Women’s rights have taken a dominant place in American Politics In the late 2010s, as #Metoo and #Timesup were trending on twitter, several politicians and entertainers are being brought to justice for sexual assault, and the women’s march of 2017 became the largest single-day march in United States history.
Feminism is once again entering the mainstream, due in large part to the advent of social media. Social media has been both an asset and a detriment to the feminist movement, as it has tremendously expanded knowledge about women’s issues, but has also locked many self-identified feminists into echo chambers. Feminism, simply defined, is “the advocacy of women’s rights based on the equality of the sexes.”
However, many are asking what constitutes a true feminist. In this political atmosphere, progressives and liberals are generally seen to take the helm of feminism, predominantly framing feminism as advocating for less restrictions on abortion, government subsidizing of contraceptives, sexual liberation, the restructuring of gender roles, and wage equality legislation. This list is by no means exhaustive, but reflects the most divisive women-related issues in the national arena, as advocating for or against these will get one labeled as pro-women or anti-women.
There is also the idea of intersectionality, which says that all social issues, whether they be race, gender, income, environment, sexuality, or immigration, all fit under one umbrella. Intersectionality, while drawing needed attention to the connection of social relationships to each other, puts forth a progressive platform and thus a litmus test for feminism which can include assent to positions which have little to do with feminism itself.
The Left has claimed a monopoly on feminism, however are American women monolithically liberal? All the data suggests otherwise. When the Women’s march prohibited Pro Life women from marching, they were alienating a whopping 59% of women who believe abortion is morally wrong. 38% of women identify as republican, which while not a majority is still a very sizeable plurality. The most damning evidence lies in the results of the 2016 presidential election. Hillary Clinton, the first woman to lead the ticket for a major party’s presidential race, ran a campaign that saw herself as continuing in the same vein as Susan B. Anthony and Harriet Beecher Stowe, presenting a milestone for women as the would-be first female President. Her opponent, Donald Trump, was cast as the antithesis of women’s progress, as he was plagued with allegations of sexual assault, was recorded bragging about using his celebrity status to grope and kiss women without consent, and at one point proposed punishing women who procure abortions. Hillary Clinton was clad as the women’s choice, and was thought to bring in as many women to vote for her as Barack Obama brought in African-American voters, a staggering 95%. This tall order was never granted, as only 54% of all women voted for her, and a majority (53%) of white women voted for Donald Trump.
This was not lost on Liberal commentators, who lambasted the 42% of women who voted for Donald Trump as voting against their voice. While this piece is not a vindication of Donald Trump, it does bring to light an important question: what is the women’s voice? The truth is women represent a special group because of its broadness. Women are just as divided by age, race, socioeconomic status, and creed as men, and thus any attempt to paint a monochromatic hue over women is futile.
While women-specific issues undoubtedly exist, the clear majority of political issues are agender. Women, just as well as men, have a right to form their own opinions on taxation, immigration, social mores, gun rights, or any plethora of issues. The fact that some women lean right on these issues does not make them uncommitted to the rights of women. As we are well on our way to fighting the pervasion of sexual assault and vestigial misogyny from American culture, we cannot undermine the intellectual genius and dignity of women to engage with philosophy and society.
What feminism needs is not an ideological goose step but a huge tent with the goal of equality for all. Then we can all, whether left or right, truly embrace the old American motto, E pluribus Unum: out of many, one.