What is feminism?

So, before talking about feminism, I figured it was best to get everyone on the same page as to what exactly feminism is.  There are a lot of misconceptions out there about the movement, so it's important to know what it truly is.  And there is no way to support the movement until you understand it.


Here are a couple of definitions:


feminism (Mirriam-Webster Dictionary Online)

1.)  the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes

2.)  organized activity on behalf of women's rights and interests

feminism (dictionary.com)
1.)  the doctrine advocating social, political, and all other rights of women equal to those of men.

2.) an organized movement for the attainment of such rights for women.

3.) feminine character

These two definitions work, but are very basic.  To me, feminsm is first and foremost a movement whose goal is the achievement of equal rights for women and men.  I add the "to me" as a disclaimer because feminism is different for every person.  I know that before I learned more about the movement I thought that feminism was only about women power and women asserting their authority over men (you know, those radicals).  That is really a misconception, however.  While there are many feminists out there who believe that women should rule and would do a better job at it than men, or that the notion of gender should be completely eradicated, there are also many feminists who just want to have the same opportunities as man, who want to remove patriarchy from our many insitutions.  Feminism, at its core, is about equality not only in rights but in opportunity.  Both radical and conservative feminists share this basic idea.  It is up to you to choose what other ideas you support and the length you will go to fight for women's rights.

Now, many of you may say, as I once did, that women, at least in the United States, do have the same rights as men.  After a long struggle, the two sexes are now equal.  While many of us want to believe that this is true, the reality is that it isn't.  Here are a few startling statistics from an article from collegetimes.us:

1.)  For every dollar that men earn, women earn only 77.5 cents.

2.)  The more education a woman has, the higher the pay gap between men and women.

3.)  Only about 53% of employers offer maternity leave with pay (all employers are required to offer maternity leave without pay).

4.)  4 out of 10 businesses across the world have no women in senior management.

It's not just in pay that there is still inequality among women and men.  Here's some figures on the amount of women in some occupations:

1.)  In the 112th U.S. Congress (current), 75 out of 435 U.S. Representatives are women (17.2%) and 17 out of 100 U.S. Senators are women (17%) (thisnation.com).

2.)  Women make up 31.0% of the legal profession, but only 19.2% of partners of private practices.  Also, women make up more than 50% of law school students (americanbar.org).

3.)  In 2008, women made up 48.6% of medical students, but only 27.8% of physicians (catalyst.org).

Now, I am not trying to say that women have not made great strides in the past century - they certainly have.  The percentage of women in these professions was much less not even twenty years ago.  At the same time, however, these statistics also show that women still have a long way to go. 

If you believe that women should have just as much opportunity as men in the workforce (as these statistics show that they do not), then congratulations, you support feminism!  Of course, this is not the only issue that feminism addresses, however, it is a seriously important one, especially in the United States.  Also, it is the issue that first got me on board with feminism.

I must admit, I wasn't a believer just a few months ago.  I thought feminism was all about being radical and showing women's power over men.  It's not all about that, though.  Of course some women have those beliefs, and I completely respect them.  What feminism is really about for me, at least when we are talking about issues in the United States (which isn't the only thing I plan on talking about), is about equal opportunity and representation of women and men.  I had no idea that women made up so little of these professional occupations, nor that women made less money than man in the same occupation.  Now, that I do, however, I'm totally on board with feminism.  I hope that these statistics not only open your eyes, but also encourage you to do a little research of your own, and get on board with feminism!

P.S.  For a really in-depth definition of feminism, go here: http://www.feminist.com/resources/artspeech/genwom/whatisfem.htm