You're A Feminist

In class, we discussed Nora Ephron’s work and a bit about the women’s liberation movement and feminism. I distinctly remember saying that we discussed feminism in my political science class, and that for the most part, unless you are against equality, everyone in the room is a feminist. However, when Dr. Williams asked the boys who would consider themselves a feminist, nobody raised their hand. Only Dr. Williams openly admitted to being a feminist (Thank you, Dr. Williams). Clearly a miscommunication occurred and people didn’t understand what I said. I would like to clear it up. I believe it’s important that the word feminist no longer carry a poor reputation. Take note: you are all a feminist.

Before this year and my Introduction to Political Science class with Dr. Ralph Carter, I wouldn’t have even been able to tell anyone a real definition of feminism. I think that’s where the problem lies: nobody knows what feminism is. We just know it’s supposed to be bad. Perhaps the best guess would be “a bunch of women who think they’re better than everyone else”. This definition would only be somewhat correct with the most extreme of feminists. Yes, some people believe women are naturally better than men because of their differences. Like most ideologies, feminism has different branches with slightly differing beliefs. The important piece of information to know is this branch is not the majority. The majority, what the original feminist movement consisted of, are women who believe they are equal to men. All the typical feminist wants is freedom from discrimination and equal opportunities.

Next time the topic comes up, I urge you to claim that you are a feminist. We spend so much time in our history classes learning about liberation movements, but this topic is hardly ever clearly explained. Feminism is believing in women’s rights, not necessarily women’s superiority. Educate others on what it means to be feminist. Stop saying things like “I’m not a feminist, but women deserve equal pay”. Or “I’m not a feminist, but women definitely should have the right to attend college”. These sentences are oxymorons. If you believe women should be equal, you are a feminist. Take pride in it. You don’t have to be a girl to be a feminist; men can be feminists, and it shouldn’t be surprising or odd. Here is an article from October 8th of this year: http://www.cnn.com/2013/10/08/opinion/im-a-male-feminist/ written by a male journalist who identifies himself as a feminist. It includes a list of famous male feminists, including Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Warren Buffet, John Legend and the Dalai Lama. Can any guy really say you don’t want to be like these men?

I vehemently believe this new knowledge of feminism is the most important piece of information I have learned so far in my college career. I am a feminist. I am proud to be feminist. I hope anyone who reads this understands why I feel this way, and can take pride in being a feminist as well. What I really hope you get out of this is even if you don’t verbally claim the title, you are a feminist.