Poll: Are you a feminist?

[lunam-kardas]

I believe in equal rights for women, so I'm a feminist.

The media's determination to only portray the 'straw feminist' in order to turn the label into something shameful is pretty sickening.

 

[k-ossuburb]

I tend to generalize humanity and pretty much see everything and everyone as a sea of grey instead of simple black and white. There's obvious flaws with this kind of reasoning, I know, but I generally try not to see males and females, homosexual or heterosexual, etc.

The same goes for race and politics, too. Obviously there's some differences, I'm not denying that, but most of the time when things might as well be on an equal footing that's where I default. I only value one position above another when it's obvious that a system or individual is provably wrong about something.

I do wish for equal rights for all sexes, not just women but homoesexuals, pansexuals and transgendered and so-on, but most of the time I don't notice the difference between people any more. I would put it more down to apathy than any conscious attempt to make the world a better place, I just don't really care all that much what genitals you have, what colour your skin is or who you're attracted to and I honestly don't really see a reason why I should.

 

[agrajagthetesty]

Yes, I am.

Sure, the term comes with baggage, but I tend to find that people who hear "feminist" as "insane, frothing, man-hating maniac" aren't people I'd enjoy spending time with anyway.

And sure, there's a "fem" in it, but that's because of the historical context of gender issues. I also support rights for male victims of domestic violence or sexual assault, oppose the draft system in its entirety (though as far as I'm aware, the existence of the draft hasn't actually affected anyone in a long time since nobody is drafted nowadays), and hope for more equal rights in child custody cases (though an imbalance would kind of seem connected to misogynist ideas about women's place being in the home).

As for activism, I've been involved in Slut Walks. (I'd be happy to answer polite questions about that, by the way, since it seems that lots of people aren't too sure about what the movement's aims are.)

 

[TheNamlessGuy]

DELETED

 

[ReinWeisserRitter]

I've said it elsewhere, but I believe any sexism is negative, even if it can be for a good cause; the more we bring attention to something, the more we've failed to deem it as "natural" as anything negative has. This goes for the topics of racism and gay rights, if you're curious.

I also don't believe everyone is equal, but I do believe everyone has a right to the same level of respect and consideration, until they do something to forfeit it in the current circumstances. And in case you're dense, one's gender, race, sexual orientation, whatever is not, in and of itself, forfeit of that right. You can do so while under those designations, but there's nothing wrong with the designations themselves. You can be a jerk and gay, for example, but you're not a jerk because you're gay.

Okay? Okay. Thus, women are entitled to the aforementioned respect by default as well, but not because they're women. It's not feminism, nor is it misogyny; true fairness doesn't put you in the favor of anyone.

 

[Helmholtz Watson]

Let me put it this way.

One feminist here in Sweden said we should invoke a MAN TAX because we are more violent and break more stuff.

Um...do you have a source to back that up, because it seems pretty crazy to believe.

 

[ReinWeisserRitter]

Um...do you have a source to back that up, because it seems pretty crazy to believe.

It's Sweden. You'd be surprised what gets proposed over there.

It's also not as inane as any extreme activist anywhere else has said, so you finding that hard to believe is... well, hard to believe.

 

[Sindaine]

I don't identify as feminist because the word holds lots of different connotations depending on whom you ask, and I believe I shouldn't have to specify that I want the sexes to be equal. It should be the default position.

That's pretty much my reason for voting no. I'm for equal rights across the board, because it should be so already.

Thirding this.

 

[Smagmuck_]

I've really stopped supporting/caring about feminism since the majority of it's members tend to either be bat shit insane, or fifteen year old white teenage girls who blog on Tumblr who have never experienced discrimination aside from not being picked for the cheer squad.

Are there some feminists who still have their marbles? Yeah, and I tend to support them. Just not the crazy ones.

Especially the one who seriously said all men should be castrated so we could be "Equal".

 

[Helmholtz Watson]

Um...do you have a source to back that up, because it seems pretty crazy to believe.

It's Sweden. You'd be surprised what gets proposed over there.

It's also not as inane as any extreme activist anywhere else has said, so you finding that hard to believe is... well, hard to believe.

I looked it up, and all I have to say is, Sweden what the hell [http://www.thelocal.se/468/20041005/]?

 

[cobra_ky]

I think feminism is a pack of false promises. It hasn't delivered on it's core promises that it would make women happier and give them equal pay for equal work. Women are now working themselves to death to fit an image of themselves as false as anything in a magazine, and for what ? Women will never have a sense of agency, they will always cower fearfully and conform, they will always be decorative but boring people, and if anything feminism has just brought that home for all to see. Ultimately what feminism represents is women's constitutional inability to be happy for more than 15 minutes at a stretch. Women are bored by their own boringness and so they make themselves and other people miserable to compensate. It is time to put an end to this crap. Women have been given far more legal rights and protections than they need or deserve, and they still aren't equal. It's time to say the feminist experiment was a failure and chase them back to the kitchen.

"Feminism has failed because women are inherently boring, fearful, and submissive."

Right then. Thanks for demonstrating exactly why we still need feminism.

 

[repeating integers]

I think feminism is a pack of false promises. It hasn't delivered on it's core promises that it would make women happier and give them equal pay for equal work. Women are now working themselves to death to fit an image of themselves as false as anything in a magazine, and for what ? Women will never have a sense of agency, they will always cower fearfully and conform, they will always be decorative but boring people, and if anything feminism has just brought that home for all to see. Ultimately what feminism represents is women's constitutional inability to be happy for more than 15 minutes at a stretch. Women are bored by their own boringness and so they make themselves and other people miserable to compensate. It is time to put an end to this crap. Women have been given far more legal rights and protections than they need or deserve, and they still aren't equal. It's time to say the feminist experiment was a failure and chase them back to the kitchen.

"Feminism has failed because women are inherently boring, fearful, and submissive."

Right then. Thanks for demonstrating exactly why we still need feminism.

The last sentence makes me suspect parody, actually.

 

[cobra_ky]

I think feminism is a pack of false promises. It hasn't delivered on it's core promises that it would make women happier and give them equal pay for equal work. Women are now working themselves to death to fit an image of themselves as false as anything in a magazine, and for what ? Women will never have a sense of agency, they will always cower fearfully and conform, they will always be decorative but boring people, and if anything feminism has just brought that home for all to see. Ultimately what feminism represents is women's constitutional inability to be happy for more than 15 minutes at a stretch. Women are bored by their own boringness and so they make themselves and other people miserable to compensate. It is time to put an end to this crap. Women have been given far more legal rights and protections than they need or deserve, and they still aren't equal. It's time to say the feminist experiment was a failure and chase them back to the kitchen.

"Feminism has failed because women are inherently boring, fearful, and submissive."

Right then. Thanks for demonstrating exactly why we still need feminism.

The last sentence makes me suspect parody, actually.

Unfortunately Poe's Law makes it impossible to tell. Though based on posting history and the fact that his name is a rape joke, i'm inclined to take him seriously.

e: yes, i understand that "get back in the kitchen" was a joke. but it's the kind of joke that's only funny when you seriously buy into sexist bullshit.

 

[repeating integers]

I think feminism is a pack of false promises. It hasn't delivered on it's core promises that it would make women happier and give them equal pay for equal work. Women are now working themselves to death to fit an image of themselves as false as anything in a magazine, and for what ? Women will never have a sense of agency, they will always cower fearfully and conform, they will always be decorative but boring people, and if anything feminism has just brought that home for all to see. Ultimately what feminism represents is women's constitutional inability to be happy for more than 15 minutes at a stretch. Women are bored by their own boringness and so they make themselves and other people miserable to compensate. It is time to put an end to this crap. Women have been given far more legal rights and protections than they need or deserve, and they still aren't equal. It's time to say the feminist experiment was a failure and chase them back to the kitchen.

"Feminism has failed because women are inherently boring, fearful, and submissive."

Right then. Thanks for demonstrating exactly why we still need feminism.

The last sentence makes me suspect parody, actually.

Unfortunately Poe's Law makes it impossible to tell. Though based on posting history and the fact that his name is a rape joke, i'm inclined to take him seriously.

It's like aestu - look him up if you don't know him. How the fuck are we supposed to tell?

 

[redmoretrout]

I'm all for equality, but no I do not identify as a feminist as I have never taken action to advance women's rights or their portrayals in the media.

Before you can identify yourself with any activist group you need to actually take action. To be an activist you need to protest, write letters to parliament etc. I sincerely doubt that majority of the people who voted on thread have done anything of the sort.

I could declare myself a vegetarian, but it wouldn't be true unless I actually took action and stopped eating meat.

 

[Victoly]

"I shouldn't have to specify that I'm not a racist, because there shouldn't be racism, so instead I identify as a racist."

What the fuck?

Binary thinking at its best.

IF YOU DONT WANT TO BE ONE OF US YOU MUST BE ONE OF THEM!

Seriously?

I'm fairly confident you missed my point.

I'm not saying that anyone here is sexist because they refuse to identify as a feminist. I'm saying the logic being used to avoid identifying as a feminist is flawed. They think they shouldn't HAVE to fight for equality, so they're not going to. That doesn't make a lot of sense when you really think it through.

 

[Victoly]

Let me put it this way.

One feminist here in Sweden said we should invoke a MAN TAX because we are more violent and break more stuff.

And clearly the actions of one feminist speak for the entire group. Just like how every Christian in the world thinks that homosexuality and birth control are completely unacceptable.