The following is my (almost finished) presentation for a class to be delivered Monday (tomorrow!), I am working on uploading either a video of the presentation or working an audio file into my presentation to share that (which will - hopefully - look a bit more polished). Open to thoughts and comments!
What is
feminism?
Slide:
1. Analyze Traditions
2. Probe Contradictions & Injustices
3. Multiplicity of Perspectives
For my presentation I chose these three adaptations; analyze
traditions, probe contradictions & injustices, and multiplicity of
perspectives. I plan to analyze these three adaptations cohesively within my
presentation.
First I will determine what feminism is
Slide:
Webster:
1: the theory of the political, economic, and social
equality of the sexes
2: organized activity on behalf of women's rights and
interests (Merriam-Webster)
Sam Killermann from
Everyday Feminism defines feminism this way:
Feminist means “person who believes people should have
equitable places in society regardless of their gender.” (Killermann)
Everyday Feminism
(from the article Why Everyday Feminism
is for Everyone)
Feminism strives to end the discrimination, exploitation,
and oppression of people due to their gender, sexual orientation, race, class,
and other differences and supports people in being free to determine their own
lives for themselves. It supports us in questioning what we’ve been taught
about forcing people into traditional roles and valuing some groups less than
others. It helps us to understand why some people hate, abuse, exploit,
discriminate, and silence certain individuals and communities. It helps us
stand up against oppression and demand justice. By engaging in feminist
thinking and action, we can free ourselves to make meaningful choices in how we
live our lives and pursue what makes us happy and fulfilled as human beings. (Kim)
Slide
This is what a feminist looks like:
The Goal of Feminism:
Feminism has had different goals throughout the generations
and seems to grow and change with the changing society, feminism is a very
adaptive concept with one general goal that is equal respect and rights. This
takes many different shapes and directions but all of feminism boils down to
the same goal of equality.
Slide
“The goal of feminism is to create a society in which
individuals’ genders don’t restrict them from an equitable shot at success and
happiness.” (Killermann)
Do we need feminism?
Many people think that feminism is an outdated idea; that
similar to anti-racism movements feminism accomplished its goal when women
received the right to vote and now women share many of the same legal rights as
men and thus aren’t discriminated against. We certainly have accomplished a
lot; let’s enjoy that for a moment, but there is still discrimination although
it isn’t as clearly noticeable and that is why we still need feminism. Let’s
discuss some of the sexism inherent in the current system that needs to be
addressed to determine why we need feminism. I’ve been told before that not all
of these things can be fixed by new policies and so feminism shouldn’t be a
political movement, to correct that notion feminism is not a political movement
but a social movement aiming to change not only politics but society.
Status Quo:
Women hate women:
The stereotypes about women are so entwined in our society
that most women aren’t even aware of them; more over these women are actually
furthering the stereotypes by pressing them onto themselves and other women.
There are countless stories of female grad students being placed in lower
classes than their male counterparts, being given less difficult research, and
overall being seen as less intelligent than the other students regardless of
actual ability or class standing. Unfortunately in these cases the professors
are not all male, male and female professors both rank female students lower
than male students.
In one study, first
done in 1968 and then replicated in 1983, college students were asked to rate
identical articles according to specific criteria. The authors' names attached
to the articles were clearly male or female, but were reversed for each group
of raters: what one group thought had been written by a male, the second group
thought had been written by a female, and vice versa. Articles supposedly
written by women were consistently ranked lower than when the very same
articles were thought to have been written by a male [Goldberg 1968,Paludi et
al 1985,Paludi et al 1983]. In a similar study, department chairs were asked to
make hypothetical hiring decisions and to assign faculty rank on the basis of
vita. For vitae with male names, chairs recommended the rank of associate
professor; however, the identical vita with a female name merited only the rank
of assistant professor [Fidell 1975]. (Mills.edu)
Women have been taught to pin themselves against each other;
culturally a man’s significance is seen as coming from his accomplishments as
well as from how many and what type of women he can attract, women’s
significance is seen to come from how accomplished of a man they can attract.
This concept creates competitiveness between women as their own significance is
on the line while fighting for “the perfect man”. We see this in reality
television shows such as “The bachelor” and in popular culture all over.
Slide:
Cont.:
Slide:
Femininity is seen by many as negative, boys are told not to
“throw like a girl” or that “boys don’t cry”. For a man or woman to be compared
to a woman is seen as derogatory. People, of all genders, are told to “man up”.
Feminist women are seen as those who desire a career and no children, while
feminism really only means that they want to be treated equally. While many
women grow up with the negative female stereotype so deeply seeded in their
lives that they themselves see any “feminine” choice as being negative and thus
develop an aversion to these choices. I know that I grew up thinking this very
same thing, that choosing to be like my mother would be an anti-feminist choice
and being a stay-at-home mom would be the ultimate loss of my feminism. Throughout
my research I have realized that this idea that a choice a woman makes with her
life could be more or less feminist is ridiculous and ignores the true meaning
of feminism.
Slide:
Women make less:
Women have traditionally been underrepresented and
under-paid in the economy, however this is changing. Women are getting college
degrees at a faster rate than men, women are participating more than men in up
and coming sectors, women are expected to account for 51% of the increase in
total labor force growth, and women are often better at the new jobs our
changing economy is creating. So why are women still paid less than men in
similar jobs with similar skills?
“Women who usually worked full time had median weekly
earnings of $692, or 79.1 percent of the $875 median for men.” (Bureau of Labor Statistics)
“Women with a Bachelor’s degree earn less over 15 years than
men with a high school diploma or less.” (Fitzpatrick)
Slide
Women can change the
workplace for the better:
We have an exciting opportunity with this recession; the
ability to restructure. Many companies are realizing that their old ways of
doing business may not be the most profitable going forward and that new ideas
and styles of management may be better going forward. I understand the
importance of what we economists call non-pecuniary benefits to employees. Some
examples of non-pecuniary benefits of employment are insurance, a flexible work
schedule, maternity leave, vacation days, an office by the window, and more.
Basically anything that isn’t money that makes working there better. Some
employers are beginning to take note to what researchers have been saying for
years; happy employees are more productive (Cooper).
This means that by making changes in the atmosphere and management style that
employers have long believed would cost them money would actually make them
more profitable. It turns out that we have a secret weapon in accomplishing
this, women.
Definition:
Non-pecuniary: not consisting of money (Merriam-Webster)
Google’s Zurich Office
(Hoax Slayer)
Cont.:
While feminism is often seen as trying to change the
workplace to better accommodate women and allow them to enter it now appears
that women changing the workplace would make companies more profitable. The
style of management that women bring to the table is where the future is and
the benefits that women request or require will help not only women but the entire
workforce to be better and more fulfilled. The work/life balance that women
want is good for all employees; men just don’t seem to ask for it – either
because they are so used to the status quo or because they don’t consider it as
important.
Slide
“…Companies that have
achieved rough gender parity in their leadership teams perform dramatically
better—as much as 84 percent better—than those companies with no gender parity.”
(Theus)
“…Leaders need to tell the majority of men in corporate life
that they also need to change, and allow new and different styles of leadership
to move in — and up.” (Wittenberg-Cox)
Paid Maternity Leave:
The U.S. is one of the few countries that does not legally
mandate paid maternity leave and has one of the shortest leave times. This
isn’t just an issue for women, in many of these countries paid maternity leave
is legally protected for the mothers AND the fathers; yes, that means that men
can take off 14 weeks of paid leave to help take care of their little one. (Beadle) The lack of paid
leave in the U.S. is detrimental not only to women’s position in the workforce
but to women’s and families wellbeing as 55% of women provide half or more of
their families’ income. (International Labour Organization)
Slide
“According to a report by non-governmental organization Save The Children, in countries with
longer periods of parental leave, children were found to be breastfed for
longer and their life expectancy was higher.” (The Huffington Post Canada)
Sexualization of the
female form:
Breastfeeding
discrimination:
Sexist behavior is everywhere in our culture from the
business world where women are seen as less capable than men in many industries
to the personal and public sphere where the sexualization of the female form is
dominant. Consider breast feeding; formula feeding is the predominant feeding
style shown on television and in movies although 70% of women breastfeed their
children at least some of the time (Center for Disease Control and Prevention). What is interesting
is that breastfeeding is actually recommended versus formula feeding for the
health of the child “The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends
breastfeeding for at least the first year of life, and the World Health
Organization recommends breastfeeding for at least the first two years of life.”
(Oregon Health Authority) So this popular and
beneficial feeding system that is evolutionarily designed is not shown on
almost any TV shows or movies and yet formula feeding is shown quite often, the
question that remains is why.
(Breastfeeding in Public)
Cont.:
Since becoming pregnant and deciding to breast feed I have
joined several online communities on facebook some of which being “Breast is
Best”, “United States Breastfeeding Committee”, “The Badass Breastfeeder”, and
more. On these pages I have seen far too many conversations about moms
breastfeeding in public (sometimes with a cover and sometimes without, although
always decent) and being scorned or mocked and made to feel uncomfortable for
doing so. You probably feel uncomfortable with this image – the fact that you
feel uncomfortable with this image and this conversation is evidence that
sexism exists here so inherent in society that you probably didn’t realize it.
Certainly I wouldn’t dare insult a woman who chooses to formula feed, but I
will stand up strongly against anyone who criticizes a woman’s personal choices
and that includes those who find breastfeeding in public “disgusting”. What is
disgusting about feeding your child? We have boobs for a reason and that reason
is to feed our offspring, if we choose not to use them for that it’s our
prerogative as women but considering it disgusting because breasts are somehow
“inherently sexual” is simply ridiculous.
(Moms N Babies)
Cont.:
The problem is that women are scorned for being women, that
the natural process of womanhood is seen as disgusting. Giving birth is seen as
disgusting. Breastfeeding is seen as disgusting. Emotions are seen as weakness.
Everything that makes a woman a woman is seen as something to be kept private
and something weak and disgusting. The results of this are many; eating
disorders and image problems, women are taught to be sexy and dress to please
men, and so on. Men don’t go through nearly as much pain as women and likely
couldn’t handle it if they did. The closest pain men experience compared to
childbirth is passing a kidney stone which still doesn’t actually come close to
the experience of childbirth. How many of you have witnessed a birth? How many
of you are cringing right now at that very thought? I won’t show you one here,
I promise, but you shouldn’t be afraid of what makes a woman a woman. Women are
beautiful and strong and special and should be recognized as such rather than
seen as sexual objects for men.
I looked up the ideal woman on Google Images and this was
the first image:
(Tbrown)
“What is sexual in one context may not be so in another: an
experience becomes sexual by application of socially learned meanings.” (Caplan 2)
(Huffington Post)
Social training:
The reality is that most men and women participate in sexism
because they were trained to believe that this behavior is normal. Most women
internalize and even perpetuate sexist thoughts and behavior because they have
lived their whole lives believing that this behavior is normal and many men
participate and ignore sexist behavior for the same reasons. They simply do not
realize that what they’re doing is wrong. Does that make it ok? Of course not.
Men and women have been trained to believe that sexual entitlement is
completely normal and that women’s sexuality is a commodity with which to trade
with men. An idea behind this is an anthropological perspective that explains
that once land ownership and modern “civilization” began as we know our society
transitioned from one of hunter/gatherers to one of production which limited
women’s ability to support themselves without the help of men. To add to this a
culture of fear was created, women were offered protection by men, but the
protection was from other men where violence hadn’t existed previously. This
new dimension meant that women now needed men to help provide basic sustenance
and protection for them and women could provide sex and children in trade. In
order to further this culture a concept of virginism was designed, a good woman
was one who kept her sexuality for one man and a woman who didn’t do this was
seen as bad. “Getting” a man was seen as the ultimate goal of a woman and
keeping him happy was then her womanly job.
This concept helped men to maintain their property; including their
woman and their offspring (Workers' Liberty).
Slide
Sexual entitlement:
This view of women’s sexuality continues today in the
normalized concept of male sexual entitlement; phrases such as being “friend
zoned” or being a “nice guy” show a very socially accepted view of sexual
entitlement. The “nice guy” is upset that a certain girl won’t have sex with
him despite his continued niceness and being there for her, the guy who is
“friend zoned” is upset about a girl not having sex with him also. Very few
people hear these terms and think “sexual entitlement” however what right do
these men have to expect sex? Why would they be so disappointed if they didn’t
think that they somehow deserved sex for their nice behavior? Rape culture is
described as the idea that sex without consent is OK in certain circumstances.
Rape culture stems from sexual entitlement; the idea that someone is owed sex
for whatever reason (Uwujaren).
No one is ever owed sex for any reason; sex should be between two consenting
adults who both want to have sex. However the idea that men deserve sex in some
situations is so inherent in today’s society that most women don’t even think
twice about it.
Slide
Cont.:
We can trace this behavior back to its anthropological roots
in land ownership and property rights, women being part of this property,
however, I have often heard the excuse that “men are slaves to their sex
drive”, essentially saying that they have no control and need sex and thus
shouldn’t be blamed for their behavior. The idea that men’s sexual entitlement
is natural and that women should feed this is not backed by nature or
anthropology but rather is an idea created to further the idea of the woman’s
place in society. This idea is actually demeaning to men and gives them little
identity outside of their sexual desires (Utt).
The gender differences are instilled from the time we are children; little boys
are taught to be tough and showing emotion is seen negatively while little
girls are taught to be submissive and sweet (Fabello).
Slide
What do people think
of feminism?
The anti-woman view is so deeply rooted in society that even
feminism seems to be trying to escape womanhood, or at least it certainly is in
the eyes of anti-feminists. We live in a culture where “womanly traits” have a
negative connotation and many non-feminists believe that feminists only want to
become men. It is interesting that these anti-feminists fight against feminism
but then belittle women; it is as if they are saying “you are less than us and
you will stay there”.
Slide
“The feminist agenda
is not about equal rights for women. It is about a socialist, anti-family
political movement that encourages women to leave their husbands, kill their
children, practice witchcraft, destroy capitalism, and become lesbians.” Pat
Robertson famously said this in the 90s
“They’re out there protesting what they actually wish would
happen to them sometimes.”
~Rush Limbaugh, on women who protest against sexual harassment, The Rush
Limbaugh Show, April 26, 2004
“Feminism has wreaked havoc on marriage, women, children and
men. It is time to redress the disorder it has wrought and that must start with
getting the principles and ideals for a new "masculinism" right.”
Seminar description, "the New Masculinity," on the Family Research
Council website
“Feminists” that are
anti-woman:
When my mom was raising her young children she often got
rude remarks from in-laws and from people she didn’t even know. She was looked
down on for being a stay-at-home-mom, her sister-in-laws would make rude
comments about how raising her children was “all” she was doing and how they
had good jobs that were “important”. What about raising children isn’t
important? While these women were at work someone else was being paid to do all
of the things my mother was doing all day long and for free; saving her family
money and giving her children better, one on one attention. However these women
felt that they were feminists and that they were therefore superior to my
mother. Looking down on someone for their choices is the sort of thinking that
permeates the idea that feminism is about becoming like men rather than
becoming equal to men. The goal of feminism is to rid society of the negative
connotations associated with being a woman, this freedom will allow women to
participate more freely in society and in business – whatever they choose.
Slide
“This year, results
indicate that stay-at-home moms would earn a base salary of $36,968 plus
$78,464 in overtime, totaling $115,432. According to the survey, the typical
stay-at-home mom works almost 97 hours a week, spending 13.2 hours as a
day-care teacher; 3.9 hours as household CEO; 7.6 hours as a psychologist; 14.1
hours as a chef; 15.4 as a housekeeper; 6.6 hours doing laundry; 9.5 hours as a
PC-or-Mac operator; 10.7 hours as a facilities manager; 7.8 hours as a janitor
and 7.8 hours driving the family Chevy.” (Goudreau)
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