I realized recently that I’m hesitant to use the f-word. No, really, I’ve stopped saying I’m a feminist. I stopped using the word feminist not because I don’t believe in feminist issues, but because I don’t know what feminist issues are anymore. Not only are there a wide variety of issues that can fall under the umbrella of feminism, but the people that stand up for these issues can oftentimes be in conflict with each other. What does being a feminist mean to me?
Growing up in Los Angeles and then moving to Seattle has given me the privilege of being surrounded by liberal and generally open-minded individuals. The sheer number of people living in each city ensures that I encounter a lot of different opinions about our society. Of course, with that comes hearing the word “feminist” countlessly. Some people proudly self- identify as a feminist, while others use the word “feminist” as an insult, but either way, it’s common for people to have a strong stance on feminism. I used to be the former, feeling satisfied with myself being a “feminist”. In high school, feminism definitely meant more of a label, a self-description than actual theory or activism, partly because of the presence of feminism on my social media and partly because I am young and only know so much.
Being a feminist, to me, meant that I believed in what I knew as feminist issues; I am pro-choice, I do not support the patriarchy, I want more women in Congress, etc. In retrospect, it was naive of me to think that everyone who identifies as a feminist would share these same beliefs, but that was what was projected on me as a teenager by peers and social media. As I get older and become more educated about feminist movements in the United States and internationally, it has become abundantly clear that declaring yourself as a feminist does not mean universal agreement on all issues deemed feminist issues.
I can confidently say that if I ask everyone I know what their definition of feminism is, I will receive a different definition from every single person. The dictionary defines feminism as “the advocacy of women’s rights on the basis of the equality of the sexes”, but that still leaves a lot of ambiguity. The phrase “women’s rights” alone is vague enough. Additional concepts such as intersectionality recognize how different identities such as race, gender, class, and other identities interact with each other. This intersection between identities is what makes every woman’s experience unique, and at times conflicting. If you don’t recognize the issues women of color face in America, can you stand for women’s rights? What about queer women? When you say women, are you including trans women? When you stand for women’s rights, do you stand for women who don’t live in America or who live in developing countries? If you don’t consider these women’s rights, can you call yourself a feminist? Many people do. It’s foolish to ignore how feminist movements have historically tried to alienate these groups of people. As a white woman, I feel especially aware of how white feminism still creates hierarchies within feminist communities that are exclusive and prejudiced.
And yet, with all these divisions and arguments, I still find feminist theory worth studying and feminist activism worth pursuing. There may be people out there who have different ideas about what it means to be a feminist, and that’s great! We wouldn’t have the good ideas without the bad ones. You’ve likely read in school how Socrates belief that arguments that can stand against constant scrutiny can be just, we need to apply the same amount of scrutiny and discussion to our beliefs about feminism. I’ve realized through thinking about what it means to be a feminist that I possess a great privilege by having the means and the voice to discuss these ideas with others. I guess I’m still naive (Funny, how that works) to be afraid of a word just because I wasn’t sure what it meant.
This is where my use of the word comes in. Granted, I don’t walk around saying, “Hey! I’m a feminist! Enjoy your day!” Most of the time, if I’m discussing feminism it’s less about me as a feminist and more about feminist movements which other people have already self-declared and identify with. If anything, I’m a humanist who wants to lift up and empower the feminist movements I support, which, by my definition, makes me a feminist. Hopefully, along the way, I can influence others to support unifying women’s rights rather than dividing amongst ourselves, and continue to encourage change towards a more equal, feminist world. (And what better way to do so than to vote!)