Wednesday, April 8, 2009

Feminism Revisited

I have not blogged in about two months. However, that does not mean that my mind wasn't running wild with thoughts for new entries. I've been considering the topic of feminism for quite some time. Since the release of the new Eminem video (which portrays Sarah Palin as a sex toy without anything to offer other than her anatomy), I decided today was as good a time as any. Obviously  there will continue to be assaults on femininity by ignorant, angry men as long as the world turns, but what is remarkable to me is the war that women have waged (and continue to wage) against their own kind. There are a couple of major mistakes that the feminist movement has made. And I believe that if these are not corrected, the future of women is in jeopardy. The overall sense of anger that defines the "movement" as well as the attempt to emasculate the male gender are both characteristics that turn many women off as far as feminism is concerned.

Why does the word feminism have to be so angry and hateful? Since when did feminist imply that women were anti conservative, anti makeup, anti motherhood, anti woman? It seems to me that in a pursuit for equality, some women have gone to the other end of the spectrum completely. We saw much of this anger displayed during the recent Presidential election. Women turned against their own kind in a psychotic rush to promote the Democratic agenda. Sarah Palin was called everything but a white woman in order to lessen her credibility with the American people. And the worst part of all of this is that the women were the most vicious in their attacks. Both Hillary Clinton and Sarah Palin were attacked for their looks (Hillary was not pretty. Sarah was too pretty), their family life (Hillary was ridiculed for keeping her marriage together. Sarah was slammed for being a working mom.), and their ability to lead (Hillary  was too emotional. Sarah was too folksy.) And many of these attacks were at the hands of women!! It is tragic to see prominent women go for the jugular when they disagree politically with a member of their own gender. It was like reliving High School with cameras rolling. All of us should recognize that we cut off our noses to spite our own faces... none of us won that fight. 


The other major downfall of the "feminist movement" (I hope you can hear the sarcasm in my tone) is the unending attempt to make men look like complete idiots. I actually consider myself a feminist in the most traditional sense of the word. I wholeheartedly believe in the ability of women to accomplish a great number of things (Presidency and Vice-Presidency included). However, I do not wish to castrate the male gender completely. Why do we always think that to elevate one race, gender, or people group we must bring others to their knees? Some of the most supportive people in my life have been men (my father, my uncle, and my husband to name a few). Without these men and the devotion that they have shown, I would not have pursued a Master's degree or a career. I am grateful for the role that they have played in my life and I would never try to diminish that in any way. Strong women are who they are because of strong male and female role models. Any one who says differently is mistaken (or mislead!). 

Basically the point is this, the word feminist has been hijacked by the left-wing, pro-choice, anti-conservative women who have a gigantic chip on their shoulder when it comes to the role of men in our society today. I believe that the smart girls need to take back a word that should promote respect, equality, and justice for women and for humanity. It's time for us to revisit this idea so that our daughters and  granddaughters don't have to be the sex symbols in rap videos or the target for irrational politicians with biased agendas.   

3 comments:

  1. IMO, the feminist movement also made a mistake by attacking women who chose to stay at home and raise a family. Big mistake. Moms are the hardest workers, and the feminist movement completely alienated this demographic. I too feel the feminist movement has taken the wrong turn in the past few years. It's a real shame because the feminist movement has done so much good. I definitely consider myself a feminist, but I feel that I don't have a place in the current climate.

    As women, we are given a choice (by society): You can either be a lesbian, man hating feminist or you can sit in a corner and knit. I also feel that One more thing: I am pro-choice, but that is based on my belief that government should not legislate morality to such an extent, which is ironically a Republican belief. I feel that government should and had a responsibility to step in when it can do good and to back away when it will do harm.

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  2. I liken women selling themselves as sex symbols to the use of the word "bitch." This word has become too commonplace and denigrates women IMO. I feel the same way about African Americans using the word "n*gger," granted I am not black-- so my opinion on the later may not count.

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  3. I don't feel that all women went against Sarah Palin in a "psychotic rush to promote the Democratic agenda." If anything, McCain chose Palin only because she was a woman to promote the Republican agenda. Many women were angry with this, and many Conservatives turned against her after her interviews. With Hillary Clinton gone, the Republicans hoped to gain the female vote.

    Palin was not stupid- simply uninformed. It was disappointing to me that McCain would pick her only because she is a woman, as if any woman would do. I feel badly for her because anyone would jump at the chance to run for VP, which is what she did. She probably never thought in her wildest dreams that this would be happening to her. It is disappointing that she performed so poorly in her interviews. I was never an Obama fan, so I flirted with the idea of voting for the McCain ticket when I heard that Palin was to be VP. I thought how great that a woman was on the ticket. I was a Hillary fan from the word go, so I wasn't even going to vote after Obama won the primaries. I say this to make the point that I was and am not biased against Palin because she is a Republican because I don't belong to any political party-- neither of the 2 encompass what I believe. I truly hate that things turned out so badly for her, but McCain is to blame. Look, even I know what the Bush Policy is, and she simply didn't. That is inexcusable for a VP nominee.

    I think women turned against Palin because, to me and many others, her nomination was a step back. McCain was only using her as a woman, not as Sarah Palin, a woman who has a lot to offer.

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