It’s become quite common for interviewers to sit down on a plush chair and ask celebrities a simple yes or no question: Are you a feminist?
If the answer is yes, especially if said celebrity is male, the entirety of the Internet seems to fall over itself rushing to laud such progressive “woke”-ness and activism, whether or not their stance has ever translated into action. If their answer is no, it’s padded with reasons like “because I believe in equality” or “I don’t identify with radicalism”— dangerous misinformation about what feminism actually stands for.
Growing up consuming male-dominated and male-created media has skewed so many perspectives, to the point where internalized misogyny is distressingly common in both entertainment and mindsets. “Cool” female characters are defined by being “one of the guys” or “not like the other girls” because they drive stick, watch football, and recoil at the color pink. TV shows, often written or produced or run by men, gave feminism a bad rap by making femininity a thing to be ashamed of.
It was just two years ago that A-listers were wearing 50 dollar, “This is what a feminist looks like” t-shirts made by marginalized sweatshop workers, and reaping the positive press that came with it. Getting on the feminist “nice list” was as easy as putting on a shirt.
Our standards are a little higher now, especially when it hurts to stay politically informed because every new piece of news is more heartbreaking than the next. Current events are unraveling like a surreal dystopia you can’t look away from— a sunset over a landfill or a breathtaking meteor streaking across the sky before colliding with a major city. Things are dire under an openly misogynistic and racist dictator guilty of sexual assault, but the explosion of support in D.C. that was the Women’s March was a hopeful sight, despite some notable absences.
Where was Taylor Swift and the clout she holds with her target audience of white women, 53 percent of whom had voted for Trump, during the election? Why didn’t she say anything besides a single, neutral tweet only vaguely related to the march? Too many of her fans have hand-waved away her silence regarding Planned Parenthood and other feminist legislature, or even the lack of public support for Kesha’s fight with the misogynistic music industry that Swift claims to want to change. Swift has already been criticized for being opportunistic above all else, no matter what image she wants to portray.
Of course, there are many who have lent their voice to powerful movements. Even stars like Katy Perry and Lady Gaga, who just a few years ago denied feminism, made appearances. But marches are few and far between, and feminism is more often confined behind keyboards.
Nearly-nude or #nomakeup selfies are harmless ways to promote body positivity and acceptance, both very important movements, but celebrating that bare minimum as radical feminism almost feels irrelevant and insignificant on the grander scale. When people are losing their rights or their lives, it’s not enough for those with influence to just limit activism to Instagram selfies and vague tweets. We have a long way to go.
