The definition of feminism has been continually altered since the beginning of the Women's Suffrage Movement in the twentieth century. Even before social media, people have had a bias against women who stand up for themselves or want the rights that men have. In the twenty-first century, it is easier to project a person's opinion on virtually everything. Feminists and the feminism movement have taken a particularly hard hit by the opposers to women's rights and equality. Social media and the media, in general, can be used as a tool to advocate for the feminist movement. Good always comes with bad. The bad being misinformed, prejudiced, and ignorant people discrediting a positive movement for women's advancement in society. This display of misinformation distorts a large part of the movement and affects those who consider themselves feminists by blanketing feminists to all be the same.
On multiple occasions, misinformed social media users have used their prejudice to put down and discredit men and women that try to stand up for equality. The opposition explains that their masculinity is taken from men and feminists constantly put them down. Feminists and supporters argue that the goal of the movement is to achieve equality and equity, not to be better than men. The opposition believes this about feminists because of what they see on social media. People typically like to see radical movements because they are more interesting than the average feminist. Radical feminists tend to be man-hating, lesbian, and abrasive, according to some conservative talk show hosts. The imagery of a woman of this sort is more interesting to the public than the more tame version of a feminist. When examining the feminist movement, people only see the radical end of the spectrum and display their beliefs about this small group of people on social media. This display of misinformation distorts a large part of the movement and affects those who consider themselves feminists by blanketing feminists to all be the same.
Despite the hate and negativity that radiates off of most of the internet, social media and being an online presence has been an extreme benefit to feminism and the feminist movement. Articles, social media pages, videos, books, and speeches have a chance to be seen and heard by the world. There are always going to be trolls and bullies, but when the good is so incredibly beneficial to a majority of a movement, the good outweighs the bad. Success has sprouted from overwhelming support from followers and readers through blogs and Twitter. Women have jumpstarted whole movements for less than seventeen dollars online. While the media may negatively portray women due to the mistakes of a small percentage of feminists, women and feminists do not slow down or shy away from standing up for what they believe in.
Social media has obvious negative effects on women and the feminist movement, which in turn misrepresents them in society. People enjoy looking for the shock factor of women who fit the angry stereotype, which is only a small percentage of people in the feminist movement. If the media were to elucidate the different kinds of men and women who represent the feminist movement, then society would no longer have a way to blanket the diversity of the movement. Recognizing women who consider themselves feminists as rational people rather than rigid and aggressive man-haters leads the way to encourage women to venture into society and make a positive name for themselves.
