The feminist - an endangered species?

Feminism — one of the most misunderstood terms on the planet. If you ever commit the mistake of calling yourself a feminist, then woe unto you. You’re either a lesbian; a bitter, man-hating lady just very recently dumped; or, at the very least, a sexually-frustrated old maid.   

Yep, for some reason or another, most people don’t look kindly upon feminists. I have friends who wouldn’t touch the term with a stick, saying that if they wanted to be surly and bitter and angry half the time, they could just turn to the evening news.

Of course, there are some who flock to the idea of feminism, thinking that it gives them a kind of elevated status over the rest of the womenfolk who swoon at the sight of a hot stud. Unavailability equals desirability, as midday soap operas tell us. Then there are the students in limbo, who, for lack of any better intellectual commitment to cling to, decide to take up feminism. After all, college wouldn’t be complete without an adherence to some form of ideology, right?

But who are we kidding? In this day and age, young people shrug off feminism without so much as a second look, believing that man-hating is all there is to it. Indeed, to be called a feminist is almost a crime, an insult against women who are strong, and independent, and badass, and who don’t need to be politically involved to bring it.

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I remember back in my first year, when the Nicole-Subic rape case fiasco was such a hot topic. We were throwing ideas around in my sociology class, when my professor asked if we thought the justice system treated women fairly. A classmate of mine raised her hand, and before anything else, said, “I am not a feminist or anything, but…” and proceeded to elaborate on her opinion. Which was more or less to the tune of finding it unfair that a woman’s appearance and sexual history could ever be used against her.

That was way back in first year. Since then, I’ve seen the pattern recur a few more times: student raises a hand, puts forth an “I’m not a feminist” disclaimer, and then says something that to all intents and purposes sounds exactly like what a feminist would be concerned about. Sexual double standards, the commodification of women, equal pay and equal opportunity, a woman’s right to her body… the list goes on.

Some might argue that just because they believe in gender equality doesn’t mean they’re feminists. To which I reply, why not?

Feminism isn’t just an ideology, an intellectual endeavor, or a political movement; it’s a set of beliefs. Beliefs that vary from culture to culture, beliefs that are personal. What people in the first world believe are liberating to women isn’t the same as what third world denizens believe are liberating to them. And before we get caught in the tangled (and complicated) web of defining exactly what feminism is, I suggest we don’t. If, as a woman, you aren’t going to just sit there and be violated or taken advantage of, then by all means, consider yourself a feminist.

Today, even gossip magazines can be a catalyst for modern-day feminism, while its icons continually fluctuate from the placard-wielding activist, to figures of pop culture (Katniss Everdeen, anyone?), to the often overlooked, but all-important housewife. In fact, the myth of a woman’s inability to be both a feminist and housewife should be debunked here and now. No, it isn’t oxymoronic to lump the two in the same sentence; yes, there is empowerment in being a housewife. You’d be surprised at the number of stay-at-home moms who willingly choose to be where they are. And incidentally, just because your wife or mom stays at home to cook, do the laundry and clean up your mess, doesn’t make her any less liberated than what first world sensibilities would suggest. Think about it, if she wasn’t home to do any of those things for you, then your life would just fall to pieces, wouldn’t it?

Indeed, this is the 21st century, and feminism doesn’t belong to the realm of vulgar politicking and inflexible academic scrutiny anymore. Sure, the French feminists may focus on sex, the British on material conditions, and the Americans on representation; but outside the academe, there’s no right or wrong way to use the term… except to use it as loosely as possible.

Because this is the 21st century (and the end of this year’s International Women’s Month), and by now, we should all be about women empowerment.

As Beyoncé says — Who run the world?

Girls.