I don't know if you're familiar with something that has provoked a lot of fuss on tumblr and other social media, about Shailene Woodley and her views on feminism, but if you have already read something about it and if you think that you have more points of view to add, please tell me in the comments! Just please don't be hateful and disrespectful and read me through this.
First of all, there is nothing wrong with being an anti feminist or calling yourself and equalitarian and blah blah blah. Technically we all want something - equality. And the actress Shailene Woodley, you may know her from Divergent, and the TFIOS movie where she plays the leading lady, recently gave an interview to Times magazine (I'll make sure to add it to the external link, so please do read it and share your own opinions!), where she talked about her views on feminism.
Like I said, she plays the leading role of a strong girl in both movies, and she was asked if she was conscious of the messages she was sending to young girls out there, and if she was a feminist.
Her answer: No, because I love men.
ah.AHA,aha.HASHAHSGJJ Oh my dear Shailene... no. Just, no. I'm going to use her argument to start writing about the second part of this rant, misconceptions about feminism. First of all, I'm a feminist, but I don't need feminism. I share opinions with tumblr user bluesigma on this:
"I don't need feminism...but I choose to be a feminist because I feel with the right attitude, feminism has the potential to do a lot of good for other women in my life and across the world."
I'm fed up of seeing 'I NEED feminism, because...' pictures that give utterly ridiculous or stupid reasons for 'needing' feminism. I think feminism is a good thing, but for a lot of people it's not a need. There are also other movements that work towards the equality of women that aren't feminism. Feminism is simply the most well known, and with that comes a lot of resources. However, it also has a lot of problems.
Keep that in mind before you proclaim 'needing' feminism. "
As I told you before, there is nothing wrong in calling yourselves other things other than feminists, but when you pass a wrong image to loads and loads of fans about something, that's kinda stupid. But, anyway, Shailene's argument is my first misconception about feminism.
#1: Feminists are all fat, hairy lesbians who hate men and want to take over the world
We're really not. I'm not saying that there aren't bad and extremist feminists, there are, and they're quite a lot, I'm afraid. They have double standards and they are passing a really unrealistic image of other critical and more serious feminists. And I'm not saying that there aren't fat, or hairy, or lesbians in this movement, of course there are, but there's nothing wrong with that. See, if you're using that as an argument as to why feminism sucks, then I'm sorry to tell you that it's you that has a problem. And about hating men? Well that is absolutely false! If you're a decent man then yeah, of course that we don't have reasons to hate you, this is not a case of, oh you're a man so I must hate you, it's really not that, despite of, once again, stupid misandrists starting ridiculous hastags like #killallmen and #endfathersday and dumb stuff like that.
#2: Feminists don't care about men.
We get that a lot, because of radfems that are currently infesting the internet, sadly. They're a bunch of misandrists that talk about wanting to have their eyeliner game so on point that they scare men, or that they drink their male tears, and that's just utter bullshit and the reason why we aren't taken seriously. Men have problems too! They're less likely to get a custody over their children, they still make circumcisions on babies incapable of consenting, they are falsely accused of rape and sometimes sent to prison for crimes they haven't committed and they suffer from rape too, in prisons and sometimes by women that aren't held accountable for their actions.
#3: Feminists think all men are rapists.
This is so not true! Basically people from any gender can be rapists, if you think about it. I can't stand people who think that if a woman rapes a guy then it was certainly not rape because he is a man, and men love sex, so he obviously must've wanted it, which is awful, because no, rape is still rape no matter your gender. But we do have to understand that the majority of rape that happens in today's society is done by men, and we do think that men are as rational as women and they should be accountable for their actions, so that whole "boys will be boys" and "a women wearing less clothes is certainly asking for it", is complete bullshit, and those are the arguments that make men monsters, as if they "can't help it" and they are not able to stop themselves, as if they're animals, so yeah, obviously this misconception is very very false. We think that everyone should be accountable for their actions.
4#: Feminists don't have a sense of humour.
I honestly can't even understand this misconception because it is so untrue! I know a lot of feminists who have an amazing sense of humour! However, we don't find jokes who make fun of oppressed groups, or about rape. It's perfectly possible to laugh and make jokes that don't bully minorities, they don't even deserve having that bullshit thrown at them.
5#: Feminists have penis envy.
This doesn't even need a lot of arguing. Our movement is not about specific parts of the body, it's about equality. Also, a lot of feminists have penises so that argument is a bit cissexist too.
6#: Feminists want a matriarchy.
Once again, basically what we're aiming for is e q u a l i t y. We just want to be able to do what we want and be who we want to be and not be restricted by gender roles and such. Misandrists want matriarchies. Actual, critical feminists don't.
7#: Feminists are from a hive mind.
There are actually a lot of different kinds of feminists, and that is a really wrong generalization because even within feminism, there are a lot of variations in what we believe in. We're a collective in the sense that (once again) we want equality.
8#: Feminists are like the Nazis.
Are you seriously going to compare us to the Nazis? Have we killed someone? Have we fought in wars? No, and that is a really hurtful misconception if you bear in mind people who were actual victims of the Nazis, which by the way were really patriarchal, so this association just... it just doesn't make that much sense and it is really disrespectul.
So yeah guys, please do share your own opinions and views about this matter because I get that feminism has a really bad conotation due to the media. What are your opinions about Shailene's interview and her own arguments? I'm honestly really interested!
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