Neo-feminism has moved well beyond self-parody into one fantastically embarrassing public display of insecurity.
A perfect example this faux-feminism’s incarnation? “12 Stunning Photos That Prove There’s No Such Thing As ‘Men’s Work’” published by the HuffPo.
Pictures feature women as butchers, firefighters, farmers, and carpenters. While the photos are beautifully shot, do they really prove anything?
Combat fighting aside (which the pictorial post doesn’t address), are there large swaths of our population who still believe that them there’s work for the menfolk?
Perhaps this was a common conception thirty-plus years ago, but not anymore. No longer are there clear delineations in gender roles — at least not in American society.
I was raised in a perfectly traditional household — Dad worked and Mom stayed home with us. Mom was THE poster-child for traditional homemaker (and damn good at it, too). On weekends Dad took care of the yard, cussed at football games, and played with us kids. Even in our Leave it to Beaver-esque microcosm, I grew up mowing yards, hauling firewood, picking weeds, cleaning toilets, baking cookies, off-roading, and shooting deer (for food, not sport). There were no jobs allocated to men in our family in which women were unable to participate. The expectation was that everyone pull their weight wherever that was needed.
Of course that’s just my experience, but I have never been told I could not do something because I was a woman. Not once. Nor do I know any other woman who has been told such a thing.
There are jobs women typically choose not to do, but choice and ability are two very different issues.
Neo-feminism insists on picking arguments where none exist to “prove” things not in contest. And it’s supposed to be revolutionary. Or something.
This is the most annoying bit — perpetuating the immature idea that there’s an ongoing contest to “prove” one’s worth or capabilities to anyone other than one’s own self. These are things we should all be learning as we age.
If your value is tied to the fact that you’re a woman in a traditionally male job, then the focus is directed to gender, not what you’re able to accomplish in whatever role you’ve chosen. Ultimately, what’s meant to dispel gender ideals ends up detracting from individual accomplishment.
Gender is not an accomplishment.
There’s no need to normalize what’s already commonplace, but supposing women farmers were unheard of; the way to normalize that fact is not to treat it as special, but to act as though it’s perfectly normal.
Once upon a time, women were viewed as the lesser sex — though even that statement is reductionist. But women were prohibited the luxury of following their dreams of pig farming. That time has since passed thanks to the dedication of actual feminists.
Neo-feminism’s reliance on the obsolete notion that women are the repressed sex in society is precisely why the movement is not taken seriously by anyone with functioning logic or critical thinking skills. There is scarcely a facet of modern society where women do not receive preferential treatment or deference to their male counterparts.
You’re a woman who works as a butcher. Yay. Here’s a trophy. I’m not impressed by this fact alone, I only care whether you’re a good butcher, particularly if I’m buying cuts from your meat market.
Men and women are different. Each bring different strengths and weaknesses that complement one another. This is so basic, it’s embarrassing that such a simple fact needs constant repetition.
My dream is that my daughters will grow up to find a world less worried about the sex of an individual and more interested in what that person has contributed.
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