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Feminism Reformation: How Radical Feminism Changed the Perception of Society

Growing up in a world where “feminist” is a harmful, caustic label shows the dangers of society’s manipulation of the term and how effective it has become. In Roxane Gay’s TED talk, “Confessions of a Bad Feminist,” she begins her speech by saying that she is a bad feminist because of her inability to fit the tight mold set aside for “feminists.” Gay shares in her speech that “too many women, particularly groundbreaking women and industry leaders, are afraid to be labeled as feminists. They're afraid to stand up and say, ‘Yes, I am a feminist,’ for fear of what that label means, for fear of being unable to live up to unrealistic expectations.” Gay implies that the media and fellow women tear down other women that do not exemplify a perfect, completely stable-in-every-aspect woman—it is also gathered that only these types of women can effectively empower young girls and the future strive towards equality for all genders. Feminism is not defined by whether a woman dresses in pink, enjoys fashion, watches romantic comedies, stays at home with her children, or takes her husband’s last name. Feminism is the support of equality between men and women alike. While I agree with Roxane Gay’s point of feminism being a key component to society, I disagree with her views of how “perfect” feminism is portrayed and her adoption of radical feminism ideals labeled as “typical feminism standards.” Overtime, supporting the equal treatment of women skewed what true feminism is and what it stands for. Feminism has become a movement filled with hatred and negativity; when, in actuality, feminism is simply the way a woman is viewed comparatively to a man. Throughout history, radical feminism has led to the misrepresentation and a skewed idea of what true feminism stands for.

The true definition of feminism has morphed overtime into “man-hating,” as Gay says, or female privilege. This “feminism” gave special priorities once given to men, to women in their place—defeating the initial purpose for feminism. Feminism is explicitly and exclusively the belief that women should be equal to men for doing equal tasks or having equal responsibilities. (Duca) Radical feminism/“man-hating” has quickly become the understood definition of feminism, when not only females can, nor should, stand up for gender equality. Feminism is the support of oppressed women to be socially, economically, and politically equal to men. An extreme attempt of radical feminism discourages women from banding together and further eliminates the bond that ties men to women, equally and fairly. Knowing what feminism is and the platforms it stands for is the first step in deciding whether one supports feminism or not. Feminism should be an empowering term; a call-to-action for people to stand for the rights of not only women, but all genders. By having a misinterpreted idea of what feminism is and/or stands for, the appeal to the public to join behind the movement decreases dramatically.

Radical feminism has become a common substitute for what true feminism is. Radical feminism uses extremes to actually put down men and imperfect women, rather than build up all genders to an equal point. Feminism fights for equality, not for women to be in the stereotypical “man’s position” of today’s society. Gay states that women “tear down other women” if they do not fit the “pedestal” that society has designed for feminists. Radical feminism tears down people that do not perfectly exemplify equality, women and men alike. (Gay) Radical feminism also further discourages people to wear the label of “feminist.” In a recent interview, woman rights activist and actress, Ellen

Page, went into further detail about how people in the media are afraid to express feministic views and ideas publicly.  “A lot of what the ‘radical’ feminists [in the 1970s] were saying, I don't disagree with it,” says Page. (Freeman) The expression of her strong passion for feminism is something most media focuses would not comply with because of the fear of tarnishing their public appearance and potential loss of fan base.

The use of radical feminism overtime has made equality-driven women appear to the public in a different way. As Gay states, in order to be defined as a “good feminist,” one must alter their outward appearance to fit the “mold society has set.” (Gay) A “good feminist” doesn’t shave her legs, doesn’t like the color pink, doesn’t stay at home with her children, and shouldn’t even actually date men. This idea of radical feminism deters the drive to actually do what feminists set out to do: find equality in everyone, men and women alike. “Good feminism” makes equality an elite and select group, accomplishing the very opposite of what feminism, by definition, sets out to do. The use of outward appearance to separate feminists and non-feminists is an idea radical feminism first brought about. Different protests for equal rights have included the use of not shaving one’s legs, burning bras, and going topless to prove that people should be treated equally and given the same respect to make decisions. One protest in Buenos Aires led to the violent attacks on a church, all because of the controversy of abortion and women’s right to body exposure (Vasquez-Mellado). While I do agree with the mentality behind these actions, I disagree with the message this puts behind feminism. Feminism supports equality and fairness, not the superficial side of the societal pressures women face—like wearing a bra or having hairy underarms.

Feminism began as a movement to show that women could be more than housewives back in the late 19th century. All throughout history, various women helped spark the feminist movements, but an organized feminist movement did not occur until 1848 at the Seneca Falls Convention. “Hildegard of Bingen (d. 1179)…Christine de Pisan (d. 1434)… Olympes de Gouge (d. 1791), Mary Wollstonecraft (d. 1797) and Jane Austen (d. 1817)” were all considered precursors to the feminist movement (Rampton). The beginning efforts to feminism focused on issues such as a woman’s right to own her own property, a woman’s right to divorce, and eventually led to women’s suffrage. Overtime, the equalities women were fighting for became “less significant” than those previously stated: the wage gap is a major issue that people do not see as a main priority, or even as a problem at all; but in the US, on average, women make 80% of what men make (Miller). The infamous “pink tax” also discriminates against women by having women’s personal care products cost on average 7% more than men’s (Fried). The healthcare provided for women and a woman’s body is also still a controversial issue: the debate over pro-life or pro-choice; the accessibility of family planning services; and the availability to various health-related procedures are still being decided upon by men in Congress or an Evangelical doctrine, despite whether a woman supports or follows a religion at all. Seeing the issues at hand and how women weren’t being listened to as effectively as before, radical feminism began to prove the unfairness of society’s actions. Radical feminism, in turn, had an opposite effect and has given people a reason to not push for equality for women. Violent outbreaks and uncontrollable riots have scared people from feminism and into a place of ignorance and unawareness. While the efforts

of radical feminists strives to cover most of the same platforms as true feminism, the approach and the effect are virtually opposites with true feminism being logically based and more sound-minded than radical appeals and actions.

Feminism has been poorly defined and skewed by radical feminist actions. Feminism is defined by one’s actions towards achieving gender equality—not by what you wear, not by where you shave, not by whom you marry, and not by how you show your body. In order to stand behind the feminist platform or deny it, one must first know what it is that feminism truly stands for and supports; not what society has shaped feminism into, nor what radical feminism has superficially pushed for.

Works Cited:

Confessions of a Bad Feminist. Perf. Roxane Gay. TED. Ted Talks, May 2015.

Duca, Lauren. “The Definition Of Feminism, Now Use It.” The Huffington Post. The

Huffington Post INC, 25 Aug 2014.

Freeman, Hadley. “Ellen Page: ‘Why Are People so Reluctant to Say They’re

Feminists?’” The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 03 July 2013.

Fried, Carla. "Pink Tax Repeal Act Aims to Make Pricing Fair to Women."Consumer

Reports. Consumer Reports INC, 11 July 2016.

Miller, Kevin. “The Simple Truth about the Gender Pay Gap (Fall 2016).” AAUW.

American Association of University Women, Fall 2016.

Rampton, Martha. “Four Waves of Feminism.” Pacific University. Pacific University of

Oregon, 25 Oct 2015.

Vazquez-Mellado, Sofia. “Violent Mob of Topless Pro-abort Feminists Attacks Praying

Men Defending Cathedral.” Life Site News. Life USA, 2 Dec 2013.

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