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ou’d think we’d be more
grateful. Feminism has
brought us the vote,
Y access to contraception,
and equality in education,
relationships and the workplace. And
how do we repay it? By forgetting it,
ignoring it, or even insisting that there’s
no need for it anymore. Today, many
women deny feminism is anything to
do with them. But when pressed
confess they agree with feminist
ideology. So what’s the problem?
In 2010, the main impression of
feminists seems to be of the angry
men-hating, bra-burning women of the
Seventies. But you can actually trace
the history of the movement back
centuries: Mary Wollenstonecraft in
the late 18th century published A
Vindication Of The Rights Of Women in
which she argued that women are not
naturally inferior to men (a controversial
concept at the time). A hundred years
on, in the late 19th and early 2oth
century, so-called ‘first wave’ feminists
were campaigning for more rights in
marriage and, in particular, political
representation. So if you voted in May,
you’ve got something to thank them for.
THE�GOOD�FIGHT
But it’s the ‘second wave’ that arguably
had the most impact on women today.
Throughout the Sixties and Seventies
women campaigned for equality, with
figureheads like Betty Friedan (who
published The Feminine Mystique in
1963 and is often credited with igniting
the feminist movement of the time),
Germaine Greer, Gloria Steinem and
Kate Millett. Professor Carol Dyhouse,
author of Glamour: Women, History,
Feminism, explains, “The revolt was
against the ‘happy housewife’ image of
the Fifties. There was huge inequality.
Women couldn’t get a mortgage
individually, they weren’t allowed to
wear trousers in restaurants, jobs for
men and women were advertised
separately. You passed from your
father’s authority to your husband’s.”
That ‘second wave’ of feminism
changed the world for women, at least
in most prosperous nations. In the UK,
contraception became free in 1974.
Feminism created a liberated women,
meaning they could delay motherhood
in favour of a career and have an active
sex life without fear of getting pregnant
(this was before Aids became a known
threat). In 1975, the Sex Discrimination
Act made it illegal to discriminate
against women in employment,
advertising or education; the
Employment Protection Act introduced
statutory maternity provision and made
it illegal to sack a woman because she
was pregnant, and the Equal Pay Act
came into effect. A year later, the Equal
Opportunities Commission started and
the Domestic Violence Act
enabled women to get
a court order
against a violent
partner.
Think about
what your life
would be like
now if all of those
things hadn’t
happened. Would
you have the same
qualifications, the
same job? Would
you have had to
give up work when
you had children, or
put up with physical abuse at home?
Would we even be able to print a
magazine with content like this? There’s
been a huge shift in cultural attitudes.
Previously, ‘nice girls’ didn’t have sex,
weren’t ambitious, and just wanted
to be a good wife. Our horizons are
wider, and that’s thanks to feminism.
So why do so many passionately and
publicly reject feminism? Would you
want a life without these things? If the
answer is no, it’s pretty likely you’re part
of a generation of secret feminists.
Professor Dyhouse points out that after
the success of getting equality legislation
passed, feminism lost some of its focus.
“It became very theoretical,” she says,
“and sometimes boring, even if you were
interested in the subject.”
And then there was the mainstream
backlash against the stereotype of all
feminists as man-hating, humourless
hags. “Of course it wasn’t true,” says
Kira Cochrane, women’s editor of The
Guardian, “but the fact that it was
heavily used did do damage. If you’re a
young woman hearing that a movement
like feminism requires you to dress
a certain way and think a certain way,
it is going to be off-putting.” Professor
June Hannam, author of the book
Feminism, agrees, saying,
“New generations
believe the way
feminism was
characterised
– all that stuff
about not liking
make-up and so
on.” Hannam
also points
out that the
Eighties saw
the rise of
NEW-WAVE FEMINISTS
ARE YOU A SECRET
FEmINISt?
It brought us many of the human rights we take for granted today and
most women still agree with its principles. Without it our lives would be entirely
different. So why did feminism become such a dirty word?
WORDS: ALICE WIGNALL
IS IT TIME WE RECLAIMED
THE FEMINIST CONVICTION
OF OUR PREDECESSORS?
Thatcherite individualism. Whereas
once campaigning was in vogue, now it
was all about looking after number
one. Feminism went out of style.
STILL�RELEVANT��
But that doesn’t mean we don’t still
need it. The UK has the lowest rape
conviction rate in Europe at 6.5% and
30 years after it was enshrined in law,
women still don’t earn the same as men
for doing the same job. “Our culture is
increasingly sexist,” says Cochrane. “All
sorts of things are a real throwback
– look at Nuts and Zoo. We’re meant to
laugh it off, think it’s ironic. But how is it
ironic? It’s just the same thing.”
It’s likely that you do actually agree
with fundamental feminist principles
– fighting for women to live in an equal
and fair society – but the time has
come to publicly acknowledge it, and
to recognise feminism is still relevant
– and not at all scary. Cochrane,
Hannam and Dyhouse all agree that
feminism is finding its feet again.
“2010 is a really interesting year,” says
Cochrane. “There are major books on
the subject coming out including
Reclaiming The F Word and Click:
Young Women On The Moments That
Made Them Feminists and there’s more
campaigning going on, for example
March’s Million Women Rise
demonstration against male violence.”
When you compare women’s
situation today to that of just a few
decades ago, it’s clear we’ve come on
in leaps and bounds. But while there
continues to be pay inequality, a high
rate of violence against women and
the sexualisation of women in the
media, there will always be
a need for feminism.
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