There are many interpretations of feminism.

I enjoy learning about them.

However, I find it troubling that there are people who reject feminism because they don’t understand the ideology. They do not take the time to educate themselves on what feminism meant in the past, what it means today, and how it will continue to evolve.

There are also so many different types of feminism, including: liberal feminism, radical feminism, cultural feminism, Marxist feminism, socialist feminism, and eco-feminism. So if people do educate themselves on feminism, are they learning every kind, or just one? And will they pigeonhole the entire movement based on the one type of feminism they studied?

Some people who are educated on feminism reject it because they don’t see it being practiced in society. While I understand this particular approach, I do not agree with it. Feminism itself is not perfect. It is comprised of people, and people are not perfect. Furthermore, every feminist focuses on the particular social issues or injustices they are passionate about, and wish to change in society. There just happens to be some social oppressions that are addressed more than others. Yes, this is a flaw within the movement, but instead of rejecting feminism altogether because of this flaw, why not seek to change this about feminism by actively protesting, and educating others on, those oppressions?

Then there is another group of people who understand feminism, yet reject it because they see it being exclusionary and gender-binary. I find this opinion interesting and very confusing. Again, this goes back to the question, what does feminism actually mean? What do you think it means?

To me, feminism is, and should be, intersectional feminism, because all oppressions are linked, and one cannot address one oppression without addressing the others. So my intersectional feminist ideology aspires to break down stereotypes, systematic oppression, and ultimately the patriarchy, in order to create a society that gives equal opportunity, treatment, respect, and value to all peoples no matter their background or identity.

My interpretation of feminism is not exclusionary or binary because it does not list specific groups of people or issues. People who reject feminism because of those factors make me wonder if their conceptualization of feminism is outdated, or if mine has not become mainstream yet. Have I surrounded myself with so many like-minded feminists that I believed an intersectional approach to feminism was the norm for most feminists? Also, if these individuals truly grasped intersectional feminism, would they still be anti-feminist?

I think more constructive dialogue between feminists of different branches and anti-feminists needs to occur so that a universal understanding of feminism can be reached. Whether or not a universal understanding is actually feasible, is unknown, but at least there would be dialogue in a formal setting where all opinions could be heard.

So I encourage you to have a constructive argument with someone of the opposing side to your ideology. For one thing, you could learn something, and you might even change or adjust your ideology. Furthermore, such a discussion will force you to think critically about the issue, and to organize your thoughts in a cohesive way.