Who is a feminist?

 

 

The word feminist holds some stigmas in the mind of Americans. Feminist- (n). angry, man-haters, bra-burners, hairy, smelly women that always find something to complain about. Although that isn' the real definition, people still think of those words when they think about feminism. Often women shy away from the term and choose not to identify with it even though they are very much female activists. Jenna Goudreau, of Forbes Magazine, discussed these ideas in her article Who's Afraid of Post-Feminism? What it Means to be a Feminist Today. In it, Goudreau interviews many high power and influential women of the current generations and those before us about what feminism means to them in today's society. Goudreau also acknowledges the stigma placed on the term and why it gets such a bad reputation.

Quoted in the article, Irin Carmon, defined what she thought feminism stood for, "[It] is the recognition that women are human beings with the right to full participation in society... What that means in practice is ensuring reproductive freedom, working to prevent discrimination and sexual assault, and trying to create a world of relationships and partnerships that reflect and enable women’s contributions". In recent news, the argument of legitimate rape has sparked conflict. A main focus of the presidential election was on women's reproductive rights and whether or not women's contraception would be covered under health care/insurance. One problem with girls and young women identifying themselves as feminists revolves around their misunderstanding of the term. Many girls aren't educated on what feminism is and how it is still important to today's society. In school, girls are educated on how first-wave feminists gained us the right to vote and second-wave feminists fought for our place in the workplace, but many don't see the equality gap that still needs to be addressed by our generations. Girls and young women have been conditioned to believe that if women aren't in the workplace, it's because they choose not to. One activist Goudreau quotes says it best I believe, "The bottom line: I don’t care if a woman wants to call herself ‘squirrel,’ as long as she fights for herself and other women".

 

When our class began we were asked to describe what feminists were to us. Many of us used the same terms describe above- angry, pushy, man-haters. Over the course of the semester, I have seen a shift in our views toward feminism. Many of us were blind to the still prevalent equality gap amongst men and women, along with the intersectionality of class, race, and sexuality. The class has opened our eyes to the still existing problems surrounding equality in America- a country that is supposed to be open and accepting, paving the ways for other countries across the globe. Through education, I believe girls and boys can begin to learn about feminism without the stigmas if taught correctly. I believe this education is pertinent to continuing to evolve and dissolve the gender gap. Though the students in our class may not call ourselves feminists, I believe we all identify with feminism and strive for equality for ourselves and other women in the world. Just like the picture above, anyone can be a feminist, feminist strive for gender equality regardless of gender, race, sexuality, class, etc.