“Empowerment.” The word is bandied about relatively freely by the women in our industry. I myself have fallen victim to its use on multiple occasions, I won’t deny it. But what do we mean? Why do we always have to go on about how shooting is “empowering?”
I guess my hesitation with the word “empowering” is that the empowerment of shooting isn’t an immediate effect. I don’t go out to the gun range because I feel “tough.” Shooting is fun, it’s social, it’s unique – every time you hit the range you see those aspects of the sport. Empowering? That’s a more subtle thing.
Photo by Weapon Outfitters.
The empowerment behind shooting is not the sport in itself. Empowerment comes from inside the person, from their self esteem and their inner strength. What makes shooting empowering could be identified as a gun being “the great equalizer,” but there’s more to it than that. Shooting is a step outside of comfort boundaries for many, and trying new things, excellling at new things, enjoying new things is a level of empowerment all on its own.
I find a lot of shooters are complacent in a way, especially women shooters. They have a gun and now they’re “empowered,” and if they really do feel good about themselves that’s excellent, but why stop there? Pushing boundaries and being strong, internally and externally, should be a part of everyday life. Whether that’s from demanding respect by excelling at whatever it is you do or going sky diving for the first time, opportunites are everywhere.
I strongly believe everyone has the ability to feel good about themselves. It’s one of the reasons I’m so dedicated to the shooting sports and getting more people involved. Shooting helped me find my own personal strength and I know it makes that same difference in the lives of others every day. I don’t want to see people stop there though. I think it’s important to pursue excellence, to train more, to shoot more and to find more ways to broaden your horizons and live life to the fullest.
Opening your mind and trying something new is a harsh lesson for some. And while we, as shooters, ask people every day to do it for us sometimes we hesitate to remember what we are asking and to remember to do it ourselves.
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