Jessica Alba details how she tackled sexism as a Hollywood star and a businesswoman

Hollywood star Jessica Alba is speaking out against the sexism she had to face in her acting career as well as when she started her own business. 

While in conversation with People, Alba said she always wanted to be treated with the same respect that her male counterparts were receiving.

"I always wanted to be treated the way that I saw men being treated. Men were told, 'Oh, you're really smart' if you have ideas about the character or the story, where for the women it was like, 'What? You have an opinion?'" she said.

"It was like you came off as aggressive where a man just looked really assertive and powerful,” she shared.

The actor went on to say that she noticed that in Hollywood, it was "quite oppressive in a lot of ways when it came to women having an equal standing."

Alba further said she felt “empowered” only after she allowed herself to feel that way.

"For a long time, I felt like I didn't deserve it. Trying to reach a goal is one thing, but giving myself the space to be successful and acknowledge that, or even giving myself the space to feel intelligent, was hard,” she said.