International Women's Day

You know what annoys me? When women say, blushingly, "well, I'm not a feminist..."

Really? Why aren't you a feminist? What do you think feminist means? 

Here, I'll help...

Merriam-Webster says:

Definition of FEMINISM

1

: the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes

2

: organized activity on behalf of women's rights and interests

 

 

So...  what is your issue? You don't want to be associated with equality of the sexes or women's rights? 

Oh wait, I get it - you don't like the connotations that go along with the stereotype of a man-hating feminist! You think that calling yourself a feminist will scare men away or make  you look like a hypocrite because you like the idea of having babies some day.  Oh, probably worst of all, you think that as a North American woman, equality has already been achieved and you don't have to think about feminism anymore.

 

Well, fuck off. 

 

First of all, there is nothing about being a feminist that indicates you have to be anti-menfolk. If you are dating a man who would be against you being a feminist, than I think you should look more closely at what sort of man that is - why doesn't he see you as an equal? One of the major aspects of feminism is giving women choices - if you want to have children, let that be your choice, not because you were impregnated as a 13-year-old child bride or because you were never given access to proper contraceptive care.

 

Finally, this idea that Western women have no further to go is insulting. We still live in a society where how you dress can be an invitation to sexual assault, and where the onus is on women to not get ourselves raped rather than being on men not to do the raping. Moreover, how narrow minded can we all be that we are only looking at our own countries and deeming everything a-okay? Women and girls around the world are suffering from grievous inequalities, and this must be stopped. 

 

Next time you don't want to call yourself a feminist because it isn't cute... think about how the vast majority of little girls in developing nations aren't given access to education, how women do two thirds of the world's labour for 10% of the pay, or any other of a myriad of injustices facing women in the world today. They aren't cute, either.