FEATURES
MARCH 05, 2009
15%
N O
3%
WHITMAN COLLEGE PIO NEER POLL DATA AND QUOTATIONS ON
I K N OW A FACT O R T WO
17, 18 COLLECTED BY S HANNON B UCKHAM
N O
27%
20%
V E RY W E L L INFORMED
25% S L I G H T LY INFORMED Y ES
do you think
men can be feminists?
wellinformed about
73%
are you
Y ES
97%
feminist issues?
40%
do you consider yourself a feminist ?
M O D E R AT E LY INFORMED
FEMINISM: E X P L O R I N G
the s e c o n d S
E
15
X
16
MARCH 05, 2009
t s i n i m G e f N I D N R S TA
FEATURES
co m m entary:
UN DEm i s u n d e r s t a n d i n g s
Gabriela Salvidea
A
t a place like Whitman I can begin to understand why feminism may seem passé: all the hyphenated last names and students with high-powered mothers present the façade of egalitarianism as cultural norm. This campus norm betrays my own background and I’m sure the background of many others here—but most important, it betrays the background of most other women in the U.S., not to mention the world. My last name is my father’s, though he played no role in raising me, and my mom was always primarily a housewife, who now, postdivorce, is finding it nearly impossible to get a career off the ground. Some people snicker at feminists, wondering what women really have t o
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EN
complain about now that they can vote, abort and work. But such a view presupposes that feminism is just the domain of white and affluent or middle-class women. “Feminism,” for college students, invokes images of women marching indignantly in the 60s. In other words, it invokes images of the experiences of their own privileged mothers, protesting at a college or fiercely choosing a career in law instead of teaching, and leads to the conclusion that the work is done. Of course, even when feminism is conflated with whiteness and privilege, critiqued narrowly, the work, indeed, is not done. “The need for feminism is not over in developed countries. Even in the United States we still have women making 70 cents on the male dollar, approximately,” said Professor of Religion Melissa Wilcox. “I was just told yesterday about some research that’s come out confirming that advertising encourages men to view women as objects. We still have huge problems with eating disorders, especially in college-aged women. There are all kinds of reasons why feminism still is very relevant.” A quick glance at feminist blogs like Salon’s Broadsheet or Feministing makes clear there’s enough daily sexism to offer an overabundance of fodder for feminism critique. Despite that I come to feminism from a different place than many college students, I still recognize the value of feminism even when it doesn’t completely speak to my background. Those who suggest that it’s third world, not first world, women who face legitimate sexist battles, citing genital mutilation for instance, are misguided. “We really do have women and children living in third world conditions here in the U.S., this is so much more difficult to admit. It is easy to otherize and say, look
how backwards that country is! We’re all set in America! Let’s go help those backwards people out! Then to say, holy shit. We have a lot of problems here in the states, and we’re not dealing with them,” said junior Amelia Rose-Singer. “I know that sounds awful in a lot of ways, because I am supposed to be a liberal, worldly, open-minded person who cares about human rights around the world. but while Whitman students (or insert any college campus or community) are raising money for children in Africa, there are really fucked up problems just a few blocks away that people can be helping with. By highlighting oppressions countries away, are you helping or just furthering oppression of that population by inserting your own value system of right and wrong,” she said. “I find the presuppositions of this exercise itself offensive. I am not sure why your purpose cannot be served by simply debating whether the battle for feminism in the West has been won without juxtaposing ‘our progress’ with ‘their backwardness,’ wrote Professor of Politics Shampa Biswas in an e-mail. A rift exists between first world and third world feminists because of first world feminists’ well-meaning but clumsy and insensitive attempts to “save” or help third world feminists by imposing their values on them. “First world feminists should not be dictating to third world feminists what feminism is or what a feminist issue is, but rather should be listening to and hearing third world feminists on that question,” said Wilcox. It is important to recognize that many people who use the word feminism are using it narrowly. “So if you define it that way, that makes it clear that what you mean by feminism when you use it as an unmarked term—that in itself is interesting—you do mean white and middle or upper class. But even then, feminism is still not irrelevant,” said Wilcox.
WHITMAN COLLEGE PIO NEER
I
know what you’re thinking when you read the title. A rant about how working women have destroyed the nuclear family. Or as Pat Buchanan wrote in a 1983 syndicated column, “Rail as they will about ‘discrimination,’ women are simply not endowed by nature with the same measures of single-minded ambition and the will to succeed in the !ercely competitive world of Western capitalism.” This is not what I am saying. I fully support feminism and its impact on the world. I appreciate the fact that I am not expected to pop out kids and cook a pot roast for my husband. However, the oppression of women is not the only form of oppression that exists. How could it be? Social problems ranging from gender bias, racism, religious intolerance, poor education or socio-economic inequality are interconnected. To privilege one over another is a mistake. It is so easy for white, af"uent women, in which I include myself, to overlook this. I have the gift of cultural capital. Literacy, access to information and a supportive environment all contribute to my ability to understand that oppression of white, af"uent women is still alive and that even something as simple as thinking my vagina smells bad is a type of oppression. As a result, I am able to stand up in room full of strangers and declare that my vagina smells like roses, as is done in “The Vagina Monologues” of which I participated in my !rst-year. I think that “white girl feminism” is still relevant. Eating disorders and rape still occur regardless of class or race, thus feminism cannot die. Yet, identity and ideology don’t exist in a vacuum. I am a feminist because I have cultural capital, not because feminism is the highest and most true ideology. Don’t assume your support of feminism, or any belief for that matter, for this reason. There is always a reason. Here is my challenge to you: self-examine. Understand yourself and where you’ve come from. When you start see why you believe the things you do, identifying other forms of oppression in your life will be easier. Your feminist attitudes are a great place to start.
Autumn m ccartan
T O W A R D S
I don’t feel safe wa lking around at night in a short ski rt. ...If I stil l feel less safe at night in a city tha n a ma n does, we haven’t reached our goa l.
I am a woman, but I am not a feminist.
cha l leng e y o u r AT T co m m e ntar y:
I T U DES
Feminism
17
18
WHITMAN COLLEGE PIO NEER
FEATURES
male feminism: T
he face of feminism has changed dramatically since its conception. The age of second-wave feminism, an age of bra burning, “The Feminine Mystique,” and most importantly the exclusion of men, has transformed into a complex and inclusive movement. The most dramatic inclusion of that movement? Men. While men have taken part in each “wave” of the movement, criticism towards these men have followed. Men involved were viewed, particularly in the second-wave movement by both feminists and non- feminists alike, as either attempting to “get into the pants” of women participants or join out of sexual self-hatred. Even today, men who consider themselves feminists !nd themselves criticized, though mostly by people outside of the movement. Texas Technical University “The Daily Toreador” columnist and self- proclaimed feminist James Hershberger addresses these issues in his article “Fight for her rights: Male feminism is no oxymoron.” Questions such as “did you join just to meet women?” and jabs hinting at his “emasculation” frequently bombard him. However, he maintains that his interest in women’s issues stem from a !rm belief and admiration of feminist causes. “The long, impressive history of the feminist has earned respect,”
commentary By CJ Wisler
com mon g rou nd even in controversy
men. Male feminists seek to educate other men about the feminist movement and advocate the feminist principles of freedom, love, unity, cooperation, harmony, equality, and compassion. While it still holds on to its traditional notions of equality for women, the addition of the Y chromosome helps push feminism to a more inclusive and stronger movement than ever. That is positive progress.
For a woman to be “equal” to a man, it would necessitate her complete negation of her feminine sexuality, of the differences in her life that make her acceptance not just a simple gesture of inclusion in a patriarchal society.
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We still receive lower pay than our male counterparts and are judged as being weak, overemotional, and incapable of thinking rationally. Even places like Whitman still don’t offer maternity leave. Having a child shouldn’t prevent a woman from advancing her career.
writes Hershberger. “Because of the brave female and male feminists, the antiquated notion of submissive roles has been disposed of.” Students across the Whitman campus responded that male feminism is a positive development and, in fact, one that is necessary to achieving gender equality. “I certainly hope men can be feminists,” said senior gender studies major and male feminist Gus O’Malley in an e-mail response. “My understanding of feminism is that it promotes equality between genders… If men aren’t allowed to be feminists [then] I think that really misses the point. Men should be encouraged to be feminists if any change is going to happen towards gender equality.” “Of course men can be feminists,” said junior Stephanie Silver, who is currently on a leave of absence from Whitman and responded via e-mail. “Feminism is for those who believe in gender equality, not the dominance or superiority of females and female traits. Men can support the cause for gender equality out of a belief that justice bene!ts all; we all know that causes that don’t seem to directly bene!t ourselves are often still worthy to support.” Men and women gave an overwhelming verbal nod at male feminists and the hope that men would, as senior Anastasia Zamkinos said in her e-mail, “wear the title ‘feminist’ with pride.” The title of “male feminist” does not try to reinforce the patriarchal notion that “the little women must be helped.” Rather, male feminists attempt to sympathize with women, seeing them as human equals rather than damsels in distress. It is not a movement for emasculated, self-hating
MARCH 05, 2009