After I got my sorority Big freshman year, she took me on a surprise trip to Hooters. I had never been there before and sitting in that wooden booth in this tacky 80's style restaurant left me a little confused. Was this the kind of restaurant I wanted to support? A petite woman in short, orange spandex and a tight, white Hooters tank took our order, and I smiled politely at her as I ordered a plate of wings. "I'll try the Daytona beach breaded wings, with blue cheese dressing on the side, please." They were delicious, and I quickly got lost in conversation with my Big. That night, I examined my choice to eat at a restaurant built on the premise of sexualizing women. Despite my reservations, Hooters became a well-loved tradition for us.
***
Modern feminism has established firm roots in today's society: everyday, more young men and women are becoming aware of the sociopolitical need for the movement, understanding the inequalities inherent in our culture, and becoming comfortable identifying as feminists themselves. Feminism is becoming cool. This is a great victory in the overall scheme, but a commitment to the movement is difficult to separate from a commitment to the 'fad.'
Feminism has evolved dramatically from its early days; the first wave of feminism is generally attributed to the suffrage movement, which picked up momentum just after the French Revolution. Modern feminism, however, is a practically separate entity in itself, given the huge number of ideas it has come to encompass. Scholars often ascribe the movements we see today to the advent of birth control, which has dramatically increased women's autonomy over the past few decades.
That autonomy has been instrumental in the progression of the ideologies that 'feminism' embraces, and the one I find most prevalent among college-age students is what I consider the '"Tumblr brand' of feminism. Briefly, I would summarize the general themes as follows:
Anyone who considers herself a woman is a woman, and as such should not be alienated in any way from the feminist movement. A woman should have the same rights as men; these rights should include complete equality under the law, but just as importantly, equality within society. Equality within society suggests that no woman should be fearful for her safety due to her gender, sexual orientation, occupation, or any other personal decision. Women should not be faced with consequences for choices that, if made by a man, would be overlooked or even rewarded. Respect for a woman includes respect for her comfort and for her right to choose.
Now, I made a note that this ideology is associated with Tumblr, not to discredit it in any way, but rather to emphasize that it is a type of feminism that is built upon handpicked Internet examples to illustrate an overall point. Thus the inherent danger is that those individual posts, while they do increase awareness of a situation, will increase awareness of only that particular situation.
Take, for example, the support this type of feminism gives strippers. Strippers are hard workers, doing their best to earn a living, and often times stripping is just their best option. The choice to be objectified is in their own hands; these women are taking control of their objectification. The job requires immense confidence, fitness, and personability. Their choice to profit off of their own objectification should not reflect on their intelligence or morals.
And yet, that same level of understanding and support does not seem to extend to other situations. For example, many who insist that they are feminist, that they believe in a woman's right to choose, will also insist that Hooters needs to go. In doing so, they completely alienate the women who work in such industries. It is in this way that feminism is becoming an exclusive club, relevant only to those who like the ideas in principle but refuse to support them in practice.
An understanding of feminism requires an understanding that not all women have the same desires. There do in fact exist women who enjoy the attention they get as strippers, who feel empowered by having men pay just to look. Strippers understand that their job entails being objectified for money. Waitresses at Hooters have a similar job description, they understand that other than fantastic wings a big part of the Hooters appeal comes from objectifying women. It is a transaction like any other, and workers in this type of industry know that when they are on the job they have to play the part. This is not to label Hooters as a stepping stone to becoming a stripper, but rather to highlight the irony that is supporting strippers while reprimanding Hooters girls.
Frankly it seems that most of the arguments against Hooters stem back to the way the waitresses are dressed. "But it's about their safety in the workplace!" There is no way to spin this argument so that it doesn't lead back to the belief that what a woman wears is a reason for a person to rape, sexually assault, or otherwise disrespect her. Such an argument implies that men can't control themselves and women need to compensate accordingly. It falls into the same category as school dress codes that disproportionately regulate girls' clothing so as not distract the boys.
Feminism gives women agency over their bodies: to do with them as they please so long as they do not infringe on the rights of others. Logically comes the right to dress in any way under the code of law without facing societal backlash. On the surface, opposition to Hooters may be construed opposition to the sexualization of women, but this line of thinking disregards the waitresses' capacity to make decisions about their appearance or where they work. It boils down to being able to think for yourself: to understanding that being okay with strip clubs logically implies that you must be okay with Hooters, too. Don't let feminism be fed to you through a few choice posts on Tumblr.
