The word feminist
was introduced in the U.S. in 1895 and has been used as
a rallying cry
for women and a term of derision against them ever since.
Time Magazine declared
feminism dead in 1998 (as hundreds of books and
articles have for
the past 100 years), but feminism remains too necessary
to die of embarrassment
- even if many have been scared away from the word.
Following are some
definitions of (and reflections on) this powerful social and political
movement.
| Why
not choose a less offensive word? "A natural
response is to change the word feminist to a word with fewer stigmas attached.
But inevitably the same thing will happen to that magical word. Part
of the radical connotation of feminism is not due to the word, but to the
action. The act of a woman standing up for herself is radical, whether
she calls herself a feminist or not."
- Paula Kamen, feminist |
Excerpt
from the
National Organization for Women's 1998 Declaration of Sentiments: "We are committed
to a feminist ideology and reaffirm our historic commitment to gaining
equality for women, assuring, safe, legal and accessible abortion and full
reproductive freedom, combating racism, stopping violence against women,
ending bigotry and discrimination based on sexual orientation and
|
"We ask justice,
we ask equality, we ask that all civil and political rights that belong
to the citizens of the United States be guaranteed to us and our daughters
forever."
- Susan B. Anthony, 19th- & early 20th-century leader of the Women's Movement |
| "I
used to go on college campuses 25 years ago and announce I was a feminist,
and people thought it meant I believed in free love and was available for
a quick hop in the sack. ... Now I go on college campuses and say I'm a
feminist, and half of them think it means I'm a lesbian. How'd we get from there to here without passing "Go"? - Molly Ivins, political
columnist for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram & NPR
|
"Feminism
is a social movement whose goal is to eliminate the oppression of women
in all its forms."
- Amy Kesselman,
Lily D. McNair, and Nancy Schniedewind, eds., Women:
|
"Feminism
is a recognition of the domination of men over women and attempts by women
to end male privilege.... It is a theory, a method, and a practice which
seeks to transform human relations."
- Cynthia Orozco,
writing in the anthology Chicano Voices: Intersections of
|
| "Feminism is an
attack upon social opinion wherever it discriminates in its attitude toward
man and woman on the basis of sex."
-George Middleton, early 20th-century playwright, speaking in 1914. |
"Feminism
is the radical notion that women are human beings"
-Cheris Kramerae, author of A Feminist Dictionary, 1996. |
"Feminism is the
political theory and practice that struggles to free all women: women
of color, working-class women, poor women, disabled women, lesbians, old
women-as well as white, economically privileged, heterosexual women."
-Barbara Smith, ed., But Some of Us Are Brave: Black Women's Studies, 1986. |
| "Feminism
is the single most powerful social movement of our time, one that addresses
every aspect of human and social life."
- Richard Epstein, author of Bargaining With the State, 1993 |
"Feminism
has transformed the lives and aspirations of the majority of women in ways
unmeasurable by statistics... raising women's intellectual,
economic and political expectations, increasing intolerance of wife beating, rape and other violence against women, redefining women's sexuality." - Linda Gordon, historian, author of United States Women's History, 1997 |
"Feminism
has fought no wars. It has killed no opponents. It has set
up no concentration camps, starved no enemies, practiced no cruelties.
Its
battles have been for education, for the vote, for better working conditions.. for safety on the streets... for child care, for social welfare...for rape crisis centers, women's refuges, reforms in the law." (If someone says) 'Oh, I'm not a feminist,' (I ask) 'Why? What's your problem?'" - Dale Spender,
author of
|
| "We are all benefiting
from the great feminists who struggled and suffered and worked to give
us everything women now enjoy... I refer to myself as a feminist, and I
do it with pride."
- Cybil Shepherd, feminist |
"I
myself have never been able to find out precisely what feminism is:
I only know that people call me a feminist whenever I express sentiments
that differentiate me from a doormat."
-Rebecca West, British writer, speaking in 1913 |
"Feminism is the
advocacy of political, economic and social equality between women and
men." - Feminist Majority Foundation |
| "Feminism
is a struggle to end sexist oppression. Therefore, it is necessarily a
struggle to eradicate the ideology of domination that permeates
Western culture on various levels." - bell hooks, author of Ain't I a Woman: Black Women & Feminism, 1984 |
"I
became a feminist as an alternative to becoming a masochist."
- Sally Kempton, journalist |
"A
feminist is anyone who recognizes the equality and full humanity of women
and men."
- Gloria Steinem, founder of Ms. Magazine, leader of the Women's Movement. |
| A
feminist is a person who answers "yes" to the question, "Are women human?"
Feminism is not about whether women are better than, worse than or identical
with men. And it's certainly not about trading personal liberty--abortion,
divorce, sexual self-expression--for social protection as wives and mothers, as pro-life feminists propose. It's about justice, fairness, and access to the broad range of human experience. It's about women consulting their own well-being and being judged as individuals rather than as members of a class with one personality, one social function, one road to happiness. It's about women having intrinsic value as persons rather than contingent value as a means to an end for others: fetuses, children, the "family," men. (Katha Pollitt). |
Feminism
encourages women to leave their husbands, kill their children, practice
witchcraft, destroy capitalism and become lesbians.
(Rev. Pat Robertson, 1992 Republican Convention) |
I'm
not a feminist, but...
I appreciate the right to help choose my government representatives. I enjoy the option of wearing pants or shorts if I want. I'm pleased that I was allowed to learn to read and write. It can be very convenient to control how many babies I want to have. It's awfully useful to be able to open a bank account and own property in my name. I like knowing that my husband or boyfriend cannot legally beat me. It's really swell to keep the money that I earn. poster from One Angry Girl |
Most
of these quotes were compiled
by
Lanette Fisher-Hertz for the:
Women's
Studies Program
SUNY
New Paltz
My
thanks to Lanette for her kind permission
to
use this material here.