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For some reason it is very rare to see the major issues I face as a woman reflected in the mainstream media. I find this quite sad, given that the feminist movement – which dates from Mary Wollstonecraft’s 1792 Vindication of the Rights of Women – is over 200 years old. The concept of feminism is based on the notion that women face unique difficulties based on their gender that aren’t faced by men. Over the past 3 ½ decades the term has been used to encompass of range of social conditions that prevent women from achieving their full potential as human beings. These include, among others, systemic inequality and discrimination in the area of education, employment, reproductive rights (which in itself covers a range of issues including birth control, prenatal and child care, and maternity and parental leave – all essential needs for women to function effectively in contemporary society) and the legal and criminal justice system; an epidemic level of violence against women; and legal, economic or psychological pressure to conform to stereotyped gender roles and to subordinate basic needs to those of men.
There is no question that men also face strong social pressures to conform to stereotyped gender roles – pressures that definitely inhibit men’s ability to achieve their full potential as human beings. However I think most men would find it quite presumptuous for a woman to speak to these issues – just as most women find it presumptuous when men try to define feminism for them.
Muddying the Waters
Unfortunately the way mainstream media has covered feminism has not been conducive to rational dialogue about some fairly complex issues. In fact at times it seems as if the corporate media deliberately sets out to muddy the waters. The word “feminist” has acquired a very negative connotation – leaving many young women very wary of identifying themselves as feminists or even raising feminism as a legitimate topic for discussion. The result, whether deliberate or not, is that we are with a very narrow, stereotyped portrayal in the mainstream media of what modern women should look like, as well as what they should feel, think and value.
Conservative media outlets – such as Fox News and Rush Limbaugh and other right wing talk show hosts – portray feminists as a cult of man-eating, castrating harpies. On the other hand, the so-called “liberal” press persist in confusing feminism with affirmative action. In my opinion this equally narrow view of women’s issues is even more unhelpful than the man-eating, castrating view.
Queen Bee Feminism
In the 1970s we referred to feminism that focused exclusively on issues of affirmative action as “queen bee feminism.” The reality is that creating more female judges, doctors and CEOs does nothing to address the phenomenal economic and social difficulties faced by the vast majority of American women. Any more than electing a black president addresses institutional racism or the immense social and economic pressures that plague the African American community.
And yet the so-called liberal media continues to limit its “feminist” coverage to the concerns of upper middle class women – namely issues of discrimination against women in medical and law school admissions and (less often) the highly paid building trades and the notorious “glass ceiling” that impedes women’s advancement in American universities and corporation.
It’s not that this systematic discrimination against women (and minorities isn’t wrong). It’s very wrong and it definitely needs to be addressed.
True Feminism Embraces Universal Issues
However in my opinion there is an urgent need for a broad, publicly identifiable feminist movement that addresses the universal issues affecting all women – and children – as women are the natural advocates for children too young to advocate for themselves. Obviously the range of issues (or rights) identified as “universal” is open to discussion and debate. Yet at present the discussion doesn’t happen at all – at least not in the mainstream media. Read on at http://stuartbramhall.aegauthorblogs.com
