Julie Bindel: Feminism is in danger of becoming toxic

[unrepentant progress]

Feminism, a great social movement, is in danger of becoming toxic and repressive. The focus on individuals, however vile they may be, signifies a shift away from the more difficult, long-term work of making institutions such as the Crown Prosecution Service and other governmental departments accountable. Justice for Women, a feminist campaigning group I co-founded, managed to change the law to prevent men claiming that “nagging” was a justifiable reason to kill female partners; Southall Black Sisters successfully challenged Ealing council when it proposed cutting women’s services. The CPS, badgered for decades by anti-FGM campaigners, ended up changing its policy and began to proactively seek prosecutions. Feminists campaigned all through the 1970s and 1980s to make rape in marriage a crime – and in 1992 the goal was achieved.

The current climate of McCarthyism within some segments of feminism and the left is so ingrained and toxic that there are active attempts to outlaw some views because they cause offence. Petitions against individuals appear to be a recent substitute for political action towards the root causes of misogyny and other social ills. Petitions have taken over politics.

The “ban this sick filth” approach is starting to look more like censorship than progressive politics. Political protest and heated debate has been replaced with a witch-hunt mentality. It would appear we have forgotten how to target institutions. The tactic du jour is to wind up a crowd and shut down any nuanced discussion or debate. Patriarchy is being left to its own devices while bad and unpalatable men are being taken to task one by one.

Moral superiority and “call out” culture has trumped political activism. Feminists have a proud history of taking state institutions and corporations to task. It would seem this is being lost in a sea of vitriol. We built this movement on a desire and willingness to question and challenge old assumptions and truisms. We are in danger of becoming autocrats who would rather organise a pile-on than try to change systems. The life blood of feminism is in danger of becoming bile.

Full essay by Julie Bindel; English journalist, feminist, and co-founder of Justice for Women: http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/nov/18/feminism-rosetta-scientist-shirt-dapper-laughs-julien-blanc-inequality

[Xipe Totec]

1. Your concern is duly noted. nt

[upaloopa]

2. I see that reply a lot on DU. What does it mean?

Seems threatening or worse. What are you intending to do to the author of the OP?

[Xipe Totec]

3. If you don't get it by now, you never will. nt

[upaloopa]

4. You don't say much do you

[Erich Bloodaxe BSN]

5. It's simply shorthand for saying the person to whom it is directed

is a 'concern troll', which means they post something in a way to suggest they are worried about it, but others think they're secretly happy about it, and posting a 'concerned' post in bad faith.

[upaloopa]

6. Thanks

[irisblue]

7. a similar saying I think...

Bless your/his/her/their heart(s)