boardwalk, Glasgow

How to get involved: Please share this opportunity with your students, youth groups, or any young women aged 13-18 who would love to have their say!

Find out more

On this month:

Ramblers Out There Award

This month, we’re putting the “move” in The Young Women’s Movement by teaming up with walking charity Ramblers.

Learn entry level navigation skills, make new friends and enjoy a fun day exploring Edinburgh as part of the Out There Award.

Details:

• Open to young women aged 18-26

• Saturday 30th May, 10am - 5pm

• Meet at Holyrood car park, Edinburgh

Find out more and book your place

You can find out more about upcoming events on our website.

Young Women Remember

This month we launch our Young Women Remember ‘living’ digital archive which showcases oral histories, written memories and archival sources uncovering stories from The Young Women’s Movement’s 100-year history.

YWCA had hostels across the country, providing safe and affordable accommodation for young women living away from home. For Oral History interviewee Ellen, moving into the hostel in Park Circus Place Glasgow in 1957 aged 19 was life-changing.

To find out more about Ellen’s story, and other women like her, be sure to check out our digital archive, which we’re launching on Thursday 21^st May.

Edinburgh Marathon Fundraiser

Paul, Thomas, Stan and Jack Fenton (pictured below) are running a “Hairy Haggis” marathon relay at the Edinburgh Marathon Festival 2026!

They’re raising money for young women and girls’ leadership and rights in Scotland ahead of their race on Sunday 24 May 2026.

Find out more and support them

What exactly is tactical voting?

Tactical voting (sometimes called strategic voting), happens when a voter chooses to cast their vote for a candidate that they would not normally support, or who does not best align with their values, in order to prevent another candidate from winning. For example, this often looks like voting for the candidate who has the best chance of winning according to pre-election polling, or opting for who the voter deems to be the least-worst option. This method of voting is most commonly associated with elections to the UK Parliament, where the first-past-the-post electoral system only allows the candidate with the most votes to be elected. Because Holyrood elections use the Additional Member System – where constituency MSPs are elected via first-past-the-post and regional MSPs are elected via a form of proportional representation using a split ballot – tactical voting can look a little different in Scotland. For instance, you might choose to cast your constituency vote for a candidate that has the most chance of beating someone who does not align with your views, while you may cast your regional vote for the party that you most prefer.

Tactical voting in practice

To better understand how tactical voting works and what its impact on the outcome of elections can be, we will look at two different examples where widespread tactical voting played a significant role: the 2024 UK Parliament election and the 2026 Gorton and Denton by-election.

The 2024 UK Parliament election saw some of the most widespread tactical voting in British electoral history. The Labour Party won the election with a landslide of 412 seats (63% of available seats), on just 33.7% of the vote share.^[1] In many cases, voters reported opting for the Labour Party because they felt that they were the most likely candidates to win against the Conservative Party or Reform UK, with similar success for the Liberal Democrats in Southern England. Relatedly, many of the constituencies voted for Reform UK as the Party who had the best chance of beating Labour.^[2]

At the Gorton and Denton by-election in February 2026, a similar situation played out. Both Labour and the Green Party circulated promotional materials claiming that they were the only party who could defeat Reform UK in the by-election, encouraging voters not to choose who they trusted to represent them, but rather to protect themselves against those they did not. Previously, there had been little support for Reform UK in the constituency but many former Conservative voters opted instead for Reform, as they had a greater chance of winning the seat.^[3]

In both of these cases, a large number of voters chose to abandon their previous allegiances to a preferred party or candidate, in order to protect their interests and rights as they saw best.

Why does it matter?

The Electoral Reform Association argues that tactical voting is bad for democracy, as it relies on candidates having a strong knowledge of election polling and voting strategies, while also preventing voters from choosing a candidate or party that they would trust to represent them in Parliament.^[4] This argument strongly resonates with many critiques that young women have put forward about their engagement with, and trust in, democracy. According to the 2024-5 Status of Young Women in ScotlandReport, 1 in 2 young women do not trust their politicians to advocate for their rights, and many respondents reported that voting felt ineffective or that they felt unprepared to make an informed choice.

While a truly equitable system of democratic representation might seem far away, it is nevertheless important that all young women have the tools to exercise their democratic rights in this upcoming election. Political parties are already gearing up for tactical voting to play a significant role in this election- the Green Party, for example, are not fielding candidates for constituency seats, hoping to gain more seats in the regions, where proportional representation is in use. Additionally, this election will be pivotal for women’s rights in Scotland, as women’s healthcare, human rights, AI regulation, abortion access, and gender-based violence are all on the ballot. Therefore, it has never been more important to use your vote and make your voice heard!

What can you do?

Hopefully, this post will have given you a good idea about what tactical voting is and why it is important to make an informed choice- so what should you do now?

When deciding how you want to use your vote, here are some things you might want to consider:

Think carefully about your split ballot- because the Additional Member System allows you to cast two votes, one for a specific candidate in your constituency and one for a party in your region, you are able to vote for two different parties. This may let you place one tactical vote and another for a party or candidate that aligns more closely with your beliefs.

Read up on candidates standing in your area- be aware of which candidates or parties are standing in your area, as every party may not stand for every seat. Some parties may publish guidance on how to vote tactically in areas where they have chosen not to stand or have little chance of winning the seat. You might also want to look into current MSPs voting records or previous statements to see if they have stood up for your interests in the past.

Find pre-election polling that you trust- polling can be a very useful tool to help you decide how to cast your vote. If you choose to vote to protect your interests from a party that does not match your values, polling can point to which other candidates might win against them. It is important to find polling that is trustworthy and reliable (though it can never be completely accurate!). YouGov produces frequent summaries that are clear and well regulated, and Ballot Box Scotland provides detailed breakdowns if that’s something you’re interested in.

Ultimately, the most important thing you can do is to do your research on the candidates and parties standing in your area, and to decide what issues are important to you and what you would like to see from the next government. Remember- your vote is your voice and all young women deserve to be heard and represented!

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Emily Wallace

Emily Wallace is a nuclear disarmament researcher based in Glasgow, and a recent masters graduate in Gender History.

She is a member of the Young Women Demand Steering Group and also a Peer Researcher for the Status of Young Women in Scotland Report 2026-7. She is passionate about making intersectional feminism accessible to everyone and putting these principles into action.

Helpful resources

• Who Can I Vote For? Has a great resource to find out which candidates are standing for election in your constituencies: https://whocanivotefor.co.uk/elections/sp.c.2026-05-07/scottish-parliament-elections-constituencies/

• The Electoral Reform Association’s summary of tactical voting and democracy can be found here: https://electoral-reform.org.uk/what-is-tactical-voting-and-why-is-it-bad-for-democracy/

• Young Women Demand have produced a glossary of political terms to help de-bunk and de-mystify politics!: https://youngwomenscot.org/resources/understanding-political-terms-2026-scottish-parliament-election-edition/

• YouGov’s current election polling can be found here:
  https://yougov.com/en-gb/articles/54511-first-yougov-mrp-of-the-2026-holyrood-election-suggests-the-snp-could-win-a-majority

• Ballot Box Scotland’s current election polling can be found here:
  https://ballotbox.scot/scottish-parliament/polling-scottish-parliament/

References

[1] UK General Election Results 2024, BBC News, https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/election/2024/uk/results [accessed 17 April 2026].

[2]See: ‘A System Out of Step: The 2024 General Election’, Electoral Reform Society, 10 December 2024, https://electoral-reform.org.uk/latest-news-and-research/publications/a-system-out-of-step-the-2024-general-election/ [accessed 17 April 2024]; Peter Sloman, ‘Ed Davey’s Tory Removals: The Liberal Democrats and the 2024 General Election’, The Political Quarterly, 96:1, pp.83-90, doi:10.1111/1467-923X.13479.
[3] A breakdown of the Gorton and Denton by-election results can be found here: ‘Green Party wins Gorton and Denton by-election, pushing Labour into third place’, BBC News, 27 February 2026, https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cr453rvy6kvo [accessed 19 April 2026]. Advice from tactical voting groups showed the complex situation at play in that election. See: ‘Tactical Voting in Gorton and Denton’, tactical.vote, February 2026, https://tactical.vote/gorton-and-denton/ [accessed 17 April 2026].

[4]Sabine McGinley, ‘What is tactical voting and why is it bad for democracy?’, Electoral Reform Society, 12 November 2019 https://electoral-reform.org.uk/what-is-tactical-voting-and-why-is-it-bad-for-democracy/ [accessed 17 April 2026].

I am a feminist. I believe deeply in collective liberation, in intersectionality, in a world where gender justice is not radical, but normal.

And yet. I still sometimes turn my tote bag around.

It’s a simple thing: a canvas bag printed with the words intersectional feminist, given to me at a feminist event. I carry it with pride. Those words hold years of learning and unlearning, organising, volunteering, and trying (imperfectly) to show up for others.

But when I’m travelling alone.
When I’m outside of cities.
When I’m in unfamiliar places, late at night, or somewhere I already feel too visible?

I hide it.

Not because I’m ashamed.
But because I’m afraid.

The quiet calculations of safety

Being a young woman in public space often means making constant, invisible calculations about safety. Which streets to walk down. Who to avoid eye contact with. Whether to answer back. Where to sit on public transport. Who to message when you get home.

These calculations become instinctive. Our bodies learn risk long before we learn the language for it.

Adding visible feminism into that equation sometimes feels like adding another unnecessary danger. A slogan, a badge, a bag — small acts of visibility that can become invitations. Not always to conversation, but sometimes to hostility or threat.

So, I often soften myself. I tuck things away. I stay quieter than I want to be.

And I hate that I do it.

When pride meets fear

It sits heavily in my chest because my feminism is not theoretical. It is lived.

I work in the third sector. I volunteer with organisations supporting young people and grassroots activism. I write about social mobility, feminism, and change. Much of my work centres young women’s voices, safety, and agency.

I have built my universe around believing that everyone deserves to take up space.

And yet, when I’m alone in public, I shrink.

How do I hold both?
How do I believe in visibility while quietly choosing invisibility?
How do I advocate for courage while practising caution?

There is no easy resolution to this tension. It lingers. It contradicts. It aches.

The emotional labour of being visible

There’s a narrative that feminism is about being loud. It’s bold, it’s defiant, it’s unapologetic. But we speak far less about the emotional labour of being visibly political in a world that is not always kind.

Visibility invites explanation. Defence. Education. Confrontation.

It means always being ready to justify your existence, your beliefs, your anger, your hope.

And some days, you are just tired.

Some days, you don’t want to be a movement.
You just want to get home safely.

The digital double-edged sword

Online spaces complicate this further.

Digital feminism brings connection, solidarity, and community. It allows young women to find language for their experiences, to feel less alone, to build collective power across distance.

But it also brings surveillance, harassment, pile-ons, and threat.

Every post becomes permanent.
Every opinion screenshot-able.
Every story shareable beyond its context.

Before I post, I calculate.
Will this bring solidarity or backlash?
Dialogue or danger?

Sometimes I hesitate. Sometimes I stay quiet. Not because I don’t believe in what I’m saying, but because I am bracing myself for the response.

Still, I am trying to be braver. To take my activism into digital spaces. To speak even when my voice shakes.

Because silence, too, has a cost.

Feminism as survival

There is no shame in choosing safety.

Let me say that clearly.

There is no moral failure in protecting yourself. No contradiction in caring deeply about justice while navigating fear. No hypocrisy in knowing when to be loud and when to be quiet.

Feminism is not only protest. It is also survival.

It is choosing yourself, again and again, in a world that does not always make space for you.

And maybe one day, I won’t feel the need to turn my tote bag around.

But until then, I will keep caring.
I will keep writing.
I will keep organising.
I will keep believing in a world where young women do not have to choose between visibility and safety.

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Writer bio

Bethany Spain

Bethany Spain is a writer and communications specialist working in the third sector, with a focus on community storytelling and social justice.

Alongside her professional work, she volunteers with organisations supporting young people and grassroots activism, and writes about feminism, social mobility, youth voice and wellbeing. She is passionate about building spaces where everyone can feel connected, supported, and heard.

Bethany was on our 2025 30 Under 30 List – find out more about her work.

The rights of marginalised communities are increasingly under threat, authoritarianism is on the rise and the powerful are working to silence our voices.

Political participation isn’t just important, it’s essential. Change doesn’t happen by itself.

The Young Women Demand resource hub has everything you need to show up informed and ready to fight back. We have guides to cut through political jargon, tools to spot and challenge misinformation, and advice on getting in front of your local candidates at hustings (public meetings where candidates have to answer to the public).

Also included in the resource is our Young Women Demand manifesto. Co-designed by young women and girls across Scotland, it sets out six demands to improve our futures. We recently took these demands directly to politicians in Holyrood because power never gives up anything willingly, it has to be demanded.

The most important thing you can do right now is reach out to the people in your life. This isolation and anxiety we feel is not by accident, tech billionaires profit from keeping us divided and disengaged. Don’t let them win. Talk to your friends, your family and your community. Share our resources with someone who needs it and let them know that voter registration closes April 20th at 5pm.

To be more politically engaged today:

1. Register to vote

2. Explore and share our Young Women Demand resource hub

3. Have those discussions with your loved ones

Every year, we celebrate 30 self-identifying young women and girls across Scotland who are making change in their communities, their industries and their lives. From activists and artists to councillors and community organisers, 30 Under 30 exists because this kind of work needs recognition.

Nominations for 30 Under 30 are opening very soon 👀

Keep a look out for further updates here or on our socials. And in the mean time, start thinking about the young women in your life who deserved to be recognised.

We’re excited to announce our new training offering for organisations! Do you want to better support young women in your workplace, or know of an organisation who might be interested? From understanding the pressures young women face to becoming more effective advocates for change, our training is directly informed by young women across Scotland.

Our training can be booked as ready-to-go courses or tailored to your specific needs.

As a charity, financial stability is extremely important to us. Every booking directly funds our work supporting young women and girls across Scotland.

We want to celebrate Pride Month by handing the mic to you. Whether you’re in the heart of Glasgow or the furthest reaches of the Highlands, we’re looking for personal essays or reflections on what it means to be a queer self-identifying young woman in Scotland today.

Key dates:

• April 27: Deadline to submit your pitch.

• May 4: First draft due.

• June 1: Publications begin!

We’re thrilled to share that our Young Women Lead AI project is a finalist for the Digital & STEM award at the National Youth Work Awards this year 💚

This project was a huge undertaking by a group of incredible young women who co-designed The Young Women’s Movement Guide to AI, created to inform their peers and others about the threats and opportunities posed by AI technologies to young women and girls.

A huge well done to the young women involved and our brilliant team for making it happen.

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A hustings is a public meeting between voters and candidates standing for election. We, as voters, can directly question candidates about issues that we care about and affect our lives. Each hustings focuses on a particular issue, such as gender equality or disability rights, with questions shaped around that theme. We can hear politicians’ promises in their own words and hold them to account after the election. Especially for voters from marginalised communities, hustings are a dedicated space where commonly sidelined issues can be placed at the centre of discussions.

A hustings will usually have between 4 – 6 party representatives attending, with a ‘chair’ or spokesperson who will moderate the meeting. They typically last between 1 and 2 hours and can be held in person or online. After a short introduction from each candidate, it’s time to ask questions about the issues you care about.

The upcoming Hustings for Women’s Equality on 30th March is a great opportunity to ask politicians questions about young women’s human rights, safety, or healthcare in Scotland. Outside of hustings, these issues are often not mentioned in their political party manifestos or promotional materials. Usually, you submit questions beforehand and the chair of the event will pick questions for candidates to answer. If there is a question you really want to ask, submit it to the organisers beforehand for the best shot. However, sometimes there is the opportunity to ask extra questions from the audience on the day.

Charities, faith groups, local businesses, and organisations are most likely to host hustings in the run up to an election. But anyone can organise a hustings! Check out Elect Her’s fantastic resource if you want to organise your own.

Why are hustings important?

“If we design for the most marginalised, we actually design for everyone.” Cynthia Enloe, feminist writer and theorist

The most important reason hustings are important is that they are a great way to help you decide who to vote for. (Remember to register to vote before the 20th April!)

They are one of the best tools we have for figuring out who will genuinely represent our needs in parliament, which is, after all, exactly what MSPs are elected to do. With an election just around the corner, politicians are eager to connect with voters. They are likely to be listening more attentively than at other times in the electoral cycle.

It is a moment to watch how politicians respond to direct questions: do they answer authentically, and with genuine care? Are they silent? Evasive? Listen to your gut feeling, as who we vote for is not always based on what politicians say but on what they don’t say.

Politics can feel abstract and disingenuous but attending a hustings can provide an opportunity to make politics tangible by putting you face to face with the candidates themselves. It is a rare space where the people who are supposed to represent you must show up, listen, and answer directly for what they plan to do about the issues that matter to you.

Too often, people in power speak for or about young women, rather than listening and directly engaging with us. Attending a political event such as a hustings makes our voices and demands heard.

Reflections on my experience at a recent hustings

I often feel uninspired, excluded, and mistrustful when I see politicians discuss their political aspirations. Too often, when politicians discuss gender equality and women’s online safety, it doesn’t ring true to me. It feels like empty promises. Recently, with the rise of far-right rhetoric, the issue of women and girls’ safety has been used to justify and scapegoat an anti-migrant stance. This pseudo, superficial, and fleeting interest in gender equality fails to engage with what young women themselves are saying and moves us away from real progress.

So, when I recently got the opportunity to attend my first hustings in Edinburgh as a member of Young Women Demand, I wanted to go and engage with politicians outside of online spaces, and see for myself what politicians were pitching. It was a hustings organised to discuss the charity and third sector in Scotland. I had no idea what to expect, and like many young women voters, had never even heard of the word ‘hustings’ before going.

What immediately struck me was the age of the candidates and attendees — I felt like the only person under the age of 35. When traditional methods of engaging in democracy already feel so inaccessible and unrelatable to young women voters, the lack of young people being represented both on the audience and on stage felt significant. When young women don’t see themselves represented in positions of power, it feels harder to be heard and to enact change. Research by Glasgow Caledonian University shows that young women report significantly lower political confidence than young men, and despite a desire to engage with politics, can feel isolated and alone when attempting to advocate their rights.

I personally felt this when I attended. Although young people were not the focus of the event, when young women in third sector spaces were mentioned, they felt dismissive and minimal. Specifically, the role of women volunteers was not mentioned until an hour into an hour-and-a-half long event, and I felt it was misrepresented. The politicians on stage mostly hailed a lack of desire of young people to volunteer. As many of you reading know, this is not true. Rather than a lack of desire, it often comes down to a lack of access. Considering the huge role of paid and unpaid female labour in the volunteering sector, this moment stood out to me and highlighted the need for women’s issues to be forced into the limelight. To do this, we need people like you and me to be represented at these events. I left this event wanting more. More representation, more access, and more honest discussions.

We need to ask why these traditional spaces feel exclusionary to young women voters, and how we can change this. We need young people in Scotland to feel that their votes and voices are represented in politics. Women facing intersecting inequalities, such as disabled women, LGBTQ+ women, and women of colour face the largest barriers to political participation. Attending a hustings provides a dedicated space where these issues must be discussed. A first step to increasing young women’s political literacy and confidence can be making more traditional forms of political engagement, such as hustings, accessible and known to young women voters across Scotland.

I want to live in a Scotland where all women and girls feel represented by politicians and where we can safely advocate for our needs. In the lead-up to the Scottish election on the 7th of May is an important time to get involved and make your voice heard.

Attend a hustings. Ask the questions that matter to you. Demand answers and change. Don’t watch politics happen. Take part.

Find upcoming hustings

Hustings top tips

• Prepare and submit questions in advance – think about what issues matter most to you personally.

• Bring a friend or family member!

• Research the candidates beforehand – if they are seeking re-election, look at their previous voting history. Knowing their voting record and stance on issues and interests will prepare you for their reaction and what to expect in their answer. Have they actively voted against the interest of young women and girls? A hustings is your opportunity to challenge them publicly and put their stance on record.

• Take notes on what candidates say and commit to – you may want to hold them accountable after the election.

• Push for concrete commitments, rather than vague statements, ask candidates specifically what they will do if elected, not just what they believe.

• Follow up afterwards – check the candidates’ social media or website to see if they follow through on commitments made.

• It’s ok to just listen – You don’t need to be an expert on politics; you just need to attend!

What sort of questions can I ask at a hustings?

You can base your question on statistics, on your own personal experience or about an issue that you want to hear their perspective on. Be specific and make sure you ask a clear question. Don’t forget each candidate will get the opportunity to answer your question. Listen to how each candidate answers, and how they differ. Even if a politician dodges the question, remember that the audience is listening and cares about your perspective.

If you are unsure where to start, feel free to check out The Young Women’s Movement’s research hub for relevant research and statistics or look at the Young Women Demand manifesto to base your question around and as a reminder of our demands.

Check out these example questions below if you need inspiration!

Example questions

“The Status of Young Women in Scotland 2024/2025 research shows that 1 in 4 young women in Scotland do not trust public authorities to uphold their human rights – particularly the police, the criminal justice system, and the healthcare system. If you are elected, what specifically will you do to rebuild that trust?”

“Research shows that young women are disproportionately targeted by online harassment. I personally don’t feel safe posting publicly online as a young woman. How will you hold tech companies accountable to manage sexism and misogyny online, and how will you address online gender-based violence?”

“The women’s sector in Scotland only receives 1.8% of charitable funding, leading many women to feel forgotten by public services. Will you commit to increasing funding for the women’s sector?”

“The latest statistics show that hate crimes motivated by sexual orientation have been increasing over the last five years, particularly for trans people. For many LGBTQ+ women healthcare, political, and public spaces feel exclusionary and hostile. Do you promise to shape policy and legislation which increases the safety of LGBTQ+ women in Scotland?”

“Young women across Scotland are telling us that they feel unheard, underrepresented, and disengaged from politics. Our (SYWS 24-25) research shows that 1 in 2 young women in Scotland don’t trust politicians to advocate for their human rights, with 58% of young women feeling like they have no involvement in decisions about how Scotland is run. What specific, concrete steps will your party take to meaningfully engage young women in democracy beyond election campaigns, but in ongoing policy decisions?”

“Scotland has the potential to be a worldwide leader on gender equality, where all women feel that their needs are met by the government. How exactly will you shape future policies and investment to meet the needs of all women in Scotland?”

“Women’s human rights should be a non-partisan issue. Will you work together with MSPs from all parties to ensure the introduction of a Human Rights Bill for Scotland?”

“I have sat in a GP’s office and felt dismissed because of my age and my gender. Will you prioritise the Women’s Health plan as an important policy area?”

“I don’t hear my needs and human rights being prioritised or listened to by politicians. How will you ensure women and underrepresented groups are represented and included in political participation?”

Find upcoming hustings

About the author

Laura Dias

Laura Dias is a recent International relations and Chinese studies graduate from the University of St Andrews. Her academic interests focus on intersectional feminism, climate justice, and environmental policy.

She is also a peer researcher and a member of Young Women Demand with the Young Women’s Movement. She is passionate about getting more young women and girls involved in politics across Scotland.

Find Laura on Linkedin

But what girlboss really offered was not empowerment, it was damage control.

It emerged at the exact point women were entering workplaces still built by, and for, men. Rather than dismantling the barriers that excluded women from power, girlboss culture reframed survival within those systems as success. Structural inequality became a personal branding opportunity.

Women weren’t told the system was broken. They were told they were broken if they couldn’t handle the system.

Endurance dressed up as empowerment

From the start, girlboss culture celebrated exceptionalism. Women who succeeded were framed as rule-breakers, disruptors, outliers; proof that the system worked after all. The implication was clear: if one woman could make it, others simply hadn’t tried hard enough.

This logic neatly sidestepped persistent inequality. In the UK, women continue to earn less than men across almost every sector. According to the Office for National Statistics, the gender pay gap remains entrenched, particularly for women over 40, when caring responsibilities and limited options for career progression collide. Research from Young Women’s Trust shows that young women face an income gap from the very start of their working lives, a disadvantage that compounds over time.

Girlboss culture didn’t challenge this. It personalised it.

Rather than asking why women were underpaid, overworked, and underrepresented in leadership, the focus shifted to how women could adapt themselves to survive those conditions. Long hours became ambition. Burnout became passion. Emotional labour became leadership.

Women were praised not for being treated equally but for enduring inequality gracefully.

A double standard masquerading as praise

Men have always been allowed to “walk into” power. Their competence is assumed, and their authority deemed unremarkable. Women, by contrast, are framed as novelties. When they reach senior roles, they are celebrated as inspirational – a word that quietly signals exception rather than norm.

This is where girlboss becomes politically useful. It recasts inequality as motivation. It suggests that what women face is not systemic exclusion but a test of character.

As one critique in The Guardian put it, girlboss quickly shifted from role model to sexist put-down, a way of praising women while refusing to confront why their success remains so rare.

By celebrating individual triumphs, institutions absolve themselves of responsibility. The problem is no longer the workplace; it is women’s confidence, mindset, or resilience.

The cultural backlash and what it reveals

More recently, girlboss has fallen out of fashion, replaced by a wave of cultural backlash. On-screen, powerful women are increasingly portrayed as tyrannical, emotionally unstable, or morally compromised. As analyses by BBC Culture have noted, high-achieving women in film and television are frequently demonised in ways their male counterparts are not. Take for example Siobhan ‘Shiv’ Roy from Succession, whilst she is a prime example of a high-achieving individual she is positioned very differently to her brothers who are just as successful and ambitious who on the contrary are positioned as ‘damaged’ or ‘tragic’. The difference creates a feeling for the viewer that they should pity the male characters and champion their wins, whilst simultaneously resenting Shiv for wanting the same things.

But this backlash doesn’t contradict girlboss culture, it completes it.

First, women are told to embody masculine workplace norms to succeed. Then, when they do, they are punished for it. Assertiveness becomes aggression. Authority becomes coldness. Ambition becomes pathology.

The message remains consistent: women are allowed proximity to power, but never comfort within it.

What ‘girlboss’ allowed us to ignore

Perhaps the most insidious legacy of girlboss culture is what it helped institutions avoid talking about altogether.

It allowed employers to celebrate female success stories without addressing pay gaps. It allowed media narratives of empowerment to flourish alongside stagnant leadership demographics. It allowed inequality to persist under the guise of progress.

By celebrating the girlboss, we quietly accepted the conditions that made her necessary.

Women were never failing to lean in. They were navigating workplaces that demanded more from them for less reward, and then applauded them for surviving it.

Beyond the myth

If feminism is reduced to branding, it stops being political. Girlboss asked women to adapt to broken systems rather than demand they be fixed. It promised empowerment while leaving power untouched.

The question now is not whether girlboss was cringe or outdated. It’s whether we are ready to stop mistaking individual endurance for collective progress.

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You can find the references for this article on The Young Women’s Movement website.

About the author

Holly Southwick

Holly Southwick is a journalism graduate based in Edinburgh with a strong interest in politics and the power of policy to drive meaningful change.

Her work focuses on making political debates and government decisions accessible to those who want to engage but don’t know where to begin. She writes a twice-weekly newsletter breaking down policies and political campaigns in clear, digestible terms.

You can find Holly on the following platforms:

• LinkedIn

• Substack

• Medium

We’re on the precipice of what could be major political change in Scotland. We want young women to be heard.

Despite the advancements in gender equality of the last century or so, this is a challenging time to be a young woman. Our rights are increasingly under threat by a growing far-right movement, and the rise of extreme misogyny both on- and offline is jeopardising our safety.

We’ve been talking to young women about what they want and need, and they’ve told us loud and clear. Find out more in the latest article on our site ✍

Read the article

“All has to actually mean all, not just some of us.”

Gaia Ragone from our most recent 30 Under 30 list shared her take on young women’s rights for International Women’s Day.

A young woman’s guide to misinformation

Do you know the difference between misinformation and disinformation? Do you know how to spot them?

As the election draws closer, identifying mis- and disinformation are going to be important skills for those of us trying to sort the fact from the fiction. Learn how to feel confident in identifying misinformation and look after your wellbeing when doing so in the latest guide from our Young Women Demand steering group.

Read the guide

When ‘gender’ is still read as ‘women’

Too often, “gender” is still read as shorthand for “women.” When we say gender inequality, many people hear women’s inequality. When we say gender-based harm, they hear harm against women. And while women and girls do experience disproportionate levels of discrimination, violence, and exclusion, reducing gender to women alone quietly reinforces the idea that gender justice is women’s work.

We hosted an AI & Gender Conference, and no men turned up. Here’s what young woman leader Bethany has to say about it.

Read the article

Join us at our online Hustings for Women’s Equality

We’ve teamed up with other national women’s organisations and campaign groups for an online hustings: an opportunity to ask questions of politicians ahead of the upcoming election.

Representatives from the main political parties will take part to answer your questions on some of the most pressing issues impacting women’s lives in Scotland.

🗓: Monday 30th March, 7–8.30pm

Reserve your spot

I am a patchwork tapestry of all my friends stitched together and interwoven over time. There are fading edges at the corners and fraying threads, the memories of friends who are no longer in my life, but they live on within me. I still have love reserved for them. All my friends exist in me, and I in them. They exist in my interests; in my long-lasting love of female-fronted punk bands, my newfound love of pole dancing, in knitting, in Gothic horror novels and in Judith Butler’s books. They exist in my mannerisms; my tendency to greet strangers with a hug, crack my knuckles, doodle, and even in my idiolect, my borrowing of their linguistic idiosyncrasies. They exist in my choices: in my stomping around in big combat boots, band tees, and smudgy eyeshadow. They exist in my home – not only in scrapbooks or pictures on my walls, but in my set of ceramic mugs, the red ribbon fixed to my wall, my Scrabble pieces, even the wine stain on my sofa that we all failed to scrub out. Our cherished memories are embedded within these objects, and in me.

Friendship in classic literature

Despite the vital importance of my friendships, friendships among women in literature fall flat to me. Men’s friendships, by contrast, are far more intricate and complicated. Perhaps the issue is that there are fewer women than men characters on screen, and, comparatively, far fewer fully fleshed women characters. Where there is a woman, she is usually relegated to the role of love interest to her more dynamic male counterparts – who dominate the narrative. The fact is that of my favourite films and novels, when I think of my favourite friendships, they are almost always male.

I remember, in my final year of school, I attended Literature Society and one of our meetings happened to fall on February 13th. As it was an all-girls school, we decided on Galentine’s Day, and women’s friendships in literature as the theme of the event – but when it came to the discussion, we floundered. The theme was not the issue, but the absence of compelling and empowering depictions of female friendships in literature. At the end of the hour, our better examples were the March sisters, of Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women, and Emma and Harriett, of Jane Austen’s Emma. However, both of these examples were dissatisfactory.

Emma (1996)

The March sisters, of course, were sisters before they were friends, so they can be discounted. More so, Emma and Harriet’s friendship has a very uneven power dynamic, due to their differences in social class. Emma and Harriet’s friendship was initially founded on Emma’s loneliness and need for control as Emma adopts Harriet for companionship – rather than arising naturally. The friendship between Emma and Harriet is tinged at times by bitterness and resentment as both women fall for Mr Knightley. Whilst, Harriet, finally, asserts her own independence and Emma expresses remorse for interfering in Harriet’s love life, it is nonetheless valid to say that their friendship has problematic elements.

A call for literature to capture the quiet power of women’s friendships

My hope for the future is that we will finally see more well-rounded depictions of women’s friendships in the media. I long to see depictions of women’s friendship that recognise fully the human need for friendship, community, and connection – a need that seems, in literature, to feel reserved only for men.

Whilst the March sisters were sisters, their sisterhood is complex. The sisters are imperfect and their strong personalities often clash: Jo’s simplistic and stubborn nature clashes with Meg’s vanity and vehement insistence good manners, Amy’s gentility and over-sensitivity clashes with Jo’s gutsy and freespirited nature, and Beth’s crippling shyness can be isolating. Nevertheless, there is a lasting loyalty and longevity to their sisterhood that is so compelling. Both Meg and Jo work to support the family, who are living in genteel poverty, and as Beth is dying, Jo is devoted to caring for her – abandoning her literary ambitions to do so. I long to see female friendships represented with the same quiet power as the March sisters.

Little Women (2019)

The fact is that I cannot forge an identity independent from my friends, the people in my life. I do not stand on my own two feet, and I reject the notion that anybody can. We were never supposed to be so overworked, working 9-5 in an office, and with the rise of social-media echo chambers, loneliness is on the rise.

People need people. I worry about the rise of hyper-independent mindsets that modernity has brought. I won’t pretend to have the answer to this epidemic of loneliness, but I believe to even begin addressing this fully, we need friends and communities. And it is this need for community that I wish to celebrate this Galentine’s day, and carry forward into the next year.

Emma Cook

Emma Cook is storyteller and English Literature student at the University of Glasgow. She usually writes about feminist and disability rights issues.

She believes strongly in social justice and is informed by her lived experience of disability in her role as Disability Justice Officer on the Amnesty International Student Action Network. She loves volunteering and supports many grassroots community projects and charity initiatives.

In her free time, she loves going to a gig or curling up with book. She is a massive fan of anything Gothic.

Setting the scene

On Saturday 14th February, we gathered for our Gender and AI conference — a day dedicated to exploring how artificial intelligence is already shaping the lives, safety, and opportunities of young women and girls.

Across the day, we explored algorithmic bias, digital harm, image-based abuse, and the invisible ways technology shapes whose voices are heard, whose bodies are policed, and whose futures are prioritised.

The conversations were thoughtful, engaged, and deeply necessary. But as I looked around the room, one thing became increasingly difficult to ignore: not a single man was present.

This absence wasn’t something we had anticipated, nor something we can easily dismiss. Because gender, by definition, concerns everyone. Yet despite deliberate efforts to make the event inclusive and welcoming, no men attended. That gap raises uncomfortable but important questions about how we understand gender, who we believe these conversations are for, and who we expect to carry the responsibility of change.

When “gender” is read as “women”

Too often, “gender” is still read as shorthand for “women.” When we say gender inequality, many people hear women’s inequality. When we say gender-based harm, they hear harm against women. And while women and girls do experience disproportionate levels of discrimination, violence, and exclusion, reducing gender to women alone quietly reinforces the idea that gender justice is women’s work.

In this framing, men can become bystanders. Not because gender doesn’t shape their lives too, but because its harms often land differently, making it easier to step back rather than step in. Gender becomes something women must fix, rather than something society must collectively dismantle and rebuild.

This isn’t just a linguistic issue — it’s a cultural one, shaping who feels responsible. When men do not see themselves reflected in conversations about gender, disengagement becomes easy, even unconscious.

Why men’s absence matters in AI and technology

Nowhere is this more visible than in technology and artificial intelligence. Men continue to dominate AI development, data science, software engineering, and leadership roles across the tech sector. According to Interface, women make up just 26% of the global AI workforce, with even lower representation in senior technical and decision-making roles.

If those same men are absent from conversations about bias, harm, and inequality, responsibility falls almost entirely on those already experiencing the greatest risks.

That imbalance matters. AI systems increasingly shape access to housing, healthcare, education, welfare, employment, and justice. Research from MIT Media Lab’s Gender Shades project demonstrates how facial recognition technologies consistently misidentify women with darker skin tones, revealing how bias becomes embedded within seemingly neutral systems.

When gender bias is built into technology, those harms scale rapidly, often invisibly. Without men actively engaging in these conversations, we are left trying to challenge structural inequality without the involvement of those most positioned to disrupt it.

Why do men disengage?

There are no simple answers. For some, gender-based conversations trigger discomfort or defensiveness — a fear of blame, or of saying the wrong thing. For others, there is a belief that these issues simply do not affect them, or that their presence is unnecessary.

Cultural expectations also play a role, with emotional literacy and social justice engagement still coded as feminine, while technological spaces remain coded as masculine. When those worlds meet, many men seem uncertain where they belong.

But disengagement, even when unintentional, carries consequences. Silence is not neutral and absence does not preserve objectivity. Choosing not to participate allows existing inequalities to continue unchallenged.

The risks of exclusion: who bears the cost?

At the conference, we spoke about intimate image-based abuse, online harassment, and the digital policing of women’s bodies. These are not niche issues. Globally, 58% of girls and young women have experienced some form of online harassment and AI-generated deepfake pornography overwhelmingly targets women.

These harms shape everyday safety, autonomy, and dignity. They influence whose pain is taken seriously, whose labour is valued, and whose identities are considered important.

Collective responsibility, not women’s work

Despite men’s absence, the conference itself was filled with hope. The room was alive with critical thinking, care, and collective resolve. People shared stories, challenged assumptions, and imagined alternatives. There was a shared recognition that AI does not exist outside society. It absorbs our values and amplifies our biases.

But meaningful change requires collective responsibility.

If we truly want ethical, inclusive, and accountable technologies, then gender justice cannot remain a women-only project. Men must be in the room. Listening, questioning, reflecting, and acting. Not as saviours, and not as silent supporters, but as accountable participants in reshaping the systems from which they benefit.

This requires more than invitations. It requires a cultural shift in how gender is framed, taught, and understood. It requires moving beyond the idea that equality is something granted, and towards the recognition that justice is something built collectively.

A sharpened urgency

The absence of men at our Gender and AI conference did not diminish the importance of the day. But it sharpened its urgency.

Because until gender stops being read as “women,” and equality stops being seen as optional, we will continue asking the same communities to carry the same burdens.

And the futures being coded into our technologies deserve far more collective care than that.

Scotland’s rich tapestry of queer history has for a long time remained underrepresented and unspoken. This unspoken queerness of Scottish history is particularly evident when it comes to investigating the lives and loves of women. Through history, women are often forgotten, despite pioneering new ideas within the fields of medicine and art. For these women in particular, a key part of their story often remains untold: the women they loved. Their rich lived experiences as queer women covered up with a simple sentence in biographies and on Wikipedia: “she died unmarried”.

While not all of these Scottish women openly identified as lesbian, there is an understanding among contemporary academics that they had romantic relationships with other women. Relationships which are still described as “intimate friendships”, and partners as “colleagues” or “companions.” Writers cautiously skirt around the evidence which suggested women wrote love letters to each other, lived and worked together, socialised with other openly lesbian women, or considered themselves married to their partners long before gay marriage was legalised in the UK in 2014. This Pride month, we want to address and celebrate the unspoken queerness of Scottish women who formed a crucial part of Scottish history from the end of the 19th to early 20th century.

It is important to recognise that while these women suffered societal misogyny and homophobia, and their lives and loves have often been all but dismissed, they still only illustrate a small slice of Scotland at the end of the 1800s and beginning of the 1900s. These were women who had wealth and connections, had freedom to travel, had access to a good education, and benefitted from or had direct ties to the British Empire. They led unusually privileged lives, but to understand our history we need to uncover what stories we can, and openly talk about the fascinating people that modern queer culture in Scotland is built on. Victorian women, while frequently happy to be seen living in “romantic friendships” of varying intimacy and companionship, often attempted to hide or disguise their own lesbian desire and the nature of their romantic relationships, as Terry Castle writes, in the Western imagination same-sex female desire exists “as an absence […] a kind of love that by definition cannot exist”, as female homosexuality was never explicitly targeted with any legislation.

The queer history of Scotland has for many years remained unspoken and brushed under the carpet. ow their lives are being reinvestigated we can see that queer women have always existed in Scotland and have formed key parts of our history, from establishing hospitals, leading archaeological excavations, fighting for women’s suffrage or being involved in artistic movements. As Martha Vicinus writes, lesbians and female homosexual sexuality “repeatedly evaporated into denial, concealment or displacement, but it also never disappeared.”

Flora Murray (1869-1923)

Ground-breaking medical pioneer and suffragette Flora Murray was born in Dalton, Dumfriesshire in 1869, but her life and legacy are celebrated widely across Scotland and the rest of the UK today, with her portrait featuring on the new Bank of Scotland £100 note. On her gravestone she and her long-term partner, the surgeon Louisa Garrett Anderson (1873-1943), are remembered with the epitaph “we have been gloriously happy.” Raised in Scotland, Murray was a physician who specialised in anaesthesiology, having studied medicine at the London School of Medicine for Women, Durham University and Cambridge University, receiving her MD in 1905.

Both Murray and Anderson were dedicated to the Suffragette cause, meeting during the fight for women’s votes. Anderson, an English surgeon who studied in Scotland, the niece of Millicent Fawcett and daughter of the first female doctor in Britain, was heavily involved in the protests, even being jailed for her part in the movement.

While she was not imprisoned for her activism like her partner, Murray also played a crucial part in the movement as their ‘honorary doctor’ using her medical skills to treat suffragettes who had been force fed during hunger strikes. The anger about women’s positions in society must have been felt keenly for Murray and Anderson, as they faced discrimination in the medical field. Before the outbreak of World War One, female medical practitioners were banned from treating male patients, relegated to paediatrics and women’s health.

The couple are remembered as medical trailblazers, pioneering a route for female doctors into mainstream hospitals. In 1912 they founded the Women’s Hospital for Children together. When war broke out in Europe two years later, Murray and Anderson founded the ​​​​Women’s Hospital Corps. Staffed entirely by women, their team worked with the French Red Cross in Paris until 1915 when the British government requested that they return to London to run the Endel Street Military Hospital in Covent Garden. The couple ran and treated patients in the military hospital until 1919, treating nearly 24,000 wounded and traumatised soldiers, as well as dealing with the devastation of the 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic. One patient, a soldier, described the hospital as “one of the best […] in London”, however after the war their pioneering efforts were forgotten, female doctors and medical practitioners once again being pushed away from mainstream hospitals.

The couple lived as if they were married, allegedly wearing matching diamond rings, and retired to their jointly owned cottage in Paul End, Penn, Buckinghamshire in 1921 where they lived together until Murray’s death from cancer in 1923. Murray left everything to her partner in her will and dedicated her 1920 memoir Women as Army Surgeons to Anderson “my loving companion”.

Today Flora Murray is celebrated in Scotland for breaking boundaries in the field of medicine. However, her queerness has for a long time remained brushed aside, a minor footnote in her life as a medical pioneer, which is why we now want to shed light on her life as a queer woman this pride month.

However not all of the pioneering queer Scottish women of this period are so well known or as celebrated as Flora Murray, in fact very little has ever been written about Janet Gourley…

Janet ‘Nettie’ Gourley (1863–1912)

Women’s work has often been all but erased from history, due to the inherent biases of the men who write such history. Queer Scottish Egyptologist Janet Gourley is no exception, her work relegated mostly to a footnote in a ‘who’s who’ of archeology, despite her pioneering archaeology remaining a crucial aspect of the study of ancient Egypt. Gourley paved the way for female archaeologists in Britain when she co-directed two seasons of excavations at the Precinct of Mut, Egypt, from 1896, alongside her partner, the celebrated writer, philosopher, and Egyptologist Margaret “Maggie” Benson.

Gourley was born in 1863 and raised in Dundee, Scotland, and went on to study at the University College London alongside celebrated archaeologists William Flinders Petrie and Margaret Murray. In 1896 Gourley was introduced to Benson by a mutual friend, Lady Jane Lindsay, while staying at the Luxor Hotel, where they quickly formed a working and likely a romantic relationship. Gourley had the academic experience needed to aid Benson in the latter’s passion project of excavating the Precinct of Mut, an ancient Egyptian Temple complex, the second season of which was the first female led excavation in Egypt, as they write in the preface of their report on the excavations they had “the first permission to excavate given to women in Egypt”.

Working together allowed the women to act independently of men in the field, and the couple continued for two seasons of excavations before Benson’s health declined and they returned to Britain. One of their most significant discoveries was a statue known as The Benson Head, which is now held in the British Museum. They planned to return to Egypt to continue excavations but due to Benson’s health never did. However, the couple co-authored a book on their excavation and findings at the Mut Precinct, which in 1899, became the first book on Egyptology by women to be published. Gourley went on to co-author a journal article with Percy Newberry in 1901, on the Mut excavations.

While historians continue to gloss over the romantic nature of Gourley and Benson’s relationship, describing them as “companions” “friends” and as “dying unmarried”, their own words consolidate their affection for each other. In one letter to Gourley, Benson wrote that she had been “dreaming of you” and later the same month wrote “I wish I knew the Gaelic language, for I believe you are able to say all sorts of affectionate things in it which English can’t express. I do want you in bodily presence very badly, my dearest.” Gourley’s partner was known to have “intense” relationships with women, and according to some historians Benson, her mother and two of her brothers were also likely queer. It is understood that in their circles it was well-known that the women were in a romantic relationship, a letter from Lindsay to Benson’s mother suggests Benson, who suffered from mental health issues, was “so full of vigour” and in “high spirits” in the company of Gourley. The two continued affectionate and frequent correspondence until Gourley’s death in 1912

Women in lesbian relationships could find themselves with more freedom than some of their peers, given the economic independence and freedom to travel and work as “companions” meant that these queer women at the turn of the century were able to develop both romantic and working relationships outside of the sphere of men. This working relationship can also be seen in the life of Kit Anstruther Thomson and her partner Vernon Lee.

Clementina ‘Kit’ Anstruther-Thomson (1857–1921)

The Scottish artist, art historian, theorist and writer Clementina ‘Kit’ Anstruther-Thomson lived openly as a lesbian in a long-term relationship with the essayist Violet Paget, also known as Vernon Lee, in Florence, Italy. Born in Edinburgh to a Scottish aristocratic family, Anstruther-Thomson studied at the Royal College of Art and Slade School of Art, becoming an art historian and theorist. Anstruther-Thomson is also remembered for her dedication to social reform, such as her support for the Bryant & May matchgirl strikes, and for her Humanist beliefs, as a member of the West London Ethical Society.

Described by friends and acquaintances as “witty” and statuesque, and likened to the Venus de Milo statue, Paget writes that she was already enamoured with Anstruther-Thomson before they met and fell in love in the summer of 1887. Anstruther-Thomson, the lover, muse and collaborator of Paget, was later described by her partner as a “goddess among goddesses”. The couple travelled around Europe, Anstruther-Thomson using her wealth and connections to tour private galleries across the continent. She was interested in classical art, from ancient Greece and Rome.

Paget and Anstruther-Thomson also worked together, publishing their seminal text on the psychological aesthetics ‘Beauty and Ugliness’ in 1897, which theorised individuals could have involuntary physical and psychological responses to visual stimuli such as artworks, creating an empathy with, attraction to, or revulsion of certain artistic works. Their contributions to the Victorian aestheticism movement is a key part of British art history, and as Hilary Fraser suggests, the couple’s pioneering work “made room for multiple versions of spectatorship, and so empowered women’s looking”.

The couple leased a villa in Florence and lived there together from 1888 until 1898, when Anstruther-Thomson left Paget, after suffering from a decline in her mental health, and returned to Britain. Although separated, the two remained close until Anstruther-Thomson’s death in London in 1921.Paget compiled her papers into the posthumously published Art and Man, which details Anstruther-Thomson’s life, ideas and work.

Within the world of art queer voices have often remained distinct, not fully brushed aside by historians, and partnerships such as Anstruther-Thomson and Paget have been well recorded in their own work and in the work and correspondence of their peers. The relationship between sculptor Harriet Hosmer and art collector Louisa Baring, Lady Ashburton, is similarly remembered by the artistic circles of their era

Louisa Caroline Baring, Lady Ashburton nee Stewart-MacKenzie (1827-1903)

Another key figure in the Scottish art world of the late 19th to early 20th century was the art collector and philanthropist Louisa Baring, Lady Ashburton. Baring is known to have been romantically involved with both women and men during her lifetime, including liaisons with prominent Victorian creatives Harriet Hosmer and Robert Browning.

Born in 1827 on the Isle of Lewis, to a Scottish aristocratic family, Baring’s childhood involved a lot of travel. Her early years were spent in Brahan Castle, Dingwall, before her family moved to Sri Lanka, and then Corfu, before finally returning to Scotland in 1843 after the death of her father. While Baring is remembered primarily as an art collector, socialite, and philanthropist she also studied drawing under the tutelage of John Ruskin. Baring rejected the advances of various eligible men from the art and literary circles of Britain, such as Edward Landseer, and married Lord Bingham Baring Ashburton in 1858. They were married for six years, until Lord Ashburton’s death in 1864. They had a daughter, Mary ‘Maysie’ Florence, named after Florence Nightingale, the innovative British nurse and statistician. Nightingale, who is sometimes considered to have been queer herself, was part of Baring’s close social circles which included great Victorian thinkers, innovators, and artists. Baring was described by her peers as an energetic, sometimes abrasive, romantic who was “socially ambitious” befriending and patronising artists, as one contemporary wrote, “bevies of impecunious artists hovered about her like locusts”.

Three years after the death of her husband Baring met the celebrated American sculptor Harriet ‘Hatty’ Hosmer (1830-1908), in the artist’s studio in the spring of 1867. They became close quickly, and a year later, during a trip abroad together, their friendship became a romance. Baring acted as both a patron and lover to Hosmer, who is known as the first female professional sculptor, providing the artist with a studio near her home in Knightsbridge, and using her socialite connections to create a community of artists around them. Hosmer was known to be lesbian, and is described by Vivien Green Fryd as “unconventional […] energetic and boyish”. Hosmer referred to Baring as her “wedded wife” and their letters record their desires eloquently as lovers, such as one in which Hosmer wrote “what I would not do to have you in my arms to kiss you and tell you how dearly I love you”.

However, their passionate 25-year relationship was complicated by affairs, and they rarely lived together. Unlike some of her other more socially reserved romances with women, such as a probable fling with her daughter’s tutor, Baring’s relationship with Hosmer was essentially ‘outedoutted’ to their wider social circles by Hosmer, when she ‘improperly’ spoke out against Robert Browning’s advances towards Baring.

Baring died in London from cancer in 1903. She is buried in Garve, Highland. After her death most of her art collection had been sold, and no inventory of it ever resurfaced, however it is known she had collected many important artworks by artists such as Rubens, Rossetti, Titian and of course, Hosmer.

Across different fields of expertise, from medicine, to history, to art, queer Scottish women have been an integral part of constructing our world, whether through fighting against injustices, pioneering routes for women into fields they were previously barred from, or being creatives, furthering our understanding of and access to art. These women, and their partners, are just a small slice of the lives of queer women in the late 1800s and early 1900s in Scotland, but their influence continues today; in our hospitals, in our universities, and in our daily lives. We mustn’t take for granted their contributions to our Scotland, but rather we must continue to open up the conversation, celebrating these women and their queerness, for who they were, paving a path into the future where all young women learn about their queer Scottish fore-mothers.

About the author

Gabrielle Hill-Smith

Freelance writer and student Gabrielle Hill-Smith was born in Australia and lives in Scotland. She studied English and Ancient history at the university of St. Andrew’s, and now works in publishing.

She runs a blog, has won various short story contests such as the Susie Warwick Young Writers Award, and has had work published in journals. She enjoys creating art and theatre, listening to Hozier, attempting to write a novel, and good cups of tea.

The familiar clasp of a hand on my shoulder stopped me from stumbling backwards off the bouldering mats. I stumbled a little as I landed, and another pair of hands reached out to steady me. Someone said ‘nice one!’ with such enthusiasm that it quieted the little voice in my head, telling me I’d failed.

Making new friends with Grunnd Club

The first time I stepped into a climbing gym as an adult, I was terrified. This was, in part, due to my fear of heights, but it was also because I was moving into a new and unfamiliar space. Around me, groups of men were chatting while their friends climbed, and a handful of women were also making moves on the wall - all of which looked impossible to me as a beginner climber. Luckily, I wasn’t alone in this new space, and I had a friend with me who showed me the way and helped me become more confident in my climbing and even in just being at the wall.

The memory of this experience, the apprehension that almost held me back from finding a new hobby and community, is part of the reason I joined Grunnd Club. Founded by a team of volunteers, Grunnd Club is a climbing collective for women (cis and trans) and non-binary people across Scotland. Thanks to the club, I’ve made new friends, developed my climbing skills, and gone on trips across Scotland to climb. Discovering this inclusive group has given me a space to learn without judgment and to experience my body as capable rather than scrutinised.

Climbing as community

Climbing is often framed as an individual pursuit, but it’s deeply social. When you climb with people, you build relationships based on trust, mutual support, and being seen while you try hard and sometimes fail. In mainstream climbing spaces, those dynamics can be shaped by competition or unspoken hierarchies that don’t always leave room for women, trans, and non-binary climbers to feel safe taking up space. The friendships I’ve built through climbing have developed out of care, shared vulnerability, and turning up for each other without expectation.

I really enjoy climbing. It’s a relatively accessible sport; bouldering, in particular, allows you to take part in a group activity but on your own terms. If it’s something you’ve considered trying but haven’t quite felt confident enough to do, I highly recommend giving it a go. That said, the community I’ve found is really what it’s all about for me. People come along to climb with us for lots of reasons, many wanting to meet new people or just to climb as part of a group, but everyone who comes back does so because when we’re together, we create a space that values community and care.

My friends and fellow climbers are always there to catch me when I fall, to make sure I land on the mats, and to pick me up when I start to doubt myself. With renewed confidence, I turn back to the boulder and decide to try again.

About the Author

Mel Reeve is a committee member of Grunnd Club.

Grunnd Club is a climbing collective for women (cis and trans) and non-binary people across Scotland, organised by a committee of volunteers. You’re welcome, whether you’re new to climbing or have years of experience.

She was also on our 30 Under 30 List in 2020.

Find Grunnd Club on Substack and Instagram.

Connection through shared purpose

For many of us, friendship doesn’t start with small talk. It starts with a shared purpose. Showing up to the same campaign meeting, creative workshop, or community project, often a little nervous and unsure who else will be there.

There’s something quietly reassuring about that kind of beginning. You’re not there to impress or perform. You’re there because you care about something bigger than the social moment.

Research into how volunteering supports social connection shows that shared activity helps people form meaningful relationships and feel less isolated. Working towards something together builds trust, belonging, and emotional safety — foundations that friendship can grow from.

In my own experience, this has been true. Some of my closest friendships formed through volunteering with university societies and projects with The Young Women’s Movement, where we worked together to plan events, host discussions, and create spaces for people to feel heard. Over time, collaboration softened into care. Messages of encouragement, shared travel, and conversations that stretched far beyond the original project brief.

Why this kind of friendship feels different

Project-based friendships feel different from traditional socialising. There’s less pressure to perform, less fear of saying the wrong thing. You already share something important: a value, a concern, a hope for change.

One evening, after a long event in Glasgow, a group of us found ourselves on the late train back home: exhausted, slightly wired, and unexpectedly open. We talked about burnout, ambition, self-doubt, and the quiet fear of not being enough.

I didn’t realise I was making friends, I just knew I felt steadier when these people were beside me.

Research on volunteering and emotional wellbeing supports this, showing that shared purpose can reduce anxiety and strengthen feelings of belonging, particularly for young people navigating uncertain futures.

From collaborators to community

Some of the best moments didn’t happen during the projects themselves. They happened around them: waiting for buses in the drizzle outside community halls, sharing snacks on long train journeys between Stirling, Edinburgh, and Glasgow, and grabbing cups of tea after long days of organising.

These moments felt small, but they built trust. There’s an intimacy in travelling together, especially late at night or after emotionally demanding work. You see each other tired, passionate, unfiltered.

These moments also made me realise that friendship isn’t always about being around people you like. Sometimes it’s about being around people who work with you, who balance your ideas, who hold space when things get messy.

A different kind of Galentine’s

Galentine’s Day often celebrates friendship through gifts, brunches, and big joyful gestures. But it’s also worth honouring the quieter friendships. The ones formed accidentally. The ones built through late nights, shared values, and collective care.

If making friends feels hard right now, you’re not doing anything wrong. Connection doesn’t always arrive when we’re looking for it. Sometimes, it finds us when we’re busy caring about something bigger than ourselves.

And sometimes, the most meaningful friendships begin not with “we met on a night out”, but with:

We met because we cared about the same things.

Get Involved

If you’re craving connection, consider getting involved in a local project, campaign, or volunteering opportunity. You might not find instant friendship, but you might find people who care about the same things as you.

And this Galentine’s Day, maybe message someone you met through shared purpose and thank them for showing up alongside you.

Join the movement

Events and opportunities at The Young Women’s Movement

Join the movement

Bethany Spain

Bethany Spain is a writer and communications specialist working in the third sector, with a focus on community storytelling and social justice.

Alongside her professional work, she volunteers with organisations supporting young people and grassroots activism, and writes about feminism, social mobility, youth voice and wellbeing. She is passionate about building spaces where everyone can feel connected, supported, and heard.

Bethany was on our 2025 30 Under 30 List – find out more about her work.

Before it became a so-called ‘celebration of women,’ Galentine’s Day was a fictional concept, one that has since been transformed into a consumer ritual. Typically observed on February 13^th, it was first introduced in 2009 in the television series Parks and Recreation.

The idea was presented through the character Leslie Knope, portrayed by Amy Poehler. In the now-iconic episode ‘Galentine’s Day,’ Leslie brings together a group of women, friends and strangers alike, for a deliberately over-the-top celebration of female friendship held at a local restaurant. The gathering is marked by excess and enthusiasm. Each woman is given a gift bag with hand-crocheted flower pens, a mosaic portrait assembled from crushed bottles of her favourite diet soda, and a lengthy personalised essay explaining why she is considered exceptional.

The exaggeration was the point: an affectionate parody of affirmation culture, excess, and Leslie Knope’s relentless optimism. Galentine’s Day was never intended to offer a blueprint for a real-world behaviour or an idealised model of womanhood. Yet as the concept migrated from television into everyday practice, its ironic distance was gradually lost. What began as a playful joke about friendship was later aestheticised and commodified, laying the groundwork for the cultural expectations now surrounding the holiday.

How did it gain popularity?

Galentine’s Day did not spread organically; it was amplified. As celebrities, influencers, and lifestyle media began to reference it, the fictional holiday acquired social credibility. Public acknowledgements by figures such as Michelle Obama helped propel it into mainstream culture, where it could be recognised, repeated, and ritualised.

Social media then reshaped the celebration entirely. Platforms built on visibility and performance translated Galentine’s Day into a set of images and expectations. Soft colour palettes, coordinated outfits, styled tables, curated menus, wine and cheese nights, pottery workshops, and gift exchanges came to define what participation was supposed to look like. Restaurants filled weeks in advance, while online tutorials offered guidance on hosting the “perfect” Galentine’s event.

The result? What began as a light-hearted joke was recast as a lifestyle event. Galentine’s Day became something to plan, purchase, and display, shaped by visibility, consumerism, and implicit forms of exclusion.

A Feminist Critique of Galentine’s Day

From a feminist perspective, Galentine’s Day, as it is currently popularised, warrants scrutiny.

This is not a rejection of affection, creativity, or collective joy, nor a dismissal of celebration itself. Rather, it interrogates the conditions under which celebration is increasingly permitted to exist. At its core, this critique addresses consumerism and the subtle social pressures that dictate how participation should look, feel, and be publicly performed, shaping Galentine’s Day around dominant norms rather than the diversity of women’s lived experiences.

In mainstream culture, the holiday centres a narrow and socially legible version of womanhood: polished, feminine, heteronormative, socially connected, and financially comfortable. It assumes stability in gender identity, comfort within traditional femininity, and access to the economic and social resources that make participation possible. Those who are questioning their sexuality or gender, who exist outside binary frameworks, or who do not recognise themselves in conventional scripts of womanhood are largely absent from this narrative. It also excludes considerations of racial marginalisation, class, ability, or caregiving responsibilities, which shape who can realistically participate.

The visual language surrounding Galentine’s Day reinforces this narrowing. Pink palettes, “cute” symbolism, and hyper-curated performances of closeness do more than decorate the celebration; they communicate expectations about how women should appear, relate, and express intimacy. Rather than expanding the possibilities of womanhood, these repeated codes compress it into something uniform, decorative, and easily consumable, inadvertently reinscribing stereotypes feminist politics aims to dismantle.

This narrowing is compounded by the growing pressure to participate. What might otherwise be a voluntary moment of connection increasingly operates as a social obligation: to host, attend, spend, and be seen. Under these conditions, celebration risks producing comparison and fatigue rather than care or belonging.

Finally, questions of purpose and authenticity remain. Is Galentine’s Day a genuine challenge to romantic hierarchies, or a softened response to Valentine’s Day that leaves existing systems of value intact? When friendship becomes something to stage and display, intimacy risks turning into performance.

Rethinking How We Celebrate Friendship

Friendship does not need to be visible to be real. It exists in care, attention, and the quiet ways people remain present for one another, even when no one is watching.

Celebration can be small, private, and ordinary. It can happen at home, alone, or with someone you trust. It does not require money, gifts, or social validation. If you do not have friends to celebrate with, that does not mean you are inadequate or unloved. Solitude can be a time of transition, growth and self-reflection.

Access to traditional celebrations is uneven. Economic precarity, caregiving responsibilities, disability, racial or cultural marginalisation, and differing gender all shape how connection is experienced. A feminist approach values these diverse experiences rather than enforcing uniform, performative rituals.

Practical alternatives can include:

• Writing a note of appreciation to a friend, near or far.

• Sharing a meal, walk, or online call with someone you trust.

• Practicing self-care or reflecting on relationships that sustain you.

• Creating a small, inclusive ritual with loved ones (e.g. watching a movie together).

If you choose to mark the day, do so with kindness toward yourself. Let it be gentle and honest. If you celebrate with others, allow it to be simple. What matters is care, not performance.

A Call to Action

Galentine’s Day does not need to be rejected, but it does need to be questioned. Be critical of what you consume, celebrate, and share, and remember that social media offers a curated reality, not the full truth. Feminism is not aesthetic performance, but care, inclusivity, autonomy, and resistance to commodification. Celebrate friendship on your own terms, or not at all.

Both choices are feminist.

About the author

Stella Molinelli is an International Relations and Arabic student at the University of St Andrews, with a strong interest in intersectional approaches to security studies and humanitarian development. Her research focus includes terrorism, ethical artificial intelligence, and trauma-informed support for vulnerable communities. She is part of the Young Women Lead AI programme and is actively involved in outreach and tutoring initiatives aimed at empowering youth and refugee communities affected by conflict and displacement.

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This Galentine’s day we wanted to explore the friendships that sustain us - the ones built on trust, solidarity and shared struggle. From climbing walls to cultural critique, this collection looks at women’s friendships as spaces for safety and resistance. This kind of love runs deeper than romance.

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