6 times Ariana Grande awesomely proved she isn't here for casual sexism.
In recent days, the pop star's made headlines for all the right reasons. Here are a few more examples.
Ariana Grande is perhaps best known for her pop vocal prowess, but she's also a pretty badass feminist.
It's OK if you hadn't noticed (I wasn't especially aware of this, either) as the media has a tendency to focus more on her behavior as it pertains to things like Donutgate (aka the time she said "I hate America") as opposed to, say, the times she's shut down body-shamers and music industry sexism.
Below are six times Ariana Grande showed off her feminist bona fides.
1. That time she made it clear that's she's not here for body-shamers.
After seeing someone tweet "Got asked if I'd prefer @arielwinter1 or @ArianaGrande lol, it wud DEFINITELY be @arielwinter1 curves are sexy sticks aren't," Grande typed up an epic response about body shaming and pitting women against themselves:
"We live in a day and age when people make it IMPOSSIBLE for women, men, anyone to embrace themselves exactly how they are. Diversity is sexy! Loving yourself is sexy! You know what is NOT sexy? Misogyny, objectifying, labeling, comparing and body shaming!!! Talking about people's bodies as if they're on display ASKING for your approval/opinion. THEY ARE NOT!!! CELEBRATE YOURSELF. CELEBRATE OTHERS. The things that make us different from one another make us BEAUTIFUL. BODY BOUNDARIES. LOVE LOVE LOVE ONLY."
Winter, who stars on "Modern Family," responded, and the patriarchy blew up like the Death Star (OK, not really, but it was a very cool moment).
2. That time she handled ridiculous questions during a recent radio interview by turning the tables on the DJs.
Grande recently appeared on Power 106 Los Angeles to discuss her new single, "Focus." During the course of the 26-minute interview, there were a few moments worthy of eye-rolls.
The first was when she was given a strange hypothetical question about whether she'd rather go without makeup or her phone for the rest of her life.
The second was when one of the interviewers suggested that certain emojis were "girls'" and certain were "boys.'" She had some thoughts on that, as well.
3. That time she and her mom teamed up to tackle gender equality at the newsstand (or at least highlight it).
Just in case you're wondering where Grande gets her feminist streak, you can thank her mom Joan.
And I could've ended this twitter conversation here, as it illustrates my point well enough, but the next two tweets are too beautiful to leave out:
4. That time back in June, when Grande went on an epic rant about sexism — both in the media and society as a whole.
"I am tired of living in a world where women are mostly referred to as a man's past, present or future PROPERTY/POSSESSION," she writes. For more highlights, check out this post over at Bustle.
5. All the times when she's been all about voicing support for women, especially on International Women's Day.
You won't usually see Grande using her social platform (with its tens of millions of followers) to tear into other women. Mostly, you'll find stuff like this, meant to lift and inspire other women to keep kicking ass. She's far from perfect, but aren't we all?
6. She's not about to let other women bring her down either — even if they're people she idolizes.
In an interview with The Telegraph, Middler shared her thoughts on the "pornification" of the music industry.
“It's terrible! It's always surprising to see someone like Ariana Grande with that silly high voice, a very wholesome voice, slithering around on a couch, looking so ridiculous. I mean, it's silly beyond belief and I don't know who's telling her to do it. I wish they'd stop. But it's not my business, I'm not her mother. Or her manager. Maybe they tell them that's what you've got to do. Sex sells. Sex has always sold."
Later, Middler added, "You don't have to make a whore out of yourself to get ahead. You really don't."
Taken aback after getting slammed by one of her idols, Grande responded by tweeting a picture of Middler doing her mermaid routine, captioning it, "Bette was always a feminist who stood for women being able to do whatever the F they wanted without judgement! Not sure where that Bette went, but I want that sexy mermaid back!!! Always a fan no matter what my love."
Maybe you don't like her music or you still feel weird about that whole doughnut thing, but at least give her credit for this.
People aren't perfect, and yes, your favorite will always be problematic. Even so, Ariana Grande deserves some major props for taking a stand on issues affecting her and all women. Way to go, Ariana!