You read that correctly, I do not align with the beliefs of the modern-day feminist movement.

The term “modern-day feminism” is used to describe the current fourth-wave of recent developments in the feminist movement. I do not want the things these feminists fight for and advocate. Further explanations of what feminists stand for will not change my mind.

As the feminist movement was growing in the early 20th-century, so were the contradictions. Women of all races were fighting for women's suffrage. First-wave icon Susan B. Anthony famously replied with, “I will cut off this right arm of mine before I will ever work or demand the ballot for the Negro and not the woman,” when asked to comment about the co-existing effort for African American political recognition. Anthony is just one of the many feminists whose actions speak out against equality.

The feminist movement has encountered dozens of presidencies and historical moments so it is a no-brainer that current issues have altered the movement’s agenda. Throughout all the changes there has been one common theme: the feminist movement continuously looks back on the mistakes in previous years and tells themselves that this time things will be done right- that they have nothing to worry about.

Unfortunately, they do have things to worry about. Many feminists advocate for equality for all, but struggle to accept the LGBTQ+ community. You cannot claim to be a feminist, but be homophobic. You cannot pick and choose certain exceptions to the causes you support. If you cannot support a cause whole-heartedly, do not support it at all.

I know the core of feminism is the advocacy of equality- not sameness. I also understand that the movement advocates for equal rights and equal access to opportunities. However, I acknowledge that women are not the same as men due to physical differences. But, neither gender is superior to the other because quite literally without the other, one could not survive. Men and women have different priorities, strengths and weaknesses and the feminist movement needs to realize that.

One of the biggest issues that has stemmed from the fact that feminists have not come to accept the reality that men and women are different is the gender pay gap argument. Women getting paid 77 cents for every dollar a man earns is the result of the choices made my women, not because of sexism. It is the prime example in the argument in western societies when discussing how unequal the sexes are.

Women are less likely than their male competitors to even take dangerous, high-paying jobs as well as less likely to want to work in high-paying computer and engineering fields. Even for the women who are in these fields, they will be less likely than their male co-workers to take risks in the workplace and pursue a less stressful, more specialized career.

Feminists argue that men and women do not have to be the “same” physically to have the right to equality. What I find odd about that is that men are more likely to pursue jobs that are focused on demanding physical labor, which generally pays more than less taxing jobs. If the sexes did not have to be the “same” to be equal, the number of women in jobs that are more labor intensive would be equal to men, not significantly lesser.

I am really over the modern-day feminist movement because I am tired of the contradictions and the amount of picking and choosing to what is and is not an exception to the issues. Women will never be equal to men simply because we were not created to be equal. Women were created with the sole purpose to aid men. We were designed to be the support system, care takers and mothers. In the things men fall short, women excel- and vice versa. This is because men and women were made to work together, not against each other. We are supposed to help each other when the other is weak.

Modern-day feminism treating women like victims instead of empowering them does nothing but hold us all back.

The modern-day feminism movement is huge in western societies like our beloved USA. When you look at the other countries around the globe and compare them to the West, we in the West do not even look at all disadvantaged in comparison. In the west we have laws against rape, harassment, and abuse; in non-western countries, some women are not even allowed to vote or go out in public unless accompanied by a male. Instead of focusing on the minuscule issue that is the “gender pay gap” in America, the efforts should be put to better use to help others around the globe who have bigger battles to fight other than how much they get paid.

***I realize I am making generalized comments about feminism and the movement. Leaving a comment explaining what a great feminist you are and how none of the above has ever applied to you is not necessary, I know there are exceptions.***