As a writer for Odyssey, it’s always very exciting to see content by other Odyssey authors go viral. We, as young writers, are the voices of the future, and it’s amazing to see our work start discussions around the world, changing opinions and developing minds.
However, as a feminist, when I see work being passed around that potentially misrepresents a movement that I am so passionate about, I can’t help but feel disappointed.
Many of you may have seen the “I Am A Female And I’m So Over Feminists” article by Odyssey writer Gina Davis posted on May 2. At the time of writing this, it has nearly 130,000 Facebook shares and 725 comments. For that, I applaud Davis; she had a point to make and clearly made it well enough to engage a large population. As far as the actual article goes, though, I’d like to challenge some of the material in it.
I am a feminist. It’s not that profound of a concept anymore, a college-aged woman joining a movement for the advancement of women. However, as a “certified feminist,” I can guarantee that at no point during researching feminism online, taking women’s studies classes, talking to other feminists or eventually working toward becoming an activist myself did I stop and think, “Wow, I hate men.”
Because that’s just the thing: I don’t, and if you’re doing feminism right, you don’t either.
Not to have a Beyoncé moment, but a feminist is most popularly defined as, “The person who believes in the social, political and economic equality of the sexes.” The key word in that sentence is equality, which I think fantastically ties to the last sentence of Davis’s article. She writes, “There is no ‘dominant’ gender. There’s just men and women. Women and men.” Ironically, that is exactly what we’re fighting for. Congratulations, Davis, you’re on your way to being a feminist!
All humor and Beyoncé references aside, I do see where Davis is coming from. Though that definition of feminism is widely accepted, there is much disagreement over the means of achieving it. This is where things get messy.
Objectively, women in the United States do have a lot of rights that other countries do not grant their female citizens (side note: even if full gender equality is achieved in the United States, that does not mean we should stop being feminists. Global feminism is a thing. OK, back to your regularly scheduled programming).
However, we’re not finished. There’s a laundry list of causes that feminism backs, from Black Lives Matter to the fight for LBGTQIA+ rights. One of the biggest fights for women right now deals with family planning rights and access to women’s healthcare. This article is not intended to debate abortion rights, but you can’t deny that when things happen like the defunding of Planned Parenthood — which provides numerous vital medical services to women outside of pregnancy termination — it is oppressive.
I believe that there is a facet to feminism that is often overlooked by Davis and those against feminism. This facet is something that large numbers of feminists are fighting for and would actually cause little disruption to the everyday life of others.
This facet involves allowing choice.
When you allow a woman to fairly choose her own way in life, you are seeing her as an equal. These choices can be anything: how she chooses to dress, what job she wants to pursue if she even wants to pursue one, what she does with her body, and the list goes on. A fantastic example of this actually comes from Davis’s article in regards to chivalry. If you and your significant other make arrangements to where you’re both comfortable with him being the major financial provider in your relationship, it is not my place nor anyone else’s to judge you for that. Feminism agrees with that principle, that you have the right to choose how your personal life is governed.
Unfortunately, we as a society aren't fully giving women that right to choose yet. Insert the need for feminism here.
When it comes down to it, modern feminism has created a network of support of people of all different genders, ages, races and backgrounds. Feminism is the reason why women and other marginalized groups have advanced so much and will continue to be the reason why those groups advance, but please don’t mix up our goals with tired stereotypes.
I agree that the media has definitely figured out how to capitalize off of feminism — ahem, Taylor swift — and that has changed how the public perceives it, but I promise that some balanced research on our cause will clear up any myths. Feminism is no longer a movement dedicated to burning bras, but the things we're fighting for are just as important, and to say that we don't need feminism in the 21st century largely ignores what is happening in our world today.
We’re not looking to put down men; we’re looking to make the world a better place for everyone who lives in it.
