In this case, F is for Feminist.
I find it hard to believe that I have not written about my uneasy relationship with this word in all of my years of blogging so bear with me, this may be a long post. Today, I was flipping through bitch magazine at lunch and there was an article in which the author talked to young women about when they realized that they were a feminist — when it “clicked” — and I thought, “Huh. I still haven’t clicked.”
This is where it gets awkward. I suspect most people would presume it was a no-brainer for me to label myself as a feminist whether for my age and the era in which I was raised, for my rather left-leaning politics, for my union association, or any number of other associations.
Here’s the root of my problem. Back in my early 20s, midway through my University degree, I got involved in student politics because I read the minutes of the Student Union meeting and was thoroughly annoyed that there was a page of text dedicated to congratulating a member on their decision to become a vegetarian. As per my typical MO, I wrote a long rant to the executive. At that time, the executive was very divided along left and right political lines. I received two replies: one from the President (who was on the right) and one from the VP (who was on the left) — both invited me to attend the next council meeting. I attended and was approached by both “sides” to get more involved. Long story short, I chose the “right” side which, at the time, was largely made up of Young SoCreds.* Flash forward to the next round of elections and I ran on the right slate. At the all-candidates’ meeting, I was asked by someone from the Womyn’s Centre, “Are you a feminist?” I replied with a question, “Could you define feminist?” the person who asked not only refused to define it, but told me it was a simple yes or no answer. I didn’t agree so I answered “No.” As a result, I was branded “NOT A FEMINIST” in the student newspaper and got only a handful of votes.
In the year that followed, I got even further involved in the Young SoCreds. I watched as Bill Vander Zalm was pushed out of the party leader seat and Rita Wilson took his place. Then I watched as she was treated like a sacrificial goat in the provincial election that followed. If there was a moment when I thought myself a feminist, it was then. I extracted myself from the party and flung myself to the far left of the political spectrum for a while.
Eventually, I found the middle ground where I now sit, but I still find the term “feminist” hard to swallow. Sure, at its core, it’s all about equality regardless of sex and/or gender, and that I’ll agree with. However, looking at the “waves” of feminism (first, second, third), the backlash, the post-feminist movement, and things like marxist-feminist or anarcho-feminism, I just start to squish my face into a puckered sneer and look for the nearest exit.
Bottom line, I guess, is that this part of my identity has yet to find an adequate label. When I find one that fits, maybe I’ll let you know but more than likely, I’ll just keep it to myself.
*the Young SoCreds were the youth wing of the Social Credit Party of BC which, at the time was the ruling party, and which were considered “very” right wing.
I have always been annoyed by the whole “evolution” of the term. I AM a feminist because I choose to use what I think of as the original basic definition: a feminist is someone who believes women and men are entitled to equal treatment under the law with the same rights and the same opportunities.
I have always been offended by what I see as the hypocrisy of female politicians who claim they are NOT feminists. IMNSHO if you are NOT a feminist then you do NOT believe women should have the vote, let alone the legal right to run for elected office.
Sadly the distinction between classical and radical feminists is even more subtle and difficult to elaborate in our black versus white media than between moderate and radical Muslims. I understand how you would be reluctant to be associated with the radicals but maybe if more people fought against false labels in even small ways the idea, if not the word, could be effectively rescued from the radicals.
BTW I’d say I despised the young Socreds but my university roomate and fellow AMS Board member was a card-carrying Socred. Probably why the Women’s Centre fought against me so hard when I ran for VP Services.