WHAT DOES FEMINISM MEAN TO YOU?
My Feminist YOUtopia
A FEMINIST UTOPIA
The most beautiful thing about feminism is the many ideas this one word can encapsulate. When asking the question, "what does feminism mean", you will always get a different answer.
In my version of a feminist utopia, every person is given the opportunity to answer what they believe feminism is. Women of color will no longer feel overshadowed by the white, middle-class agenda. They will no longer feel the need to separate their identity as a woman and person of color. Lesbian, bisexual, and transgender women will be heard. All women will attain bodily autonomy. Men will no longer feel the pressures of hegemonic masculinity.
In my feminist utopia, nobody is unheard. Nobody is left behind.
None of us are free until we are all free.
FEMINISM MEANS
What does feminism mean? Can there be one definition of feminism, or multiple? "Feminism Means" explores individuals' different definitions of feminism using an intersectional lens. In my feminist utopia, all types of feminism is welcome and encouraged. Everybody is allowed to have a voice and their own opinions. Without diversified thoughts, we can never achieve a true feminist utopia. How, if we do not include every individual, can we see feminism in all its glory? Project "Feminism Means" embraces all approaches to feminism and all people.
It is time we stop excluding others, and time we begin to learn about and appreciate them.
"Feminism involves so much more than gender equality and it involves so much more than gender. Feminism must involve consciousness of capitalism (I mean the feminism that I relate to, and there are multiple feminisms, right). So it has to involve a consciousness of capitalism and racism and colonialism and post-colonialities, and ability and more genders than we can even imagine and more sexualities than we ever thought we could name."
Angela Davis
RAPIST IN YOUR WAY
As of December 2019, a new protest song/chant has emerged from Chile and spread globally, becoming a new feminist anthem entitled "Rapist in Your Way" or "Rapist in Your Path" depending on the translation.
In this fight song, women condemn rape culture and victim shaming. They place the blame not only on the rapist, but on the institutions and struggles that condone and support rapists and rape culture. The court system is to blame. Patriarchy is to blame. Those who did not take a stance against rapists are to blame.
In my ideal version of a feminist utopia, rape and rape culture is never tolerated. The victim is never to blame. As the fight song states, it does not matter where the victim was or what they were wearing- the fault is not theirs.
A large problem facing the United States as well as other parts of the world is rape culture and the acceptance of sexual assault. These issues must highlighted as every victim deserves justice.
Audre Lorde
“I am not free while any woman is unfree, even when her shackles are very different from my own.”
Hilda Doolittle wrote Eurydice from the point of view of the wife of Orpheus, Eurydice, from Greek mythology while drawing on her own life experiences. Eurydice was sent to the Underworld to stay with Hades, causing Orpheus to then ask Hades to return Eurydice to the living on earth. Hades agrees, but only if Orpheus does not look at his wife as they leave the Underworld. Impatiently, Orpheus looks back at Eurydice before they exit, dooming her to remain in the Underworld. This excerpt from H.D's poem portrays Eurydice's fury and reaction to her husband's betrayal.
Through poetry, H.D gives Eurydice a voice and a chance to unleash her wrath at her husband and then men that have controlled her. Eurydice now has the voice to call out her husband's arrogance and they way he condemned her to a life she didn't want.
H.D utilizes idealistic feminist thinking by giving Eurydice a voice. Within a feminist utopia, it is of utmost importance that everybody is heard and everybody is accountable for their own actions. Eurydice was given the voice that all people should have. In my feminist utopia, it is a basic right to speak your mind and express yourself without suppression and censorship from others. H.D portrays control over oneself and the importance of autonomy.
EURYDICE
by H.D
I
So you have swept me back,
I who could have walked with the live souls
above the earth,
I who could have slept among the live flowers
at last;
so for your arrogance
and your ruthlessness
I am swept back
where dead lichens drip
dead cinders upon moss of ash;
so for your arrogance
I am broken at last,
I who had lived unconscious,
who was almost forgot;
if you had let me wait
I had grown from listlessness
into peace,
if you had let me rest with the dead,
I had forgot you
and the past.
BRAVE NEW VOICES
"FEMINISM"
Four women from Team Denver in the Brave New Voices finals 2014 compete with their heartfelt spoken word piece entitled "Feminism". Ashia Ajani, Tolu Obiwole, Abby-Friesen-Johnson, and Alexis Rain Vigil embody the idea of intersectionality and inclusivity by presenting multi-racial issues that women face. They speak against the dismissal of women of color in feminist work and unrecognized privilege.
Their inspiring message encourages unity while recognizing the unique issues women of different backgrounds face, an essential component to my idealistic feminist utopia. This diverse group of women address multiple issues in a non-hierarchical manner. They focus on issues brought on by the patriarchy such as sexual assault and machismo. Racial issues such as white privilege and separating race and gender are also addressed. These problems are important to recognize and eradicate within my idea of a feminist utopia.
By uniting under our differences, we reach an ideal version of feminism.
“Dominator culture has tried to keep us all afraid, to make us choose safety instead of risk, sameness instead of diversity. Moving through that fear, finding out what connects us, revelling in our differences; this is the process that brings us closer, that gives us a world of shared values, of meaningful community.”
bell hooks
