Negative Feminist Stereotypes And Its Impact On Society

Stereotypes are responsible for the separation between things that are considered acceptable in society and things that do no fit within societal ‘norms’. Feminists everywhere are constantly being oppressed with negative stereotypes surrounding feminism and I feel as though these topics need to start being discussed out in the open instead of being tucked away and ignored. Some of these include; how ‘they’ all hate, how all feminists are lesbians man (are anti-male), and how feminism consists of only white upper middle class women.

Feminists are individuals who believe that women and men are of equal worth and that social movements are necessary in order to establish this much deserved equality amongst all people. Feminists also believe in promoting intersectionality, which is the idea that all individuals are made up of many identities that intersect to make us who we are. Power and privilege are not equally assessable to everyone and intersectionality addresses issues like this and how it is time to change in order to finally gain equality between everyone. Feminists are not just looking to establish equality for women, but for everyone no matter what they identify as. Negative stereotypes surrounding feminism promote oppression and do not allow for equality of all individuals in todays society.

To begin, I would like to address the negative feminist stereotype that states how ‘they’ all hate man, or are anti-male. This statement contributes to the oppression that feminists are constantly facing and this also makes them appear to be extremely sexist towards males. The goal of feminism is to promote equality and I feel as through this is commonly overlooked when people think about feminism movements. These negative stereotypes create a very hostile environment for individuals that are attempting to shine a light on equality, the topic that everyone seems to want to ignore. Most people can agree on the fact that society has come a long way in terms of equality, but we know that there is still so much more that needs to be accomplished. The goal of feminism is not to put men down, but to lift everyone up onto the same, equal, and level playing field and feminists understand that equity and equality are strategies that can aid in achieving this. By treating people with equality we are able to treat everyone the same, no matter where they are from, what they believe in, or who they are. Everyone is viewed as equal.

In addition, Equity provides people with the things that they uniquely need in order to be successful, contributing members of society. With the presence of both equality and equity in our society everyone can truly feel like they belong by being given the opportunities needed in order to be successful and by not being considered ‘less than’ anyone else along the way. Everyone on this planet was created as a unique and different human being but being different does not justify the hierarchy of one sex over another and this is all that feminists are trying to say. Our biological makeup should not indicate that we are in any way less capable of completing tasks in comparison to males. These opinions are often viewed as anti-male thoughts but they are in no way discriminating against males, but are instead being used to stand up to the discrimination against females. Hall (2002) argues that stereotypes are used as a way to maintain social and symbolic order and that they are responsible for the barrier that divides the ‘insiders’ from the ‘outsiders’ and it is true that for a long time, women were a part of this group of outsiders. I agree with the point that Hall makes here and I feel that as feminists of todays society must continue to discard these negative stereotypes in order to keep making progress towards complete equality.

Similarly, another common negative feminist stereotype states that all feminists are lesbians. Not only is this extremely stereotypical, but it is also supporting homophobia because these people are viewing feminism as a bad thing simply because ‘lesbians’ are behind it. If someone is a feminist it does not mean that they are a lesbian, and if someone is a lesbian it does not mean that they are necessarily a feminist. To be a feminist, you must be more than someone who just identifies as a female. It includes being able to establish a sense of political understanding, and being able to analyse how women are continuously oppressed, even in todays society. Heterosexual females are not required to identify as a lesbian if they choose to label themselves as a feminist. Heterosexual females should however recognize oppression that lesbians face since it has to do with the oppression of fellow females and that lesbianism has played a large role in the development of feminism. If one group of females are facing prejudice and oppression it effects the entire female population, and as feminists we are responsible for fighting for the equality of all people, not just select groups. If we were to begin undermining lesbians in our quest for equality, we would ultimately be working with these people who are promoting the negative stereotypes in the first place. Intersection is visible here between the feminist movement and the gay rights movement because they are both promoting equality and they are both equally struggling with standing up to discrimination. They support each other and display how intersectionality is everywhere.

Lastly, I feel that the stereotype regarding how feminism consists of only white upper middle class women is absolutely outrageous and it also displays how both racism and classism can be seen within these negative feminism stereotypes along with sexism. These negative stereotypes that state what feminists should look like are harmful because they create an improper idea of what feminists are fighting to achieve. Although first wave feminism did heavily revolve around these factors, times have changed and I feel as though feminism has transformed, heading into the fourth wave, into a very inclusive movement that fights for the equal rights of all people. Freedman (2002) indicates how the market economies and democratic systems we have in the world today create both a need for feminism and the means to sustain feminism movements. This shows how the change in government since the first wave has been a positive change for feminist activists and provides them with the environment they need to shine a light on the oppression and discrimination that people are constantly facing.

Discrimination is everywhere and it effects everyone intersectionally. hooks (2000) states that since discrimination effects everyone, feminism as a result is for everyone. It is a solution to oppression and promotes intersectionality amongst all people of all genders, races, and classes. Here, hooks address a very important point about intersectionality and how there are all sorts of discrimination constantly occurring together. People constantly face intersections like this were they are feeling attacked by more then one type of discrimination, in this case people are facing racism, sexism, and classism. We can see here that discrimination of any kind, is still discrimination and oppression is occurring. This is what us as feminist are fighting for. Not for the white upper class women, but for everyone being discriminated against. Also, Tarrant (2009) believes that there is also room for men in the feminism movements and that the idea that feminism is only for women is based on essentialism which is a term used to indicate that we are limited by biological sexes. Just because an individual is a female does not mean she is a feminist and a male should also not be automatically assumed not to be a feminist. These problems we are seeing effect everyone and hooks (2000) puts this all together simply by saying that feminism is a movement to end sexism, sexist exploitation, and oppression. These things affect everyone, and therefore feminism is for everyone, not just a select bunch.

In conclusion, all of these stereotypes heavily indicate why individuals are afraid to and do not want to label themselves as feminists. According to Freedman (2002), back in the 1960s the word “feminist” was a disproved term due to the judgement and negativity that surrounded it. This started to change in the 1980s when a generation of western women started to claim the term that involved equal opportunities for everyone and in the 1990s an even more diverse and mature feminist movement began. But then and even in today’s society there is still a sense of negativity surrounding the term and people are often caught thinking… well, I don’t hate men, I am not a lesbian, I am not white, or I am not considered an upper class member of society so I can not be a feminist. This ultimately just shows how uneducated people are on the topic of feminism. These images that people have created of feminists as a result of hearing these negative stereotypes are becoming increasingly untrue and time goes on. Although feminist activism typically revolves around fighting for women’s rights, feminism includes much more and feminism movements are really all about fighting against sexism and oppression, for all people of all sexes, genders, and backgrounds. I have now displayed why these negative stereotypes surrounding feminism promote oppression and they not allow for equality to be achieved in our society, and I hope to soon see a future where achieving equality is just an idea of the past.