Men are From Mars Women are Capitalist Pawns

A couple weeks ago, Dior debuted a line of (effectively plain white with black block lettering) Tee-shirts, each donning a political statement, the most notorious of which being “we should all be feminists.” The shirts garnered substantial press, and several articles were penned talking about the revolutionary style.

What a genius marketing campaign.

For reference, this shirt is 700 dollars. This also isn't the first time popular culture has tried to capitalize on the phenomenon that has become third wave feminism. Not even close. Cosmopolitan, Refinery 29, and Buzzfeed are all media giants who utilize feminist leftist ideals as a marketing tactic, either to connect with a demographic or pander to what would be the built in base. Forever 21, H&M, and other mass clothing stores use this tool, and now it seems to have become so widely successful even the cultural upper echelon feel it is appropriate to use.

So why has this trend of feminist rhetoric become such a standard in the modern cultural zeitgeist? Well, first it must be acknowledged that the feminism utilized by these brands is rarely intersectional and well managed. Typically the feminism displayed is very free-the-nipple-girl-squad heavy with a splash of internalized misogyny and eurocentrism. Feminism is being co-opted by these companies and sold for a not so small price, and with every “girls just want to have fun(damental human rights)” tee-shirt sold, the movement becomes more diluted and mockable. Regardless, women continue to buy into this whimsical, watered down girl power fantasy and thus companies keep producing it.

Companies make things people want to buy. This is not a secret or a sin. It’s also something that they are rewarded for being good at. These products are inherently frivolous, but the gluttony of that purchase is outweighed by moral righteousness. They are probably not something you would want, per se, but something that hooks you with obligation when you see it. The perfect storm of self indulgence and self righteousness makes these products irresistibly purchasable, and yet what do they provide to the movement? The short answer: nothing good.

Products like these attempt to coerce the buyer into purchasing an ideology. In fact, these tactics convince consumers that their money goes not to a bag or shirt or button, but a movement, idea, an ethical optique. It’s a brilliant business method but the impact efforts like these have on social movements as a whole is destructive.

Feminism frequently faces its biggest obstacle in the form of voices of delegitimization. They say that the movement is unnecessary, the problems it combats are illegitimate, and its constituents are attention-seeking, lazy, and power hungry. Products like the tee-shirts fuel this argument in several ways. These slogans, to put it bluntly, are usually cutesy sayings that attempt to encompass a complex movement in fewer characters than a tweet. This oversimplification usually yields a watered down catch phrase that poorly expresses the intended meaning and furthermore provides easily mock-able content. Take for example popular phrases found on “feminist” paraphernalia: “pizza rolls not gender rolls” and “my pussy grabs back.” These phrases immediately utilize pop culture or profanity to grab your attention, but dismiss the plight of WOC and trans women. The former phrase is outright idiotic, whereas the latter is entirely trans-exclusive. Additionally, a critic of the movement could easily dismiss feminism for the exact reason that mantras like these remain our battle cries. When we latch on to these phrases we tell the rest of the world that we are just little girls singing pop music and saying bad words to prove we’re tough. It’s not the point, I know, but it reads that way. Additionally, this doesn’t even address the socio-economic exclusions of these products. When material items become central to activism, we lose the ability to include those who are likely the most disenfranchised. We represent ourselves poorly, we only represent those with the means to obtain these items, and we represent singular intersections of the movement.

While every given feminist is in no way obligated to speak or act for the movement, when you wear these items you consent to become one. You know that by buying these clothes, or accessories, or by putting this article on your Facebook, you are making an effort to let people know where you stand politically, and in that way you have opened yourself up to speak on why you are a feminist and what the movement stands for. That is the obligation that comes with buying those items. Additionally, since these clothes are, if nothing else, a weak portrait of a complex movement, you have to be able to reconcile why you, a person who probably has disposable income and probably has the support system to make political statements with their clothes without fearing repercussions, should be praised as a political activist.

The feminist movement has been co-opted by those with the time and money to dominate it. It has been made inaccessible to women of color, LGBTQ women, consensual sex workers, and other groups of women who may want to be a part of it. Simultaneously, empowering working class white women (the same ones who voted for Trump) to disavow feminism because they feel it exclusively belongs to wealthy, cosmopolitan, liberal elites. When a major criticism of a movement is elitism, the mass production of 700 dollar shirts only corroborates that complaint. Women should not have to buy feminism in order to buy into feminism. Women should not feel they have to take a day off of work to prove to their daughters that they are worth something. This is only an option for those with the financial and social security to take an impromptu vacation.

There are great problems with the feminist movement. That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t support it, but we do need to critique it. Additionally, we can’t be so hypercritical, so fast-paced in our growth, that we leave behind the women who lack the resources to be constantly educating themselves on the latest and greatest philosophies. The day corporations began to capitalize on feminism was the day it truly become mainstream, but, as with most movements and cultures, the mass produced product was a cheap copy of the original. Feminist products dilute the message of the movement and isolate allies without enough resources to pay for play. If we want to make a difference, we must evaluate how we present ourselves to the world, and how to ensure this message is inclusive of all.