I am a feminist. I am also lucky enough to be a white woman living in a comfortable financial setting. I am getting a college education and very little has ever been denied me. Sure, I've experienced some sexism, but nothing so major that it has personally changed my outlook on life.
This is not the case for everyone. Feminism is a movement that was originally created for white women, by white women, and it still favors the issues that white women face. Yes, all women face the issue of the wage gap, but women of color make even less than what white women make compared to men. According to the National Partnership for Women and Families white women are paid 79 cents to every dollar a white man makes, African American women are paid 69 cents to every dollar a white man makes and members of the Hispanic-Latina community make 55 cents to that dollar. While all women face the issue of objectification in the media, women of color are photoshopped to look lighter because our society has decided that dark women aren't beautiful enough already. Women of color also face being fetishized for certain features that they possess. Not to mention the horrific issues that women face on an international scale such as female genital mutilation, child marriage, and brutal sex rings such as the Cambodia Red District.
Recently, an article was released by Odyssey entitled "I Am Not A Feminist, And That Is Okay." While this article contained many holes in the author's argument, I would like to focus on one in particular. This article was written by a white, Christian woman who is getting a college education (which you find in her bio). This young woman is in a privileged enough situation where she has a choice to say that this is not something that she wants to identify as without seeing the way that other women are oppressed and the way that feminism is important to those women who are less fortunate. This goes for women in the United States, but also for women all around the world.
With the help of the modern feminist movement, female genital mutilation has been outlawed in Nigeria. Young girls in developing countries with limited access to running water are being provided with more sanitary options, like absorbent underwear, during menstruation so that they can stay in school when they have their periods. With the help of Malala Yousafzai, girls around the world are slowly gaining the education that they deserve. Feminism is also encouraging safe sexual practices amongst women as well as promoting embracing their sexuality in places where it would otherwise be repressed.
Clearly, the feminist movement is a little more complex than it seems at first to the average American, white, Christian woman. It is more than the stereotypes of women simply trying to usurp the power of men, growing out armpit hair, and burning bras. When viewed from a global standpoint, feminism can change the lives of women and girls for the better.
