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Though she works to empower women, Salma Hayek does not consider herself a feminist.

"I am not a feminist," she told People magazine. "If men were going through the things women are going through today, I would be fighting for them with just as much passion. I believe in equality."

The 48-year-old actress spoke to the magazine before receiving an award from Equality Now at the Make Equality Reality event in Beverly Hills on Monday.

Hayek said she's also trying to be a good role model to her 7-year-old daughter, Valentina, with husband Francois-Henri Pinault.

"I don't preach to her every day," Hayek told People. "She's aware that her mommy fights for the rights of women, that there are many places in the world where they are not entitled to the rights."

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Hayek shared that her daughter is a "big fan" of Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani activist who won the Nobel Peace Prize for standing up to the Taliban.

"She understands who she is and what she does," the actress said about her daughter and Yousafzai. "Because of this, it makes her appreciate her own opportunities for education. She knows everything I do for Chime for Change and how important it is in my life. That's all I can do. Just try to live an example of the things I believe in."

Chime for Change is the global women's charity Hayek co-founded with Beyonce to raise funds and awareness for projects that promote education, health and justice for women and girls.

Accepting her award, Hayek explained why her work with the charity and on behalf of women is so important.

"It is your choice to decide what is going to be your contribution to your lifetime in the world," she told the crowd, according to People. "If it's going to be about women, we will provide the tools so you can know what's going on. The next step is to create a coalition of warriors who want to create war against violence and against hate."