what is the song you don't own me about
You Don't Own Me The song expresses a threatened emancipation, as the singer tells a lover that he does not own her, that he is not to tell her what to do or what to say, and that he is not to put her on display. The song's lyrics became an inspiration for younger women and are sometimes cited as a factor in the second wave feminist movement.[2] Gore said, "My take on the song was: I'm 17, what a wonderful thing, to stand up on a stage and shake your finger at people and sing you don't own me."[3] In Gore's obituary, The New York Times referred to "You Don't Own Me" as "indelibly defiant".[4]