Nov
28
Leadup to “What is Radical Feminism?”
Filed Under Feminism | 11 Comments
All right… so about a year ago I found that strangely enough, I was bored on the internet. Riffling through my mind as to where I might go that would be new and interesting, I recalled and settled on the site Alternet, an alternative news service. There on the front page was a row of columnists, one of whom was Mad Melancholic Feminista, providing a blog post on the Greek System and its detrimental effects on women. Not only did I really enjoy her post, but her blog served as a gateway to the feminist world of blogging. I’ve been reading and “traveling” through it, mostly as an incredibly shy lurker ever since. To this day I muse how that line of thought and those few clicks has set me on an incredible path.
As I’ve said before, I’ve always considered myself a feminist. My interests are constantly waxing and waning and I am sad to say that consistency is not my strong point. Before stumbling into the feminist blogosphere, I had gravitated towards being one of those people who says “I’m not a feminist, I’m a humanist.” Though I never articulated it in this manner, I had come to believe that focusing on feminism was such a narrow thing to do when there are so many other ills in the world. As you can see, I am in the waxing stage and I’ve realized that I was being rather foolish in that line of thought.
And though I did a ton of reading in high school on feminism, it really only scratched the surface. Hell, at the time I never even knew there were different schools of feminist thought. And despite reading Twisty’s and many other feminist blogs for the past year and loving every word of it, (growling in rage not mutally exclusive) I only actually became more than dimly aware of the schools of thought a few months ago. Someone ought to give me an award for fine tuned perception.
The breakdown was in my sociology textbook and I seemed to fall into the category of radical feminist. Except the sociology text’s definition seemed rather simplistic, which led me to ask “Is this really what radical feminism is about?” and “Am I a radical feminist?” I also found myself identifying heavily with Marxist feminism, but didn’t see why the two couldn’t be integrated. The explanation on Multicultural/Black feminism and its argument that radical feminism doesn’t have answers to the problems of women of color really piqued my curiosity. I’d like to think that radical feminism does answer them, and my instinct is to say that it does. Of course, that’s probably incredibly presumptuous and ignorant on my part and I’m probably another one of those white feminists that women of color rightfully take issue with. (I hope to rectify that and deepen my understanding further.)
So really…. in the end, I’m very much a novice on the deeper issues of feminism, as well as racism and homophobia. And I suppose that’s in part what this blog is about. Trying to weather the awkward phase (or am I fooling myself to think we ever get past this..?) by creating an out loud dialog with myself while yeah, BIG MOTIVE IN ALL MY BLOGS – polishing my writing skillz, as they make me horribly insecure. (Which means that consequently I rarely make an effort to connect with the communities that discuss these issues.)
And I use a lot of parentheses.
It annoys me.
Nov
25
I’m amazed it still works…..
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I dusted the moth balls off the photo gallery….. Damn it’s been awhile… I guess another project to tidy up. Now in the Linkroll.
Nov
22
Thanksgiving and Other Fine Mythologies
Filed Under General | 2 Comments
So the typical argument between looking at our country’s history full in the face and denying it by clinging to a couple of comforting mythologies has begun. The idea that this nation’s foundation is built on genocide, the deaths of up to 30 million people and the lawful decimation of their culture is a rather problematic thing to consider for most people. The idea that this country’s early economic success can in large part be attributed to slaves is something many would rather forget. And built on this foundation, the idea that our nation’s lifestyle has continued to be preserved over the past century through the blood and suffering of others, literally on their backs, is unthinkable.
It never ceases to fascinate me that we Americans live in a culture that seems to work on a few unassailable myths. We have been brought up in a society that is in theory democratic, a meritocracy that anyone can succeed in if only they work hard enough. Free speech is enshrined and we live under a government that in theory would never punish us for exercising that right. In light of this, it’s incredibly difficult to believe that your government would be involved in events the world over that have and continue to cause the incredible suffering of others. It’s incredibly difficult to face up to the idea that our lifestyle, just by virtue of living it, causes us to have an obscene amount of blood on our hands.
The American Dream is another one of these myths. The idea that if you work hard enough, if you really pull yourself up by your boot straps you can get anywhere. Again, that the United States is a meritocracy and that individual backgrounds have no impact on one’s success. This seems to reinforce, above all, the peace of mind of those of us who have been born in a privileged position. We never have to go beyond the idea of “if only they worked hard enough” to understand the complexities that face groups of people who have to work damn harder than we probably ever will and are still only barely keeping their heads above water.
The myth of “choice.” This one has been near and dear to my heart lately. Say you’re facing sexual harassment/racism/homophobia (pick your poison) at your place of work. But hell, you need that job to feed your kids. No one is KEEPING you there… you still have the <i>choice</i> to leave.
- This is a work in progress.
Nov
17
Under Construction
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The site’s design is still under construction and as such may go through some bizarre “in between” awkward phases!
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