Posted by Rachel Not Rebecca On November 12th, 2003
For a long time, probably since high school, I have been reluctant about the label of “feminist.” I didn’t feel that I fell under the term. After my experiences at Hampshire, I jokingly called myself an “anti-feminist.”
This entry, on one of my favorite blogs, momentarily made me think that maybe I had been to harsh to claim I am not a feminist. But you know something? Apart from the Neo-Nazis and racists, who aren’t ever going to alter their deep-seeded hatreds, we ALL believe in equality. To simply say that the dictionary definition of feminism is enough and that is thereby encompassses anything else you may believe it misleading and wrong.
Feminism isn’t a state of being. It’s an affiliation, similar to a political affiliaiton.
And I dismiss the idea that feminism is about equality, because feminism is no longer about the equality of opportunity. (And I believe that “feminism” or more accurately, women’s rights started out as a movement for equal opportunity) It is about the equality of results. They think that at the end of the day, if the results of men and women overall do not match, this is proof that women are being oppressed.
Basically, feminists don’t only want equality of opportunity – they want to be helped every step of the way to ensure no matter how they perform, they will match up with, or exceed the results of men. Otherwise, they say, the system is unfair. Equal rights, equal opportunities, it seems are not enough for feminists. When, even when conditions are equalized, men still outperform women in anyway, women will attribute this to nascent oppression.
Under this model, there’s no room for personal responsibility. Lack of success is attributed to a system that is inherently stacked against women. Success is held up as proof not only of an individual woman’s success in a particular area, but as proof that women should be performing as well, if not better , than men in all areas, and if they are not than that is more proof of inherent oppression.
My Feminist Political Thought class this semester is just affirming to me that I am not a feminist. At best, I may be willing to consider the term “Libertarian Feminist” (or iFeminist) even though Wendy McElroy and his ilk are still kind of looney. Then again, most Libertarians are.
