I don’t care if
you identify as
feminist.
I personally do call myself a feminist, and proudly. But in
many ways I’m privileged to do so. “Feminist” is a pretty
loaded word. If it’s not personally problematic for an
individual, the f-word is usually recognized as such in a
larger social context. There are lots of different ways to
“do” feminism, and discussions can and should be had as to
what exactly feminism means for women and what it aims to
accomplish. But when the idea of feminism derides women
for being too confused, stupid, ignorant, or brainwashed
for feminism, then I have to wonder.
“Women Against Feminism” is by now a relatively wellknown tumblr, perhaps ironically more so due to the
attention of activists lambasting the posters (all women,
interestingly) for not accepting (for whatever reason) the
versions of feminism they’ve been exposed to. Women reject
“feminism” for a multitude of reasons, a primary one being
that they are women functioning under the oppression of
patriarchy. Patriarchy hates women, and it is simply not
in our immediate self-interest to champion for women’s
liberation. We do so at risk to ourselves. I’m constantly
amazed at the women who work towards women’s liberation
in a world that hates them. This isn’t brainwashing—
this is reality. This isn’t weakness, or stupidity, or
ignorance—this is self-preservation. The subsequent
tumblr, “Confused Cats Against Feminism,” created by a man
no less, was gleefully shared and re-shared by feminist
women and men, the mocking tone and the comparison with
cats (an unexceptional historical stand-in for “woman”)
seemingly going unnoticed. Society gets busy mocking
women while the patriarchy and its male agents, those
responsible, exit stage left behind a cloud of smoke.