We expect a lot of people to know about feminism and to know what it is, what it stands for, and how it operates. We expect a lot of people to know what sexism and misogyny are and to know what those are, what they stand for, and how they operate.
But how can we expect so many people to unlearn something without being told in the first place that these things are learned?
This is a matter of access. It's one thing when someone knows what feminism is and then condemns it, but it's another when someone has no idea. We all have a right to learn. We have a right to unlearn sexism - but sometimes that right is only granted with certain capabilities.
It took my attendance of a $60,000-per-year university to learn everything that I know about feminism. It took a hell of a lot of money to understand patriarchy in full. It took my flying across the country at least four times a year to be able to completely explain why the concept of "asking for it" is so, so messed up.
It took an expensive, private university to unlearn the last of my internalized misogyny, and I am still learning.
I'm lucky. I'm privileged. But what about the people who deserve to learn these things, who deserve and need to know, but don't have the means to get there?
This is the accessibility of feminism; it's not accessible.
It goes without saying that this is a feminist issue, but this is beyond people knowing what feminism is. This is a matter of unlearning patriarchy, unlearning misogyny, unlearning sexism, recognizing problematic behaviors, recognizing objectification, recognizing systematic violence.
I can use those terms with confidence because I paid to learn them. We need to do better at allowing others to learn without forcing themselves into debt. It took a prestigious education to fully comprehend what feminism is (a movement to end sexist oppression - thanks bell hooks), and the many forms of sexism. In other words, it took higher education, something that is out of the question for many people because of it's price tag, to learn something we all deserve to know. I'm not calling for feminist theories in the core curriculum of a fourth grade class, but I am calling for us to do better.
Better understanding of feminism needs to be integrated earlier. It needs to be reachable and understandable for more people. It's not right that I get to know what intersectionality is while people who suffer as a result of intersectional identities don't even know the word for it.
Feminism isn't really all that accessible, but we can do better.
