I discussed recently with a new friend how certain words can be off-putting if you don’t know what they mean. It is easy, for instance, to get college students to sign protests against women’s “suffrage” — most don’t understand what they are protesting. “Feminism” is another such word. Because of it’s root, many believe that it is a movement which promotes women above men (that would be “matriarchy,” btw). Instead, feminism is, as bell hooks tells us, for everyone. It is the only movement arguing for equality among all sexes, genders, sexualities, races, creeds, etc. It is adamantly opposed to oppression (and therefore equally opposed to patriarchy and matriarchy).
I’m a straight, white, historically-Christian, over-educated male. And I’m very, very proud to be feminist because I believe that we should all be granted equal opportunities and that no one should be shunned because of sexism or racism (and that includes those who shun homosexuality). Although I am still in the minority, I believe that we can get better as a society — once we embrace the idea that, like universal suffrage, feminism is for everyone.
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