Watch Emma Watson Explain Why She’s a Feminist

1 minute read

British actress Emma Watson called on men and boys around the globe to join the movement for gender equality during a moving speech given in her role as U.N. Women global goodwill ambassador.

“I want men to take up this mantle. So their daughters, sisters and mothers can be free from prejudice, but also so that their sons have permission to be vulnerable and human too — reclaim those parts of themselves they abandoned and in doing so be a more true and complete version of themselves,” she said at the U.N. headquarters in New York City on Saturday.

The 24-year-old actress, who gained worldwide fame for her role as Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter movie franchise, was speaking as part of the HeForShe global solidarity movement to promote women’s rights and equality between the sexes.

See full video of her speech below.

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Write to Charlie Campbell at charlie.campbell@time.com