Just another pregnancy rumour?

Why are we so obsessed with the contents of women's wombs?

Yesterday Beyoncé posted the above photo on Instagram which has had over 1 million 'likes'. Since then my social media feeds have been flooded with speculation that she is pregnant again. IF she is pregnant, then that's great for her, but why is it that if a female celebrity wears a looser fitting outfit, refuses a drink or happens to be buried in sand with a *slight* mound over her stomach that everybody instantly takes that to mean that she must be pregnant. And if she is, should she not be able to announce it in her own time? If all celebrity pregnancy rumours were to be true just imagine the amount of babies that Kate Middleton would have had by now. 

This is all just an extension of everyday sexism. Female stars are incessantly judged if they do not have children, or are unmarried in a way that men are not. Just look at the spinster label attached to stars like Jennifer Aniston because she is not currently married, nor does she have children. Before he got married George Clooney was simply seen to be an eligible bachelor, not someone we should feel sorry for. Women in general face so many hardships without the added pressure of everybody watching their biological clocks. 

Simple things like the heavy expectations placed on women to have children by a certain age and the perceived selfishness and essential criminialisation of those that choose not to have children proves that Feminism is still an issue today. Feminism is still 100% necessary in 2015 this is because we live in a world where women like Kayley Cuoco- Sweeting say they have no first- hand experience of sexism and say they are not feminists. However Kayley, as with all other women, is a victim of sexism. Despite her professional achievements, essentially she will be judged by the rest of society based on  the contents or existence of her womb. 

Women like Kayley need to be educated on what Feminism actually means, it is not about hating men or shunning personal grooming. It is simply the need for equality of the sexes in every sense. That''s it.  I could list all of the ways where women face inequalities but I do not have an infinite amount of time, and I can only assume that you do not either. Caitlin Moran, my feminist icon, does a good job in 'How To Be A Woman', This is an  essential read for everyone!

What do you think about the issue of female celebrity pregnancy rumours? Is it harmless fun or blatant sexism?  Let me know in the comments?