#iamafeminist

In response to: http://thelibertarianrepublic.com/girl-explains-why-shes-not-a-feminist-guess-why/

I'm not even going to get into the problem that this woman only uses a handful of well chosen facts to promote her side... What I will say is that I have never seen another movement to end the oppression of a certain group so widely misunderstood or so widely hated on by members of the group it is attempting to liberate. Yes, feminism's goal is for equality, BUT it is still called FEMINISM. It's main goal is to raise women's political, social, and economic status to that of men. The movement in its very name is centred on women's issues, so it's no wonder men's issues are not given equal weight in the feminism community. I've never seen anyone bash environmentalists for posting about carbon emissions instead of child labour issues, because that is not what the group is about. That doesn't mean environmentalists think child labour violations are just, but that is not their focus. That being said, throughout the history of feminism, feminists have been some of the greatest allies for other oppressed peoples from the abolitionist movement to the civil rights and gay rights movements. Third Wave Feminism itself focuses on the concept of intersectionality, which is about how people face different forms and degrees of oppression and privilege based on various facts about them, such as sex, race, gender, religion, sexuality, age, health, etc. If this woman knew anything about feminism or intersectionality, she would be educated enough not to speak about gender as though there are only two options.

The other point I want to stress about this video and all of those ridiculous ‪#womenagainstfeminism‬ posts is how ridiculously American-centric and narcissistic they are. These people are posting about how they don't need feminism in a world of 7 billion people, roughly half of which are women. Who cares if you don't need feminism? Other people do. As a white female raised on the west side of vancouver I can say that though I see how gender has affected my life and worldview, I have not faced any significant oppression due to my gender. There are places in the world where women aren't allowed to go to school, where they are ostracized for being raped, where they are treated like property (and not like an iphone6; like an old pair of runners). Even in Canada we have clear inequalities represented by things like the wage gap, the lack of diversity in government, etc.

Feminism aims to promote equality by breaking down gender roles and allowing for all people to express themselves the way they choose. That's why‪ #‎iamafeminist‬

Why Miley is my Queen

1. She has great music:

Man, that girl can hit the notes! I've always thought her music was super fun––Party in the USA was my jam in '09––but her new album truly blows my mind. Not only are the vocals outstanding, but it's one of the most diverse albums I've ever heard. The songs pull from an eclectic range of musical influences. You can hear pop, country, hip-hop, jazz, and so many other genres coming together in one album. She's broken free from the all-sounds-identical route that pop-music has been traveling down lately.

2. She's funny:

Nothing shows that she's okay poking fun at herself more than the fact that she enters her Bangerz tour shows on a giant slide version of her tongue. Clearly, she embraces all of her quirks. One of the best parts of the show had to be when the little person was dressed up as a joint; it showed that both she and the dancer have senses of humor and that they are not uptight.

3. She's expressing herself:

I've heard countless people say that Miley is trying to sexualize herself for the media, but they are flat out wrong. Miley is not sexually objectifying herself; she's just expressing her sexuality. Not many women do that, and I think it's kind of fantastic. When people were getting all uptight because she touched her crotch with a foam finger, I was just thinking, "have any of you people ever seen a rapper perform?" How is it okay for men to grab their crotches willy nilly, but the moment a women references her sexuality, all hell breaks loose? Miley doesn't conform to cultural norms; she is a symbol of female freedom of expression. 

4. She puts on a great show: 

The Bangerz tour has everything: gigantic blow-up dogs, crazy cartoon videos, huge birds, hot dogs, cars, people in animal costumes. But even with such a busy set, Miley manages to hold to attention of the audience. She's got great stage presence; perhaps it's partially because she's always doing something shocking, but it's mostly to do with the fact that she's having fun and she's comfortable in her own skin.

5. She's changing what "beauty" means:

Miley is going against everything the media tries to drill into our brains. She is writing a new definition of "beauty" in front of the entire world. Beauty doesn't have to mean long hair, big boobs, and a big ass. The performers on the Bangerz Tour are people of all shapes and sizes: tall women with huge butts, little people, jacked girls, skinny girls, muscular men, chubby men. Together with these performers, she is teaching us to see beauty and worth in people that don't fit into the tight box that is our societal ideal.

The Lucky Ones

I was talking with my mom about what feminism means today and how it differs from when she was a teenager and even way back when my great-grandma was a teenager. She said that she thinks that nowadays feminism should be focused on developing countries and that we should feel lucky to live in North America. I disagree with both of her statements, but her latter opinion in particular bothered me.

A lot of the time when people talk about being a woman in North America or any place where women have equal rights, we use the words like "fortunate" or "lucky." We're so lucky to have the opportunities we have. We're so fortunate that we are born in a society that is where there are laws against rape, where women are seen as persons, where girls are not only allowed to be educated, but legally have to. I resent this. We are NOT lucky. We have simply claimed our birthrights as human beings; things that we never should have had to claim. If anything the other women––the women that live in places where they are seen as property, where they have no voice, and where they are not permitted to get an education––are unlucky.

But even describing women in other countries as being "unlucky" is wrong. There is no luck involved in the way people are treated; there are only the decisions and actions of the people who choose to oppress. There is no choice, no pre-determined action in luck, and there certainly is in rape, in violence, and in legislation.

So please do not be so ignorant as to call yourself or anyone else fortunate because you/they are being treated the way you/they should be treated. And do not think of people as being unlucky if they are treated unjustly; instead, think of the people who treat others badly as being the sick, ignorant humans they are.

I was thinking about music

Give yourself to music. It is so powerful. You don't have to be a singer or a musician to taste the notes on your tongue or feel the melody twitching your muscles. Be picky with the music you like. Find stuff that physically changes you. Listen to music that puts a smile on your face even when your in the worst mood. Listen to music that gives you philosophical revelations. Listen to music that makes you want to shake your booty like no one's watching, or like someone special is. Listen to music that is so beautifully tragic that you tear up every time you hear it. Never be afraid to feel. Emotion is the most wonderful thing in this world. It is at the very core of what makes us human. Let yourself cry when you're upset. Let yourself scream when you're mad. But more than anything, let yourself laugh when you're happy. Laugh louder than everyone else. Laugh so loudly that just the very sight of you laughing sends others into a spur of giggles. Dance when you want to dance. Remember that you are just as powerful as even the most powerful music. Use your power for good.