Feminism the F-word
If I had to craft a definition for “Feminism” it would be: favoring the collective womanity or womanhood over the individual. Or conversely: anti-feminism is prioritizing the self over the collective. I’m reading “The Future Isn’t Female Anymore” by Michelle Goldberg. {NYT 6.19.22} These are my thoughts.
Goldberg writes, “Of the eight essays [Kiara Barrow and Rebecca Panovka] commissioned to try to make sense of this moment of ‘profound malaise’ in feminism, four used the word ‘cringe.’ Though the pieces came from different angles, there seemed a general agreement that mainstream feminism had grown stale and somewhat embarrassing, that it failed to speak to the realties of many women’s lives and that it lacked a vision of a better world.”
I can see how that may be the case, but I am heartened that ‘woman’ is a term that has been growing increasingly broader and more inclusive. We have seen in the recent past how those who typify a feminist ideal have punched down at trans, queer, and BIPOC individuals as ‘other.’ A notable example is J.K. Rowling — a successful female-identifying ‘feminist’ writer who created not only a bestselling series of YA books but built an entire franchise from it. She has gained financial wealth through her writing career and has accumulated accompanying social capital as well. This places her on the playing field with wealthy and powerful men. So why did she come for trans women? That moment was cringe to put it mildly.
Doubtless Rowling’s behavior is actually more typical of white supremacist patriarchy. I’m sure you can think of countless other times when female-identifying individuals prioritize maintaining their own status within the white supremacist patriarchy over the health and well-being of women as a collective. Personally, I am compelled to think of female-identifying Americans who vote against their own best interests in government elections.
It seems that a way forward — to keep feminism from feeling stale or cringe — is for women to form a more inclusive community. The term “woman” itself should be imbued with intersectional identities and experiences. If the white supremacist patriarchy is exclusionary and violent, the antidote must be found in the matriarchy. And in order to be a true panacea, the matriarchy should be an accepting, welcoming and loving collective.
What I find odd and I guess outmoded about feminism is that the concept exists as an add-on to the experience of being a woman. What is a woman if not someone who is concerned with the experience of being female? Do we need a separate category of women? As I said above, I believe more unity is the answer. I guess then the term ‘feminist’ will also have to include cis-gendered women who have misogynist programming. Perhaps we should give all women and those who identify as such the benefit of the doubt and allow their views and opinions to be part of the female identity, rather than separate out those with a certain set of ideals previously labeled as ‘feminist.’ If Goldberg is correct and we’re now living in a post-feminist society, perhaps a more expansive label of the word ‘woman’ is more suitable.
*For those of us who just heard about the overturning of Roe Vs. Wade, I will add that we will not let this overwhelm or defeat us.
In solidarity.
[Image by Dibs via Pexels.com]
