Dear "Real Women,"

I read an article recently titled "Screw Off, Feminists: An Open Letter to Men from a Real Woman," and I was a bit thrown by these Real Women, as I apparently do not identify as one. I've always felt pretty strongly that I was a woman and therefore real, so it was quite a shock. From what I gathered reading this article, a Real Woman is not a feminist, appreciates being protected by men, likes male self-deprecating humor, admires the male ambition and desires to be pursued. They believe feminists should stop stealing the spotlight by making it seem like men are all about "micro-aggressions" and "fat-shaming."

I'm not going to ask you to take this as fact, as I'm sure you will be inclined to say otherwise, but I might submit that not all women need a man to take care of them. In fact, I may be so bold as to say that no woman needs a man to take care of her. No person at all, actually, must be solely dependent on a significant other of any gender identification. On a related note, I would like to point out that no matter how fulfilling it can feel to have someone care about you, that isn't the same as needing someone to take care of you, and these two vastly different states of being are not mutually exclusive either.

I'm not even sure I should begin to address the issues tied to your claim that women love men for "being men." Assuming we live in a world where we can only accept gender binaries, this claim roots itself in the stereotype of how many of us have been taught to believe a male-identifying person should present himself. Your proof offered as to why women love men is the "perpetuation of the species," and you preemptively attack anyone who would dare to argue patriarchy or rape, as apparently feminists so often do. Is it not possible perhaps that another reason proposed in argument would be that people such as these "real women" are so quick to shame anyone who would dare say anything other than this norm is acceptable? Up until recently, there was little exposure for anyone who was the least bit different than the standards that have been so set in stone. Even now, diversity and representation is a fight. Despite all of this, there can hardly be doubt that our species would still reproduce because we do not live in a world where everyone must identify identically. Just because some women don't love men doesn't mean all women don't.

Finally, you are claiming not to be a feminist, which I gather from the title of this article ("Screw off, Feminists"). From your blatant attacks towards feminists, here is what your view of feminism seems to be: women who hate men, have no humor, cry "rape" often and are shrill and annoying. Now here is what I hear when you claim to be anti-feminist: you do not believe women and men are equal. You, someone who identifies as a Real Woman, are accepting that we are all somehow unequal to men. You believe we need to be protected, have our children protected, watch our male counterparts be ambitious and competitive and funny. We need to be pursued. Objectified. We want them to "go chop some wood and make us a fire." Despite countless problems with that theory, I only have one question for you.

We can't be defenders or ambitious or humorous or feminists, and now we if we are, we can't even be women, arguably the one thing we were always allowed to be. Is there anything we can be besides lesser than men? If being a Real Woman means I can't do anything men can do, then I'm happy to be a fake one.