Are you a feminist? Do you call yourself a feminist?

[Connonym]

I'm proud to call myself a feminist. Dunno which wave I belong to but I refuse to dismiss the term feminist because it's gotten an ugly connotation. My 70 year old mother told me the other day that she believes in the ideals of feminism but she would never ever call herself a feminist because it's "nasty" Do we need to rename our movement? Do we need to reclaim the word feminism and try to erase what the righties have done to destroy the name?

And on a related note, how/why do we let THEM fuck up our language this way? How have we allowed republican newspeak to destroy the meanings of things like liberal and feminist? When will we take back what is ours and stop letting them try to destroy us? When will we fight back?

[Dragonbreathp9d]

1. I call myself one

One of my former girlfriends (ex is too negative for some) was a feminist as well, but she would say "Jonathon is even more of a feminist than I am!"

[I Have A Dream]

14. It's always wonderful to find male feminists.

:thumbsup:

[Deep13]

2. Pretty much.

I'm sure I must disagree on some point or other, but generally I agree that women are treated badly in the world and that needs to change. There are those in this country that would like to use an extemist religious model to oppress women worse than has historically been true. Obviously, we cannot let that happen.

[jpgray]

3. I call myself a humanist, which is happily all-inclusive.

:D

[dolo amber]

10. ...

:thumbsup:

[enigmatic]

21. Me too

:thumbsup:

[Heidi]

24. Exactly. (nt)

[terrya]

27. That's an excellent way of thinking

You're right, of course.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

35. I like the way you think!

I'm for whatever movement unites us!

[Pithlet]

54. Feminists are humanists, too.

We aren't about excluding anyone. There is no shame in admitting one is a feminist. It isn't evidence one only cares about one group of humans. It's acknowledging inequality and doing something about it. That doesn't just benefit women. It benefits everyone.

[jpgray]

61. Right. Humanism includes feminism.

:)

[woo me with science]

60. but horribly species-centric. What do you have against wolverines??????

I'm just kiddin' with ya. Good post. :applause:

[Deep13]

4. Only feminist women give birth to real men.

:evilgrin: I'm paraphrasing something from that 300 movie.

[skygazer]

5. I am and I do

And I think its counterproductive to stop using a term just because some ignorant fucks have tried to hijack it.

[av8rdave]

6. I consider myself one as well

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

7. Yes, of course.

"Do we need to rename our movement? Do we need to reclaim the word feminism and try to erase what the righties have done to destroy the name?"

Nah, give the bastards an inch, they'll take a yard.

[idgiehkt]

28. that is the god's truth

look what they've done with "liberal" because we let them. (well, not us, but DLC/moderate types).

[iverglas]

50. that's a good one

Joke, that is.

You, that is.

"The Bitch Got Away With Murder."

That being the very first thing that springs to the mind of a feminist, and leaps from the keyboard of a feminist, when hearing that a woman convicted of manslaughter in the homicide of the man who a jury obviously accepted had abused her badly for a long time, who had been credited with time spent in pre-trial detention and treated and assessed as an in-patient in a mental health facility, has been released.

Yes, that is the very first thing that any self-respecting feminist would say.

I mean, it's obviously the first thing that anyone who respected anyone at all would say.

Some people just didn't get the joke.


Dog almighty -- does anyone wonder why the word "feminist" has fallen into disrepute? Attach it to filth like this, and who would ever want to be associated with it?

How to kill feminism: be a misogynist asshole and call yourself a feminist. That oughta do it.


damn typos

[treestar]

8. I call myself a moderate feminist

I'm not into the extremes. I read a lot of those books in the 80s and 90s and some of them were hopeless.

[Jimbo S]

9. Give it a new name and the ass holes will fuck with it anyhow.

They just won't stop.

[DS1]

11. Women make me hard

-pressed to find any reason not to be

:crazy:

[Samurai_Writer]

12. Feminist and proud

Ever since 1972, when I was 11 years old and wanted to burn my first bra. My mother was horrified. I think with age (I'm 46 now), I've become even more of a feminist.

[I Have A Dream]

13. Absolutely. I was just telling someone that last night, in fact.

I'm proud to call myself one.

[Deep13]

15. Oppression based on race or religion is a human rights issue.

Oppression based on gender is just a cultural difference that needs to be respected.
:wtf:

That seems to be a prevailing attitude in the world. If anyone can figure out the logic behind that, please let me know what it is. My own suspicion is that perspective is an easy way to ignore human rights abuses and conduct business as usual.

[flvegan]

16. I've been called one a number of times (positive way)

by women, so I guess I can say that I am one. I think I am.

[Taverner]

17. Yes, among other things

[ThomCat]

18. I hope so.

Feminism like any movement. It has it's ideals. I don't know that anyone absolutely lives up to them. I'm not even sure there's agreement about what they are. But I certainly give it some effort to learn about feminism and promote what I believe in.
:shrug:

[WritingIsMyReligion]

19. Yes and yes. Absolutely.

Any woman who doesn't is either deluded or ignorant.

[MissMillie]

20. Yes and yes

the term has gotten a bad rap since about the mid-80s. Kinda like the term "liberal"

[BlueIris]

22. Yep and yep.

Come hang out with us in the feminist forum, fellow feminists! We have free virtual pizza there!

[Robb]

23. I call myself whatever it takes for the chicks to, you know, dig me

(ducks)

Actually, one of my favorite "isms" to bandy about for myself.

[Connonym]

30. ...

:spray:

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

25. It is NOT just Republicans that have destroyed the term "feminist".

It's also the VERY small minority of feminists that are determined to take anything to the Nth degree. In other words, zealots.

And they don't just exist for liberals and feminists, but also the religious, Republicans ("morans" anyone?), and just about any other cause you can think of.

And with the term "liberal", I really think it goes in cycles, just like everything else. It's been something of a dirty word, but I really don't think that's going to be the case in the very near future. In fact, I already feel that swinging in the other direction, where everything "conservative" gets tied to Bush and liberal is starting to look pretty damn good to a lot of people.

For other things, like feminism and religion, I think it will always be that way. Feminists have done absolute wonders for women and society in general. A few bad apples spoil the bunch. Same with religion - how many people here rail against uber-Christians? Yet there are a lot of people in that category that don't get involved with the ugly stuff and keep to the spirit of the cause.

You'll never be rid of that, no matter how many times you try to re-label yourself. The grace period will only end sooner and sooner each time as people get hip to your gig. But frankly, the self-identification really doesn't matter. It's the spirit and tenets behind the term that do. Being a feminist is a wonderful thing - the only route for anyone that truly believes in civil rights, in my humble opinion. No amount of labeling it as "nasty" is going to change that, nor will it stop anyone from believing in what's behind the label if that's what in their minds and hearts.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

31. Meh.

I think the "zealots" you're talking about aren't real feminists to begin with.

[blondeatlast]

42. I think you may be right--if we're on the same wavelength here, "liberation"

isn't what they are after...

But we might not be thinking the same thing. :shrug:

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

52. I wholeheartedly agree.

But they're still recognized as such, and thus tarnish the name of real feminists.

[Nikia]

44. I think zealots are necessary

On this issue and on other issues. I think that some feminists take things too far just as some DUers are too far left. I value their input to discusses and politics though because there are people on the other side of things. Since compromise is common, it makes sense that we have people on our side at a more extreme position than is practical. This way, we actually get what we want rather than compromising to their side of things. Sometimes, they also bring up points that can be incorporated into a more mainstream message that aren't as obvious if they started from a more mainstream position.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

53. I don't agree with that at all.

I will use Ted Kennedy as a perfect example. He is a cornerstone liberal, but unlike Dennis Kucinich, he is not a zealot. He measures his words carefully, and more often than anyone else in Congress, he's able to reach compromises that benefit our side. Kucinich, on the other hand, marginalizes himself to the point where no one even bothers to work with him because he's so unreasonable.

[Nikia]

55. You assume that the mainstream doesn't listen to the zealots

I think that more mainstream politicians do pay attention to Kucinich and others even if their final message is different.
Another type of example I was thinking of this morning was the example of Karl Marx. Although I disagree with his vision of things or that it would even work, I believe that he contributed ideas to others that lead to the formation of labor uniions and aspects of useful socialism in Europe and the United States.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

57. They DON'T listen to the zealots.

The zealots are dismissed as loonies. And Karl Marx's works were implemented largely by force, not by a democratic public consent, after which point, his works couldn't be dismissed by anyone by the sheer gravity of what happened in Soviet Russia.

[Nikia]

59. I don't mean in the Soviet Union

I mean labor unions, the reforms of FDR, and other social movements in the United States and in Europe.

[philosophie_en_rose]

26. Yes and Yes. I'm also a Liberal.

:bounce:

[idgiehkt]

29. yes

I find most women are, even if they don't claim the label. When you describe the tenets of feminism they concur. I don't believe it is a 'few extremists' that sullied the term, either, it was the anti-feminist p.r. assault from the right that gave feminism it's bad connotations, the homophobic knee-jerk reaction to the fabled "ugly, man-hating dyke" stereotype. But even if some women did fit that stereotype they were some of the ones that crusaded for abortion rights and AIDS research...people need to get over themselves and their fear.

[Evoman]

32. Yep, pretty much as feminist you can get while being a dude. I'm sure most of the people here

have read one or more of my rants in GD.

I really think women have to put up with a lot of shit in our society, and I'm committed to do what I can to make it better WITHOUT whining about how bad men have it.

[DU GrovelBot]

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[skygazer]

38. Once again, Grovelbot, you evade the question

x(

[blondeatlast]

41. I think the mods should delete his sub-thread since he hijacked it... nt

[bleedingheart]

34. I am a feminist...and I tell people that..

[trof]

36. No, but I call the wind 'Mariah'.

;-)

[Wetzelbill]

37. I am and I do

Proud to do so.

[stuntcat]

39. Yah!

I think I'm Post-Feminist though. My Mom and her sisters are the centers in our family and always had important jobs. Even though my Grandma never worked she was still the most important and listened to. So I just always took for granted that women are supposed to be respected the most, so when I see people acting any other way I pity their stupidity before I let it affect me, but it really makes me sad that people like that have any power over other people, I mean it's 2007 :eyes: I used to doubt I'd ever see the day when a woman had a chance at the presidency, I just do not put faith in people this century :)

[blondeatlast]

40. Absolutely I am, and as for reclaiming the word, I think maybe we do.

If you've fought the power somehow and came out with your resolve and dignity intact--I don't care whether it's the guy that grabbed your ass when you schlepped drinks in college or you took on Congress--you are a feminist.

[femmocrat]

43. Of course I am!

:hi:

[Nikia]

45. I am definetly a feminist

And am proud of it no matter what anyone else thinks.

[SarahB]

46. Of course.

I'm a man-loving, sex positive, professional, married, feminist mom. Be damned the stereotypes. How could anyone who knows what the word means, not call themselves a feminist?

[Rising Phoenix]

47. hmmmm

I don't call myself one, but I am a practicing feminist....read tons of books, have most of the same views....however I am not against porno, which I know some people makes me think I am less of a feminist....but I disagree, it about choice...any choice.

[cobalt1999]

48. I'm sexist.

However, I'm less sexist than I was when I was single young man. I'm even less sexist after having two daughters. I am all for women having all the rights and pay as men, but I still catch myself having some sexist assumptions. Feminist, no I'm not, but I have come a long way and recognize I have a ways to go still. :hi:

[mentalsolstice]

49. I'm female, I support equal rights, choice, peace, and I love men!

Does that make me a feminist? Hopefully so...

[twenty4blackbirds]

51. "Nasty" women are great

nasty men are too *swoon*

tmi?

[Sisaruus]

56. I am a professional feminist

I majored in women's studies decades ago and have worked in women's and girls' organizations for over 30 years. I've always defined my career path as professional feminism. I am a very fortunate woman to have lived/worked like this for most of my adult life.

[La Lioness Priyanka]

58. yes. yes.