Intelligence and inspiration are rare commodities these days among young celebrities. However, 24-year-old British actress Emma Watson gave an impassioned speech on feminism and gender equality at the United Nations headquarters in New York on Sept. 20 to launch the “HeForShe” campaign. The ‘’HeForShe’’ movement aims to galvanize one billion men and boys to advocate the ending of inequalities that women and girls face globally.

Earlier this summer, fresh from college graduation, Watson was named a U.N. Women Goodwill Ambassador. Her involvement has rippled across the media when she crashed the U.N. Web site, used Twitter to denounce a sexist politician in Turkey, and responded to the gender politics of the recent celebrity nude photo hack. However, Watson’s power in person had an entirely different effect.

Watson’s speech, which was met with a thunderous standing ovation, not only called for action from male supporters, but simplified an insistent misunderstanding about feminism in general. She said, ‘’I decided I was a feminist and this seemed uncomplicated to me. But my recent research has shown me that feminism has become an unpopular word. Apparently I am among the ranks of women whose expressions are seen as too strong, too aggressive, isolating, anti-men and, unattractive.’’

Watson is fighting back against recent campaigns like Women Against Feminism. As Watson puts it elsewhere in her speaking, these movements depict the feminist basis as “man-hating.” By involving both genders in the “HeForShe” campaign, Watson hopes to abolish the “us vs. them” mentality.

Watson is potentially in an even better position than many of her colleagues to do so. Her role as Hermione Granger, the universally adored heroine of the Harry Potter series, gives her automatic popularity with male and female audiences. This is a rare case where an actor being conflated with their role might be a good thing. In this way, her extensive impact on young minds, which are still forming their opinions on gender roles and activism, is even stronger than other prominent defenders of feminism like Beyoncé.

Watson’s Harry Potter association also carries with it a disadvantage –– the fear she might not be taken seriously. She addresses this worry in her speech: ‘’You might be thinking who is this Harry Potter girl? And what is she doing up on stage at the UN? It’s a good question and trust me I have been asking myself the same thing. I don’t know if I am qualified to be here. All I know is that I care about this problem. And I want to make it better.’’

The Harry Potter association will always follow Watson. Even U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon joked, “She’s been waving a magic wand. I hope you use your magic wand to end violence against women!” But with her stern attitude to activism, it’s impossible to laugh off Watson’s message.

You can watch her entire speech here:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkjW9PZBRfk