There's just something about the word feminist.
In a 1995 poll, 68 percent of Americans said they support "political, economic and social equality for women." That means a majority of people said they supported the essential principles of feminism. But in that same survey only a minority - less than 44 percent - of people were willing to call themselves feminists.
In this country, we assume most people support the political, economic and social equality of racial minorities. We call those who don't racists. We have no mainstream word for the un-racist majority, and certainly not one with a negative connotation. Why isn't feminism just the opposite of sexism? Why do we even need the word feminist?
The stigma attached to the word may be caused by a perception that there's no need for feminism, that women achieved their equality in 1920 with the right to vote, and that there's nothing left to fight for. But a few statistics on rape, domestic violence and pay inequity, or a few examples of the many ways women are oppressed all over the world should be enough to convince anyone that there is a very real need for feminism in the world today.
One in three women is physically abused. Only 2 percent of rapists are ever convicted and imprisoned. It's impossible to deny that sexism exists in a culture where 98 percent of rapists get away with their crimes. Fully 99 percent of rapists are male.
Being a feminist today means believing in women's equality, and acknowledging that challenges to this equality exist everywhere. Popular disdain for the word "feminist" should be all the evidence we need to realize that sexism is still deeply rooted in our society.
One of our society's most coveted gender stereotypes portrays feminists as militant bra-burners who think all men are rapists and pigs. This perception makes women afraid to call themselves feminists and alienates men who might otherwise be willing to speak up for women's rights. Male participants are too rare in the struggle for women's equality, but both men's and women's voices are needed for the feminist cause to be heard.
You don't have to burn your bra to be a feminist. You don't even have to have breasts to be one. These stereotypes and the stigma that accompanies them reflect an old-fashioned and patriarchal disdain for women who stir up trouble by pointing out social discrepancies. These stereotypes prove that sexism still exists - in Afghanistan, in Africa, in the patriarchal branches of our government and on even the most liberal of college campuses.
Thursday is National Young Women's Day of Action. The Feminist Majority Leadership Alliance at Brown will be passing out stickers, selling T-shirts and asking the feminist majority at Brown to reveal itself. On that day, I hope students will 'fess up to their feminism. We need to shed the negative connotation associated with those who speak out on behalf of women's equality.
Amy Littlefield '09 thinks more words should be abolished in general.
