Feminism
Today we live in a society where women, overall, are paid “80 cents to every man’s dollar with a gender wage gap of 20%,” (IWPR). This is just a simple example of the inequality between sexes in the United States alone. Women are not the only gender suffering though. According to RAINN scholarly article, “1 in every 10 victims of rape are men,” and yet the main focus of rape victims are females. The new wave of feminism is focused on creating an equality opportunity for all sexes. Feminism is a term that is associated with the equal rights of all sexes, genders, sexualities, race, ethnicity, and more. Feminism is a reflection on past movements to bring equality of the people for the people by coming in waves.
Feminism is the belief
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Although some may argue the fourth wave is present, it’s still a relatively new wave and there is not much research done on it, yet. The third wave is more focused on the equality of all sexes, not just strictly women, and it includes women of different ethnicities, colors, religions, and cultural backgrounds which were not presented in the past. One of the topics of third wave feminism include breaking gender stereotyping and expectations. A simple example, why is it was we categorize the color pink with girls and the color blue with boys? It’s all a social construct that was drilled into our young and still developing brains. The argument of colors designated to a sex is still extremely controversial and overseen as ‘ridiculous’, from what I’ve witnessed in the media. I believe a child should be able to chose what toys they want to play with, and if they so happen to be pink or blue, which doesn’t conform to societal norms, then so be it. This is just an example as simple as colors relating to sex, but it still is a very prevalent topic with modern day …show more content…
But, modern day feminism is what I am apart of. It’s the belief that all genders, races, sexualities, cultural backgrounds, and ethnicities are equal. Modern day feminism is covering topics that are groundbreaking in today’s society. I am so proud to be apart of a culture and society that let’s me have the freedom of speech to speak out for women, and every gender, on the inequality they face, and to speak out for the people who can’t. Feminism is in the now, and it’s in the future. There will be generations to come who progress in the future with the fourth wave of Feminism, and on. Feminism has accomplished so much in the world, and is continuing to break barriers and fight for the equality of every
The word feminism is sometimes misinterpreted and associated with female superiority and hatred of men, although most people probably agree that feminism can mean the desire for social and economic parity. There is so much baggage surrounding this term that clarification of what feminism is and is not, is essential. Indeed, the way feminism has developed has not been pretty. “Feminism over the years have [sic] evolved away from its noble purpose of creating awareness and defending women rights to creating new ridiculous ‘belief systems.’...feminism has become more like a medium for angry women to vent their hatred and frustration towards man”(“Feminism is Chauvinism”). This definition goes completely against the true meaning of what feminism entails. Feminism can be defined as a fundamental respect for others and the desire for equality between men and women.
The image that is usually placed with feminism is that of a rabid, bra-burning, lesbian running around disclaiming the patriarchy. It could be that of a mid-century housewife complaining about how her only career choices are between teacher and secretary, or even of a woman with a sash and banner walking in front of the White House; preaching about her right to vote. However, this isn't necessarily the case. Ever since the rise of the internet, in the late 20th Century, feminism has had a revival causing it to grow in popularity and spread across forums everywhere. Women are joining this “third wave” movement to bring an end to the societal injustices that still plague the gender today (qtd. in Haslanger et al.). Feminism currently represents much more than it did in its infantile stage, having evolved to include relevant issues that affect every woman in today’s subordinating world. Issues such as rape culture, slut shaming, abortion and the wage gap have all been adapted into the feminist agenda with the hope that, as a united force, women could bring change to a misogynist society. The bra burning days are over, and feminism is on a rise, bringing light to issues that need to be addressed.
“Feminism”, as defined today, is “1: the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes,” and “2: organized activity on behalf of women’s rights and interests.”2 Many critics claim that feminism has been active longer than the word itself has existed.3 The word, “feminist” was not in true use until the late 1800s and early 1900s, but activism for women’s rights was alive and well a...
Feminism can simply be defined as a range of movements and ideologies in which share a common ground in terms of defining, establishing and achieving equal opportunities to that of males, in regards to economic, cultural and social rights. It is a critique of male supremacy with efforts in changing this to end the social oppression of women. (Hooks, 2000)
In that time, more and more social constructs were being dissected and societies perceptions of gender, sexuality and heteronormativity were being tested. Whereas the second wave of feminism rejected traditionally feminine things (which were seen as symbols of oppression made by men) such as lipstick and high heels, the third wave feminists readopted those same feminine symbols. The reasoning behind it was that you shouldn't have to choose between being beautiful or smart, you could be both. They A lot of the women in the third wave also refused to identify as "feminists." They found the term to be limited and even exclusionary. Some have even equated the word with misandrists. Third-wave feminism recognizes diversity. It recognizes race, ethnicity, class, sexual orientation and gender identity and these differences are celebrated (Rampton,
Feminism is the movement for removing inequalities from society. Women imbued with a spirit of radicalism understand that a liberal feminist attitude, despite the seeming slowness of change that accompanies it, may transform a community more rapidly than a revolutionary approach that alienates those to be convinced and, thus, extinguishes the possibility of improvement. (Weaver 49) Feminists confront the problems of their society in hopes of altering society to be equal.
The phrase “Third-Wave Feminism” was coined by a 23-year-old, African-American woman named, Rebecca Walker during an essay in 1992.This wave has been the most controversial amongst the Feminist community. In association with the advancement of technology, the Third wave feminism has been able to reach a much younger audience. Many older generation feminist feels as if the newer generation is misrepresenting the movement and what it stand for. Historically, Feminist have been more conservative on issues such as expressing their sexuality, but in The Third Wave, many of its new followers feel they deserve the right to express themselves as their male counterpart do. Many claim they are practicing the teachings of women
The Third Wave may have occurred as a result of Black women’s criticisms of the Second Wave as a strictly white, middle class women’s movement.(Page 64) Canada supports the idea of meritocracy, where everyone has an equal chance of success. This belief undermines the fact that racism was still very evident in the women’s movements. Also an issue that arose from the Second Wave, was the exclusion of transgendered people from the movement.
Doctor Robert Parker of Yale University identifies three major waves of feminism. First wave feminism was driven by a goal of establishing women’s rights. I like to think of this wave as our Humanization wave. Women were fighting for the right for basic human rights such as the right to vote, opportunities for education, and entitlement to property. The driving factor of this wave was to look to women as a human being not anything less. Women that are embedded in this wave were confined to the rules of their husbands thus being docile bodies of the home. They cooked, cleaned, did their husbands dirty laundry, and made babies. De Beauvoir would consider these women under the unessential “other” the women who have very little voice and say in
Feminist theory looks beyond the common male based perspectives and focuses on women’s perspectives and their roles within society. The feminist theory is still relevant in today’s society. In fact, feminism and the feminist theory will be relevant for as long as there is inequality in this world. For example, according to the United States Department of Labor, women still make 78 cents for every dollar men make, on average, in every career field. Additionally, violence against women is still a prevalent problem today. For instance, one in three women are victims of physical and sexual violence often committed by intimate partners. These statistics are higher in countries where women are treated and seen as property of their husbands. Lastly, reproductive rights are an important step to creating equality. Laws need to protect the rights of women to have freedom over their bodies in the way that men have control over
The term “feminism” tends to have a negative connotation in today’s culture. Feminism is now focusing on female dominance and male disrespect. Women are fighting for equality, yet using personal bias to define equality, claiming identical rights for all will produce an equal culture. The mainstream feminist movement is using this corrupted view of equality to force rights of women. Contrary to popular belief, true feminism fights for true equality for women, as well as other people groups. The false view of feminism causes women to distort gender roles, dishonor themselves, and degrade men.
Feminism is a perspective that views gender as one of the most important bases of the structure and organization of the social world. Feminists argue that in most known societies this structure has granted women lower status and value, more limited access to valuable resources, and less autonomy and opportunity to make choices over their lives than it has granted men. (Sapiro 441)
In order to completely understand the feminist movement, it’s important to understand the terminology used. A very common misconception is that the feminism movement is synonymous to the women’s suffrage movement. As defined by Oxford Dictionary, feminism is “The advocacy of women’s rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality to men.” When discussing women’s suffrage, one would be referring to the fight for women to get the right to vote. Although women did achieve this right, this was not the end of feminism. Other terms involved when discussing feminism would be sexist or discrimination on the grounds of gender and misogynistic or showing hatred,mistrust, and mistreatment of women.
Feminism is defined as the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes. It began as an organized activity on behalf of women?s rights and interests. This concept was developed to help women earn a place in a predominantly male society. Unfortunately over the years, the intentions of feminism have become distorted, not only by anti-feminists, but also by the feminists themselves. The principle of equality for women and men has turned into a fight in which feminists wish to be better than men. Feminism has been twisted and misunderstood so much that it has become a harmful idea.
Modern-day feminism is no longer about equality but more about superiority. Today, many feminists go around stating there isn’t a need for men, women can survive on their own, and that women are better than men. As Saira Khan states in her article on Spiked, “modern-day feminists engage in man-bashing rather than dignified demands for equality.” (Khan 1). It just shows how feminists would rather take their anger out on men rather than realize we a...