You sound angry about something or other, or so I gather from your use of "bloody well" as an adverb. But once again, I don't really know what you're getting at. Are you saying that Louise need not call herself a feminist because she can bloody well look after herself (requiring no help from feminism), or that by linking to her post I am implying she can not bloody well look after herself well enough to provide her own link? If it's the latter, is it your opinion that providing a link to other people's germane writing on a topic implies some sort of assumed helplessness on the part of the person who is linked? That would be a notion I haven't encountered before on the internet, where links to other writing are actually quite common. Me, I generally like it when someone provides a link to something I have written, and don't take it to mean the linker considers me incapable of bloody well looking after myself.
I gather you’d like a clarification, so here it is:
I mean that women who have benefitted from over 150 years of feminism, a legacy left to them by women who faced jail, ostracism and assaults just to be able to vote let alone anything else pertaining to women’s rights, but who coyly tell you that ‘I believe in equal rights but I’m not a feminist, you betcha’ deserve no concern from feminists on any occasion they have to deal with sexism.
If a woman doesn’t want to get pregnant, or needs to terminate an unwanted or dangerous pregnancy, and she doesn’t have to resort to Preggers Roulette (a/k/a ‘natural family planning’) or a coat hangar, she’s benefitting from feminism, however put off she might be that some feminists don’t shave their legs. Same goes for a woman who uses a credit card, who buys a house or car in her own name, who becomes a doctor or attorney or is able to divorce an abusive husband. That’s a legacy that many women, and some far-sighted men, worked and sacrificed for and those people deserve better than to be blown off by those who have benefitted.
It’s a little like your car breaking down on a dark, isolated road in a cold rain and a truck driver picks you up. He calls a tow truck to take your car to the nearest truck stop and gives you a ride there with the heater in the truck cab going full blast, and even offers to buy you a meal while your car is being repaired. But on arrival, you tell him that you appreciate his help and you’ll definitely accept the offer of a meal, but can he please sit at a separate table and not let on that you’re with him? After all, his shoes are muddy and he isn’t exactly young and cute so of course you don’t want to be seen with him; you have your image to think of – surely he understands, right?
So no, I don’t respect that “I’m not a feminist” song and dance, and women past their 20s have even less justification for it than younger women. They should know better; be they active on Bettermost or otherwise. In that context I’d have more respect for women in the “full quiver” movement – they might be rejecting feminism but they’re at least being honest and consistent about it. They’re not mooching off the efforts of women they openly despise. And on occasions that women who are doing that find out that OMG, sexism isn’t dead after all and not all the battles have been won – well, they’ll have to deal with that on their own. After all, that’s what they want.
All that said,, I did find the first post you directed me to unintentionally funny.
