Depends on What You Call a Feminist – A Dialogue
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TeresaMarch 18, 2015
Excellent words. I especially appreciate the historical view of what women changed as they organized and collected their strengths to change the world. Great article. Thank you.
Kathleen O'MealMarch 17, 2015
My first "taste" of feminism happened when I was wearing a pink hardhat while operating a backhoe on an inner city upstate NY construction job as a young adult. Ms. Bella Abzug and entourage descended upon me with cameras and microphone to witness to the world what an enlightened female could do in a mans world, I think? I recall the horrible feeling I felt around her and her group---the complete absence of the Lord's Spirit. Her assumption about why I was making 26.00/hr on a State job rate was a projection, their inferences about my ripped farm girl physique was disrespectful and coarse, and she was not interested in what I felt or thought....didn't ask. I was self-contained and didn't feel the need for their brand of "strength." Then it seemed throughout my life I had occasions to "bump" into LDS women who elicited the same feelings in me. For example, on BYU campus, there was a very poorly dressed English professor who berated me at length in front of the class for choosing a magazine cover from a "Threads" (sewing) magazine (for class project) as being of an inferior man's world thinking mind---again an assumption without any interest in how that affected me or in what I thought. I recall a female psyche professor who wore a pin striped man's suit to class, spread her legs apart on top of her desk and influenced girls with long hair to cut their hair short. One adult woman wore a man's long trench coat, short hair, and early American style wire glasses and strutted in an affected "popeye" style fashion all over campus. Then there was a time when I was an activities com. leader when I asked a mission president in Palmyra NY if the elders and sisters could come for a complete apartment remodeling and picnic activity and he called me a feminist with a tone I perceived as negative. So....for me the article brought back some painful and unwanted memories. My interest in women's rights are in protection of women within cultures where women are being burned, mutilated, and left pregnant and without food and water and so on, in sub animal fashion at the whim of those in power. My interest in women's rights is protection and healing for women who have been injured by men and women in power role abuse positions. I see a lot of this in nursing and medicine. My interest in women's rights is protection of women who are mothers and daughters and wives by those in positions to sign away rights to roles. My interest in women's rights is the protection and healing of women in the Church who are "hurt" or otherwise victimized socially by those who have culturally self-elevated status syndrome, especially older single women. Does being a protector or an advocate of women make me a feminist? Am I a feminist? Yet, I feel the same way about protecting men. Does wanting the same protection for men and all children and elderly make me not a feminist? Exclusive/inclusive? ..
Renaissance NerdMarch 13, 2015
While I am not certain it's possible to accomplish it, I would welcome there reclaiming of 'feminist' from the fascisti who captured it, along with 'liberal' and 'democratic' and a host of other terms used as camouflage by those who don't dare call themselves what they are. I think that the Church is actually ahead of every other institution in terms of equality between the sexes, and I think the reason we haven't gone the whole distance yet is twofold. First, the host culture still won't accept equality. It might seem funny to say so, but most who call themselves feminists want anything but equality. They're either seeking to line their own pockets or trying to grab power with whatever angle they can use. Second, women are not adults yet--not even in their own minds in far too many cases. LDS women are the MOST adult of any set of women I have ever seen, but even so, the helpless maiden lurks within with far too much frequency. This is changing, and in societal terms with astonishing swiftness, and it is part of a continuum that goes back many centuries and includes both sexes. Men were not adults either, for most of history--it took America to embrace adulthood for each man, and it's taken longer for women. As we know from the Book of Mormon history is cyclical, eddies and whirlpools rather than a swift flowing river, and that has caused an ebb and flow many times where the rights one day guaranteed are the next vanished. I have no doubt that during the 200 years after Christ's visit women were as equal as could be possible among Lehi's descendants, but it didn't last. This time it just might, and I look forward to it. And lest we forget, Colonel Colt didn't make men equal, he made women equal. All through history with very few exceptions muscle-powered weapons made women require male protection, but the small, concealable percussion-cap revolver made a 100-pound woman the equal of a 300-pound man...or two, or three such. Material things matter almost as much as attitudes and ideas.
aliceMarch 13, 2015
Happy Hubby- Good for you claiming the label of feminist. I hope you will be careful about "othering" people though with your use of "radical feminist". Radical often just means people who don't have the same perspective as you. I think part of claiming feminism is recognizing that everyone gets to define that for themselves, but we can all still love and support each other on our own journeys.
Alliegator from Feminist Mormon HousewivesMarch 13, 2015
I really enjoyed reading both of your thoughts on feminism and the church. I would love for either or both of you to share your thoughts on the fMh blog, particularly your own stories of how your feminism influences your faith in the gospel, and how you have found balance and peace. If you are interested, please email me at feministmormonhousewives @ gmail . com
LauraMarch 13, 2015
Thank you for sharing these expansive and inclusive views on feminism. It is productive and exciting to be encouraged to appreciate the gains made by feminism for all women, and to widen our concept of sisterhood to include all who are attempting in their human, limted, unique and beautiful way to fulfill their potential on this planet. It is not a competition!
Harold RustMarch 13, 2015
I appreciate the tone and the substance of this article. I grew up in a family with five brothers and a single mom. All of us (boys and mom) believed that women were special but also different from men. My attitude about women has been quite consistent throughout the many years after leaving home in that I: a. Believe men should be especially kind and considerate to women, b. Have a difficult time accepting "feminism" only when it either seems to threaten men or it pushes women independence into the role of confident sex objects, c. Removing barriers for women in the workplace is a valuable and viable goal as long as we don't focus solely on the statistics nor ignore the human elements of similarity and differences between men and women. I was defeated by a woman in running for high school student body president and it didn't take me long to realize she really was the better choice for our school at that time.
A Happy HubbyMarch 13, 2015
I was a male teenager in the late 70's / early 80's and remember ERA and got a bad taste for the "feminism" label. When I turned 50 about 2 years ago I was reading something and it described what a feminist was (not a "radical feminist") and I realized I aligned with the description. Since then I have called myself a feminist and raised some eyebrows. I like being able to say what a feminist is and I find many people in the church have that same view that I used to have of "feminist" is what the world would call "radical feminist". I am proud to be a feminist.
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