Are You a Feminist?

[aTeddy]

 

I don't mind what people decide to call themselves, but from the definition feminism is "the advocacy of women's rights on the ground of the equality of the sexes", so if the guy from above said he believes in equality, this makes him a feminist  and all I did was point it out.

No, I don't think this is logical. Feminism is just one movement and one definition, it has no monopoly on advocating for gender equality. Think of it like two concentric circles. The bigger circle representing "all those who advocate for gender equality" and the smaller circle, "feminists". Just because one identifies with advocation of gender equality doesn't mean they are a feminist. Many, like myself, choose to deny the label of "feminist," whilst maintaining the need for equality of the sexes. This is because some behaviours associated with third-wave feminism, tend to over-generalise and categorise men and are negative to the overall cause. 

To the overall topic, I feel as if the label of feminist is needless and associated with anti-social behaviour that I reject. Although, gender equality is of course highly important to me, labelling myself a feminist is something I don't feel is necessary to act as an agent of change.

Edited July 10, 2016 by aTeddy

[beth-]

I believe in the idea of feminism. However, saying that you believe in the idea of feminism is like saying that you believe in the idea of communism and completely dismissing and ignoring how time after time after time after time it has failed to be implemented. 

The same thing could (on a smaller and less serious scale) be said about feminism. Obviously, I believe in the idea of equality between men and women. And that makes me a feminist... right?

Except that feminists just take it five steps too far and focus on the female perspective in gender neutral issues and ignore the fact that there are no domestic abuse safe houses for men despite accounting for 40% of all victims, or the way young boys are forced to become child soldiers in the Middle East, or the fact that 80% of all suicides are men, or that 89% of all men will be victims of violent crime at some point in their lives, or the fact that men get 63% longer time for the exact same crime or the fact that 60-80% of all homeless people are male.

Feminists continually ignore this and focus on the wage gap, a phenomenon which has been proven to be a total nonexistant myth.

I can't call myself a feminist because of these reasons. I believe in equality, not superiority.

Edited September 27, 2016 by beth-

[Franklin]

I am for avocation for gender equality. I consider myself to be a feminist.

To be a feminist does not equal to be for gender equality, it is more than that. "Feminism" is a political movement that you are free to take part of if you want. i do not consider someone not to be for gender equality just because they say that they are not a feminist. 

I think that the feminist movement generally is very good, however, there are some that give feminism a bad name by taking it to the extreme and making feminism a laughing stock. This is why many don´t want to be associated with feminism. Extremism is never good, no matter what you believe in, I believe.  

[studying]

On 10/19/2016 at 1:23 PM, Franklin said:

I am for avocation for gender equality. I consider myself to be a feminist.

To be a feminist does not equal to be for gender equality, it is more than that. "Feminism" is a political movement that you are free to take part of if you want. i do not consider someone not to be for gender equality just because they say that they are not a feminist. 

I think that the feminist movement generally is very good, however, there are some that give feminism a bad name by taking it to the extreme and making feminism a laughing stock. This is why many don´t want to be associated with feminism. Extremism is never good, no matter what you believe in, I believe.  

 

 

I think it's a "political movement" to an extent as well. I feel like perhaps people tend to associate "feminism" with super pro women and against because the root of the word itself (feminine) only refers to females.

But I think the word and the significance behind feminism is this way it's this way because there's still a NEED for gender equality/equity today. Therefore there's a focus on females and getting equal rights to those who have them. It still means gender equality though, so I think if you're someone who advocated for that cause you can naturally be categorized as a feminist. 

[Empiral]

On 11/24/2016 at 4:26 AM, Shlrley said:

I think it's a "political movement" to an extent as well. I feel like perhaps people tend to associate "feminism" with super pro women and against because the root of the word itself (feminine) only refers to females.

But I think the word and the significance behind feminism is this way it's this way because there's still a NEED for gender equality/equity today. Therefore there's a focus on females and getting equal rights to those who have them. It still means gender equality though, so I think if you're someone who advocated for that cause you can naturally be categorized as a feminist. 

A person who identifies on the left side of the political spectrum would not be automatically assumed democrat, a person who identifies on the right side would not be automatically assumed republican, so why the same categorization has to apply with feminism? 

Yes, the founding aim of feminism was to ensure equal rights for both sexes, but I think over the decades societal views have changed greatly, so to argue that such still remains the definition of feminism would be counter-intuitive to what modern feminism actually attempts to achieve - not being negative about it, but the goals have shifted from the early days of campaigning for women's suffrage. 

It's like comparing left and right wing politics now to what they were 100 years ago. There is a big difference and a lot of things are redefined. I think the feminist movement needs to re-evaluate itself and its goals given that this ambiguity in definition has caused a big divide in viewing the movement from feminists themselves.

Edited November 26, 2016 by Empiral

[PassingHopefully]

Do you believe in gender equality? do you believe in feminism and what it stands for? If not, Why? This is purely out of curiosity and is not meant to attack anybody. 

 

Yes, I do believe in gender equality.

No, I do not agree with the current idea of Feminism.

 

First, Feminism does not have a monopoly on the idea of gender equality, you can believe in one but not the other.  Believing in the former but not the latter is where I am, and makes sense to me as:  believing in the latter not the former seems to be the vocal side of Feminism, people like Anita Sarkesian (just an example) who seem much less interested in equality than in gaining women rights men don't have and losing rights men do have (ask if you want examples).  And these people are the forefront of Feminism.

 

I have nothing against women, nor any desire to see them any harm, I simply do not agree with what I see as a toxic ideology.

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[AAPower]

23 hours ago, PassingHopefully said:

Do you believe in gender equality? do you believe in feminism and what it stands for? If not, Why? This is purely out of curiosity and is not meant to attack anybody. 

 

Yes, I do believe in gender equality.

No, I do not agree with the current idea of Feminism.

 

First, Feminism does not have a monopoly on the idea of gender equality, you can believe in one but not the other.  Believing in the former but not the latter is where I am, and makes sense to me as:  believing in the latter not the former seems to be the vocal side of Feminism, people like Anita Sarkesian (just an example) who seem much less interested in equality than in gaining women rights men don't have and losing rights men do have (ask if you want examples).  And these people are the forefront of Feminism.

 

I have nothing against women, nor any desire to see them any harm, I simply do not agree with what I see as a toxic ideology.

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I agree 110%.

[Saint Bowie]

No. I stand by various feminist viewpoints, but don't use the label because of how vague it's has become and the "no true scotsman" fallacy it suffers. I also don't agree with several popular feminist ideals. 

[imosz]

Feminism itself as a concept is something I thoroughly believe in. I believe that men and women should have equal rights and equal pay, and I believe that we should teach boys from a young age to respect women and essentially to not be misogynists. Because no matter how equally we are paid, many men still prejudice against women. Many women I know, and I myself, feel unsafe and afraid of men, simply because we are women, and this is a social construct we must try to rid ourselves of. So when I encounter any racism, xenophobia or misogyny, I try to speak up against it. 

There are "radical feminists". But they are no more feminists than "radical/extremist muslims" are muslims.

Simply because there are radical muslims out there, and because Islam gets a bad rep, does not mean I will say "I believe in Islam but I'm not Muslim". Its the same thing with feminism. My ultimate goal as a "feminist" is to not have a need for feminism.

[SamirAliyev]

I don't support modern Feminism and i never supported. I only support equality.

[Guest Matthias]

I believe in gender equality, as does literally everyone in developed countries. However I do not believe in the objectives of the feminism movement. I find it quite disrespectful for people to use the feminist movement, which was so impactful and relevant in the past, for their personal hateful agenda. The movement rides on a lot of untruths, such as the "gender pay gap" and campus rape culture, which is the most ridiculous and absurd thing I have ever heard. 

I don't think you can define a movement by the dictionary definition and instead must be defined by the actions of mainstream feminist beliefs. These actions being spiteful and hateful towards men. 

I don't subscribe to this victim mindset that the feminist movement stands for. I think its unhealthy to tell people that they are a victim of the "system". There are a lot of global issues regarding gender equality, but they are in regions like the middle east, and not in western countries. If feminism did something about ACTUAL gender inequality issues, I wouldn't have a problem with the movement. The problem is however, that the movement isn't doing anything productive.

[Beatrix LS]

Totally, I wish more people knew how feminism helps guys too, and that it really does mean gender equality but focuses on women (and genderqueer people) up to get as much recognition as men.

[agncsw]

On 2/23/2015 at 1:09 PM, Emmi said:

 

Going along with this idea, it's generally true that men are physically stronger than women due to biological and physiological reasons. There are exceptions, yes, but overall a woman isn't going to be as strong as a man or have the same endurance levels. As an example, many of the armed forces in the U.S. have recently allowed women to become soldiers on the front lines (infantry people) rather than simply being in the armed forces but having a different job (such as medical professions, hospitality, maintenance crews, etc). The U.S. Marine Corps have actually allowed women to join the infantry for quite some time now, but no woman has been able to pass the physical requirements yet.

 

The requirements for certain physically intensive jobs should be the same for men and women, and if a woman can meet those requirements, that's great. However, if I'm trapped in a building that's on fire and a firefighter that happens to be a woman can't lift me out of the building, that doesn't do either of us much good. It boils down more to the requirements and nature of the job in this case rather than trying to please every person. The jobs should be open to either sex for equality, but both sexes should have to meet the same physical requirements rather than a woman having an easier physical fitness test than a man, which is also equality.

 

I'm quite progressive, hold several feminist ideals, and am pro-equality for both sexes but there comes a point where we can't make exceptions for everyone, just for equality!!11! 

I am all for that. There it is. Sums up my stance.

[WinterCrow]

nah. I'm an egalitarian. I have nothing against ppl who actually follow what the definition of feminism is supposed to be tho. I do have a problem with many of the "feminists" I've seen though. 

And yes I do believe gender equality!  I think the important part is that a lot of people think that if you aren't a feminist you aren't for gender equality. Which isn't true. You might not be a social activist but you could still believe in equal rights. Its the same thing with feminism. 

[SamirAliyev]

There is a difference between being a feminist today(as a third wave) and someone who supports gender equality.

 

I do support gender equality but I am not feminist at any way.

[Jewelz]

Okay there are plenty of physical and mental differences between men and women. (I was actually having this discussion with some friends earlier today) and certain opportunities or jobs or anything along those lines would go to a certain gender depending on those physical or mental states. Feminism is, of course, equality between all men and women, not that women are superior to men. We are not all equal, in a sense. For example, on average, (at least in America) women are more intelligent but men are stronger. So both genders can never be truly equal. But legally (here) women are allowed to be discriminated against. So racism is wrong but sexism isn't? Anyway.. A lot of the time women and men can't get the same jobs, not because of sexism, but because men are just better suited for that job. (Just a little example for people who think anytime a man is chosen over a women, that the on hiring is sexist). So, I'd say I'm a feminist because I do agree with and support gender equality but yeah, people are going overboard with it these days and aren't seeming to fully understand it. Educate yaselves ^^

[FallacyZazz]

I do call myself a feminist. I know it carries a lot of negativity with it, particularly because there are many who call themselves feminists while actually being a misandrist. So I understand that people don't want to associate themselves with such a term, but the core meaning of feminism is to strive for gender equality.

Why is it called feminism then? Because when it comes to gender inequality, a lot of it roots in feminine traits being seen as shameful. As an example, we're fine with tomboys. Girls who dress in traditionally masculine clothes are generally more accepted in society than boys who wear a dress. This is oppressive to boys and men, because it doesn't allow them to have any feminine characteristics. Of course, there are many issues that don't have anything to do with femininity and masculinity, but I feel that it is a cause for much of gender imbalance. Like domestic violence, and how men who are abused by their girlfriends or wives aren't taken seriously, because society says that the female sex is weaker, more fragile. When you're a man, how could you possibly let a woman beat you? There's this demand that you're strong and emotionless, which again stems from the idea that masculinity is superior to femininity.

So yeah, feminism does have some ugly streaks in it, because there are people out there who put men down to crown women. That's misandry. While this makes some shy away from calling themselves feminists, I'd rather reclaim it for what it truly is.

[Keyah_Vaughan]

Hey,

I absolutely believe in Feminism, but as a way of achieving gender equality - not dominance of females in society.

Just starting IB:
English Lit Higher
Biology Std
Math Studies
History Higher
French Higher
Business Studies

I only just started IB ~

Edited October 9, 2017 by Keyah_Vaughan
I forgot something :P

[ibstudent321]

I do not think the modern third wave feminism is needed. In fact I would go as far as to say it is causing more harm than good. Gender equality has been achieved under the law but equality of outcome has not (e.g. 50/50 gender representation in all jobs) and probably won't be achieved - but that is not an issue that needs to be fixed! 

I think modern day feminism is at best misguided and at worst intentionally ignorant of facts. Men and women do have measurable differences as a result of our biology which can be observed in the real world. While each person is an individual, the average differences (both physically and mentally) between men and women explain why firefighters are mostly male and nurses are mostly female. 

[Guest]

The definition of feminism is the "advocacy of women's rights on the ground of the equality of the sexes." So yes. Simple as that.

There will always be people who take it too far. Like the lady who claimed air conditioning is sexist. These idiots do not reflect what the movement really is about and it would be folly to criticise the entire movement purely based on what they say.  

Edited February 15, 2018 by Guest