Feminism Tag

2015: the year feminism won all the things... or at least an entire award show. Nestled in between articles like, "The Thong is Dead!" and "17 Butts From 'Dating Naked,'" the astute publication Cosmopolitan recounted the Golden Globe award show in an intellectually stimulating article entitled, "Who Won the Golden Globes? Women. Feminism got top billing at last night's awards." The article explains:

At the Golden Globes last night, it was hard to miss the feminist overtones. Two funny female hosts. Shout-outs and thank-yous to the trans community. Some of Hollywood's most seasoned feminist activists taking the mic. Famous men declaring themselves proud husbands. Recognition of rape survivors.

But what about Amy Adams who had the gall to thank strong women in the room for being fabulous role models?

Some of the feminism on display was the kind of cookie-cutter you-go-girl-ism present at just about any award show in the past 30 years — see Amy Adams breathlessly thanking all the strong women in the room for being good role models for her 4-year-old daughter.

Pssh. So, 2014. Get with the times, Amy!

That desire to be heard and recognized set the tone for the night, and women led the way.

Sometimes I think "feminists" live in an alternative universe. How have women in this country been ignored?

Gendered restroom spaces have endured intense public scrutiny lately, but usually from the "stop with your fascist gender labels and let me pick my preferred pronoun!" crowd. So this piece in TIME is slightly outside of the "ban public restroom gender divisions" norm. Soraya Chemaly, the author, describes herself as a, "media critic and activist whose work focuses on the role of gender in politics, religion and popular culture." Context is important. The story begins with her visit to the the loo at The British Museum:

Despite years of “potty parity” laws, women are still forced to stand in lines at malls, schools, stadiums, concerts, fair grounds, theme parks, and other crowded public spaces. This is frustrating, uncomfortable, and, in some circumstances, humiliating. It’s also a form of discrimination, as it disproportionately affects women.

Some say "discrimination", others say "biology", but let's continue:

After counting the women, I tweeted, “Dear @britishmuseum there are FIFTY women and girls standing in line for the loo while the men’s room has zero line #everydaysexism.” Immediately, people responded with the suggestion that women use the men’s room. But even more responses were defensive, along the lines of “How on god’s green earth did you arrive at the conclusion that this was sexist?” Let me count the ways.

The fight to emasculate men rages on amongst our "feminist" friends. Lisa Bonos' editorial How to Find a Feminist Boyfriend is simply the latest example. For all the talk of equality and partnership, there's not one single mention of equality or partnership. True to form, the "feminist" definition of the aforementioned virtues translates into something along the lines of "this relationship is all about me and my insecurities as an individual, so either you're cool with that or this isn't going to work out, because feminism." That being said, Bonos' editorial provides a hilarious take on dating, albeit unintentionally. So how does one procure a feminist boyfriend? Apparently, to find this evasive diamond in the rough, one must adhere to a handful of principles, the first being to define what you want.

Is he a feminist if he proclaims, on a first date, that he could see himself taking his wife’s last name? (Maybe his own name is pretty generic.) If he insists on doing the dishes after you’ve cooked dinner together but proceeds to whip the dish towel at your ass, is that playful or objectifying? (Both.) Is he sexist if he cancels an Uber ride because a female driver is on her way to pick the two of you up? (Definitely.)

Let us pause and reflect upon the fact that whipping a dish towel is now considered objectifying behavior. But don't worry, it gets worse.

Adorably hilarious, this father-daughter conversation fantastically illustrates how behavior is learned. Modern "feminism" scoffs at the "sexual objectification" of Princess Leia, all the while, drooling over shirtless pictures of Ryan Gosling (because somehow that's different). Flipping through a Star Wars book, this little girl found Princess Leia's...

Ayaan Hirsi Ali knows what real feminism is about. As a vocal critic of the treatment of women in Muslim countries, she has risked her life. According to a new report from Ashe Schow at the Washington Examiner, Hirsi Ali is unimpressed with American feminism:

Hirsi Ali slams feminism's 'trivial BS' Ayaan Hirsi Ali, a harsh critic of Islam’s treatment of women, said Wednesday that modern American feminism is focused on “trivial bullshit” and needs to be reclaimed. Speaking at the Independent Women’s Forum Women of Valor dinner, where she received an award for courage, Hirsi Ali reminded her audience of how far feminism has strayed from its original purpose. “I want you to remember that once upon a time, feminists fought for the access — basic right — access of girls to education,” she said... “Feminists in this country and in the West fought against that and won the battle,” she added. But now, Hirsi Ali said, feminism has taken that victory and squandered it. “What we are now doing with the victory, and I agree with you if you condemn that and I condemn whole-heartedly the trivial bullshit it is to go after a man who makes a scientific breakthrough and all that we as women — organized women — do is to fret about his shirt?” Hirsi Ali said, referring to the controversy generated by the shirt featuring cartoons of scantily-clad women worn by the scientist who helped land a robot on a comet. “We must reclaim and retake feminism from our fellow idiotic women.”

Hirsi Ali may not be alone in her views.

International Men's Day is today. For all the rabid man-hating men are forced to endure, and largely without recourse, today seems as good a day as ever to celebrate the awesomeness of men. According to the official IMD website, the purpose of International Men's Day is quite lovely. Well, mostly:

Objectives of International Men's Day include a focus on men's and boy's health, improving gender relations, promoting gender equality, and highlighting positive male role models. It is an occasion for men to celebrate their achievements and contributions, in particular their contributions to community, family, marriage, and child care while highlighting the discrimination against them.

The ability to sacrifice your needs on behalf of others is fundamental to manhood, as is honour. Manhood rites of passage the world over recognise the importance of sacrifice in the development of Manhood.

Men make sacrifices everyday in their place of work, in their role as husbands and fathers, for their families, for their friends, for their communities and for their nation. International Men's Day is an opportunity for people everywhere of goodwill to appreciate and celebrate the men in their lives and the contribution they make to society for the greater good of all.

Forgetting the whole "contributions and sacrifice" element, those not denouncing the day altogether have honed in on "improving gender relations and promoting gender equality bit." 

The Guardian's take is that, "it's clear why women have their day but men don't really need the same. Perhaps fathers and sons should bond over domestic skills instead." Right. I can just see my Dad bonding with my brother-in-law over a spirited discussion on the best eco-friendly cleaning product for cleaning the bathroom sink... 

The Washington Post praises IMD as another feminist day and a real opportunity for men to work on gender inequality because, "many of these men are surely blind to their own privilege and status in the world and within their own cultures." Ah yes, check your privilege, men. You have no idea just how good you have it. Just ask the comet scientist guy.

And the list goes on. 

But as a devout patriarchal loyalist, I've compiled a non-exhaustive list of just a few reasons men are wonderful human beings. 

Last Friday Kemberlee covered the feminist attack on Dr. Matt Taylor, the brilliant British scientist who helped achieve the seemingly unachievable, landing a scientific probe on a comet hundreds of millions of miles away, 5 Reasons “feminists” can’t complain about comet scientist’s “sexist” shirt. How dedicated was Taylor to his work? He had a large tattoo regarding the project on his right front thigh: That's how much this project meant to him. Taylor was attacked not for the tattoo, but because Taylor wore a shirt -- given to him by a female friend -- which had cartoon characters of pretty women on it. Not naked women. Not women engaging in sex acts. Just pretty women in "sexy" outfits.

Thanks for ruining the cool comet landing for me asshole.

— Rose Eveleth (@roseveleth) November 12, 2014

Here is the shirt in close-up (it's sold out since the controversy):

Gunner Girls Shirt Sells Out http://t.co/UuOwBAOahm @nro @mggtTaylor @EllyPrizeman @roseveleth #shirtstorm #shirtgate pic.twitter.com/5BdMVEYT0C

— Tim Cavanaugh (@bigtimcavanaugh) November 16, 2014

You can see it easily in this photo, but on the video you have to really be looking for trouble to find it. The camera is pretty far away, and Taylor is only a relatively small part of the overall report.