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pen_gruntThings that drive me nuts?
When someone says something like this:
"Well, of course I think women should get equal pay for equal work...but I wouldn't call myself a FEMINIST."
Anti-feminists (is that the right term? I don't even know.) have done a very good job of demonizing feminism as an extreme and untenable thing (i.e. "Man haters!" "Bra-burners" "Feminazis!") which has a lot of women (and others) who do--at the heart of it--believe in feminist principles deny their status as a feminist.
I've even heard this from someone I would consider very "feminist" in their views:
"I'm not a feminist because I don't like to be labeled."
or
"I'm not a feminist. I believe that women should be able to be stay at home moms if they want to and not be forced to go back to work." [The key component here is the phrasing "if they want to" and "forced"...how is the idea of career/parenting choice NOT feminist?]
Congrats, anti-feminists. When someone says things like this, you've won.
It's not just on-the-fence or traditional-values people who say things like this. I would label D a feminist (he acts--in every single way--in accordance with feminist values) but I doubt that he would voluntarily declare that he's a feminist. When asked he would accept the label without argument, but it's not how he self-identifies.
When someone says something like this:
"Well, of course I think women should get equal pay for equal work...but I wouldn't call myself a FEMINIST."
Anti-feminists (is that the right term? I don't even know.) have done a very good job of demonizing feminism as an extreme and untenable thing (i.e. "Man haters!" "Bra-burners" "Feminazis!") which has a lot of women (and others) who do--at the heart of it--believe in feminist principles deny their status as a feminist.
I've even heard this from someone I would consider very "feminist" in their views:
"I'm not a feminist because I don't like to be labeled."
or
"I'm not a feminist. I believe that women should be able to be stay at home moms if they want to and not be forced to go back to work." [The key component here is the phrasing "if they want to" and "forced"...how is the idea of career/parenting choice NOT feminist?]
Congrats, anti-feminists. When someone says things like this, you've won.
It's not just on-the-fence or traditional-values people who say things like this. I would label D a feminist (he acts--in every single way--in accordance with feminist values) but I doubt that he would voluntarily declare that he's a feminist. When asked he would accept the label without argument, but it's not how he self-identifies.
