Feminism And The Feminist Movement

While controversial, I strongly believe feminism is one of the multiple different problems of America today. Saying this will probably spark reactions such as “misogynist” and such, however, I believe in this because I really do believe in equality between the two sexes. Feminism is a movement that today is only creating advantages for women while claiming to be benefiting both sexes. In fact, a study conducted in the United States by The Fawcett Society and Kaiser Family Foundation (2016) showed fewer than 1 in 5 women describe themselves as a “feminist” even though over 85% of them believe in equality between the sexes, why? Because it is clear that feminism has become something different now. It has little to do with equality and moreso hating on men by making laws where women have the upperhand such as almost always getting the child in a divorce unless the man can prove the woman is not suited for the child, or inventing terms such as “manspreading” which is the act of a male spreading his legs in a public area to showcase “dominance”. These faults explain why women happen to be abandoning it by the millions. In the United Kingdom the numbers were even worse, just 7% of women describe themselves as a feminist despite just about 92% believing in equality between the sexes (The Fawcett Society, 2016). This shows people see a difference between the two words “feminism” and “equality”. It spreads false information such as the supposed “wage gap” and tries to constantly position women as the victims.

In order to understand the present day feminist movement, one must understand how feminism originated and the basic definition of feminism. What comes to mind when you hear the word feminism? For many, phrases like “man-hater” and “feminazi” have become equated with feminism. However, feminism is quite simply defined as “political, economic, and social equality of

To admit or to label oneself as a feminist is to accept a whirlwind of judgment from those around you. It is without a doubt that the word “Feminism” or “Feminist” turns heads, and not necessarily for the right reasons. Many have resorted to mocking, disagreeing, and/or hating Feminism without even having a good grasp of what it is. The stigmas that feminists face are that they are radical, extremist, liberal, lesbians who hate men, refuse to shave and enjoy burning bras (Lee).Conversely, feminists are principally advocates for social justice and equality as well as aim for the establishment of equally divided power between the sexes. It is obvious that many are unaware of and uneducated on the misogynistic injustices plaguing our world and the toxic environment we all live in- both women and men. Feminism is a positive concept that works to eliminate injustices between both sexes and to establish the value of women, thus should be treated as such a concept instead of being a forbidden idea.

Early feminism was typically focused only on white women, likely because racism was still extremely prominent at the time feminism began emerging. It was not until Kimberlé Crenshaw introduced the term “intersectionality” in 1989 that feminism started to look at oppressed group’s needs (Nash, 2008, 2). Intersectionality is a way of thinking that acknowledges that when a person has identities that belong to more than one oppressed group, it impacts their quality of life more negatively. In this paper, I will argue that intersectionality is important in the discussion of feminist theories and activism because it ensures that feminism is for all women, not just a select group of them. Intersectionality has changed the way the feminist movement handles the overlapping of different identities, which has helped feminist theorists understand the experiences of women of colour much more clearly. While intersectionality has a very important role in the conversation and practice of feminism, there are certainly critiques of the concept that should be brought up. These critiques, however, can offer a way to improve the study of intersectionality.

When thinking about feminism in today’s society we tend to direct our minds and thoughts to a more radical and powerful train of thought. Feminism has been going on for centuries, with two main ideologies at the forefront; liberal and cultural feminism. Someone who identifies as a liberal feminist is someone who believes that women and men are a like and equal in most respects and deserve equal roles and opportunities (Wood & Fixmer-Oraiz, 2017, p. 58). And cultural feminism is someone who identifies as someone who believes that men and women are fundamentally differently; you have different rights, role and opportunities (Wood & Fixmer-Oraiz, 2017, p. 58). The women’s rights movement can be understood and broken down into three “waves”.

Feminists today are viewed as raging, man-hating bitches, but feminism in its true sense simply advocates women’s rights. While there are extremes on either side of the scale, most feminists fight

Around the years 1848 and 1869, the Feminist and Suffrage movement started to take off, and was named "the emergence of an independent women 's movement in America" (Dubois Title). During these times, societal standards taught that a woman belonged either in the kitchen, or serving her family. This presented few opportunities for education and/or careers for women. In turn, many women realized they didn 't want to only serve their families, or even have a family. They decided to stand up for themselves. This was the beginning of a revolution that is unfortunately still going on today.

What does it mean to be a Feminist? Does it automatically mean you hate men or does it mean you're an activist for women's rights? Contrary to popular belief, feminism is not about establishing a superior gender. It is about fighting for equality and destroying the social, cultural and historical norms set upon women throughout the world. The Twenty-first century has brought change and growth to female empowerment. Although, in many parts of the world women are given the same rights as men, they are still treated and viewed inferior to men. G.I. Jane perfectly illustrates the struggle women have gone through, even when given “identical” opportunities as men.

Feminism is a living word. There can never truly be a one set definition for the word as the term has often shifted meanings to correspond to the time period. Feminists fight for the rights that men have under the United States Constitution and to have the right to not be discriminated against. Any action against any woman, intentional or not, goes against the principles that many women and men stand for.

The definition of feminism is very elusive. Maybe because of its ever-changing historical meaning, it’s not for certain whether there is any coherence to the term feminism or if there is a definition that will live up to the movement’s variety of adherents and ideas. In the book “No Turning Back,” author Estelle Freedman gives an accurate four-part definition of the very active movement: “Feminism is a belief that women and men are inherently part of equal worth. Because most societies privilege men as a group, social movements are necessary to achieve equality between women and men, with the understanding that gender always intersects with other social hierarchies” (Freedman 7).

“‘Feminism’ is an umbrella term for a range of views about injustices against women”(Fisanick). Many people are not educated about what feminism really is. People automatically think just by hearing the word that it is something women created against men, not true. A feminist is anybody who wants equality between men and women. “Being a feminist has nothing to do with how you look, what you wear, who you date. Being a feminist doesn’t mean you think women deserve special rights; it means you know we deserve equal ones” (Cavanagh). Everyone should educate themselves and advocate feminism to help spread equality, get people equal pay and stop stereotypes against men and

Feminism is defined as “the advocacy of women’s right on the grounds of political, social, or economic equality to men.” Inspired by other, similar movements, women began their own push for equal rights and helped to improve the lives of many other Americans around them. However, feminism is more than the basic dictionary definition. Feminism is a movement that has greatly changed and has a different meaning to people of every race, age, background, and even gender.

“Feminism by definition, is the advocacy of women’s rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality to men (google).” However, there are many different kinds of feminism. Feminists disagree what feminism consists of and what exactly should be done about it; there are many controversial arguments on what is means to be a woman or a man and what political implications each gender has or shouldn’t have. Feminism in the past years, has been growing in the media and is affecting the way people view feminism.

With the rise of the feminist movement there have been many significant advances toward women gaining equality in all aspects of life. Media has a strong influence on society and it is continuously educating, informing and conditioning how humans behave and display themselves. With the media endorsing so many hyper sexualized images of men and women, it is very unlikely that these ideas would render no impact on our sense of identity. Feminism is a social principle and political movement mostly based on and aggravated by the experiences of women. It usually provides a critique of social relations, however many aspects of feminism also focuses on evaluating gender inequality and the support of women’s civil rights, benefits and concerns. A person who subscribes to feminism can be either a male or a female. Feminist theory recognizes the nature of gender biases and focuses on gender politics, power and sexuality. Themes explored in feminism include inequality, stereotyping, sexual objectification, domination and patriarchy. Cultural critic Bell Hooks describes “feminism is a movement to end sexism, sexist exploitation, and oppression”. However, despite the ongoing progression of feminism many of the issues that feminism is fundamentally opposed to are still heavily ingrained in society. For example, magazines, music videos and advertisements often normalize the objectification and sexualisation of women and men for profit, all of which can have an adverse affect on people.

The first major misconception about feminism is that the women are the only ones who can be feminist. This is extremely untrue. The people who work to support this movement are not only women. They work in many ways to help promote equality. For example, “endorsing feminist beliefs, identifying oneself as a feminist, and participating in feminist collective action” (Precopio & Ramsey 2017). These are all ways that feminists work to promote a better society. However, the negative stigma and stereotypes surrounding feminism and its supporters discourages men and women from having any part of Feminism. This is in part, the fault of those who spread