I had no idea that Sarah Palin was reading our blog!Palin has joined our discussion of muliebrity and declared herself a feminist. Oh yes, she dropped the "f" bomb. You can click on the title of this post to read npr's discussion with Meghan Daum and hear what some callers had to say.
I think Daum has a very interesting point of view on Palin's use of the word. Daum defines feminism as someone who believes in equal rights for men and women and who wants to call themselves a feminist, and I agree. I also think that Palin is being an "opportunist" and simply trying to get more media attention. But, I think that Daum is correct in saying, "that we cant just in a very reactionary way sort of disallow Sarah Palin from using certain vocabulary."
Most importantly, I think that this may stir all of us into a meaningful discussion of what feminism means. (And I thought nothing good would ever come of Palin!)
What say all of you?
Palin is definitely a feminist, as can be plainly seen by anyone who looks into her background, spoken and written statements, and outstanding achievements in the public sphere. By the way, compare your cartoon with the cover of a formerly reputable feminist magazine which has the well-known misogynist Barack Obama with his shirt pulled open superman-like revealing the motto "this is a feminist." (Just in passing, you might check out who not too long before bought a controlling interest in said magazine.)
ReplyDeleteI have lots of questions for Anonymous. How do you define "feminist" or "feminism"? Understanding your definition would help me better understand your opening statement. And I'm intrigued enough to do research on the nameless feminist magazine, but if you could offer up a little more on why you say Obama is a "well-known misogynist," I'd be much obliged. In both cases, there's an assumption of widely known, indisputable facts, and the teacher in me wants some hard facts to support your assertions.
ReplyDeleteUse any definition of feminism you find adequate. If your research into the areas I mentioned has led you to deny her feminism, we'll simply have to accept the fact that we disagree. As far as Obama's hatred for women is concerned, exhaustive information is readily available in numerous blogs and web sites. I find Hillary is 44 very informative and also The Confluence. But there are many other sources.
ReplyDeleteSince there is no monolithic definition of feminism, applying my own definition to your statement doesn't help me to better understand your point. I'm trying to gain more insight into your comment, not attack your views.
ReplyDeleteI will say this, however, my research into Obama as a misogynist revealed two photographs purportedly showing him staring at women's asses. The related chatter seemed to be polarized: He's a sexist pig! It's a right-wing smear campaign! I'm not sold on either statement. Photographs can be misleading, and I wasn't there. Other than those photographs, I didn't find anything else. I need more hard evidence before I'm convinced that he hates women.
And yes, Ms. used to be the vanguard of feminist politics and thought. But they've lost their way (and their edge) over the years. The statement: "This is what a feminist looks like" over Obama's superman chest was certainly a gaffe. At the same time, I accept the editor's explanation regarding the importance of showing that men can and are feminists, too. The superman thing was a bit much, though--I agree with critics' grumblings about hero worship. He's not our savior. But he's not the antichrist either. So maybe it's fair to say that he's not a feminist. But he's not a misogynist either.
I agree about the need for more evidence. A couple of misleading photos won't do the trick. The archival materials in the two blogs I mentioned would take considerable time to sift through and consider carefully. I posted just after midnight and your posting was at 9:49 this morning. That would give you the equivalent of one work-day (assuming you worked all night), scarcely long enough even to skim this vast repository, and you'll discover dozens of other sources similarly packed with relevant information. But doesn't your final sentence indicate that you've already made up your mind?
ReplyDeleteLet's see, we agree that BHO is not a feminist; but the question originally was the legitimacy of Palin's use of the term. In my opinion the documents already contained in or referenced by this thread provide abundant justification for Palin.
Yes, getting back to Palin...What I found interesting about the callers' comments to NPR and also what I am seeing here is that Palin's success is being used to define her as a feminist. Again, my definition of a feminist is someone who believes in equal rights for men and women and who wants to be called a feminist. Being successful has nothing to do with my definition.
ReplyDeleteWhat scares me is that Palin will be considered a feminist because she is successful, and because success is defined mostly in terms of money by our society, this in turn ties the terms of feminism and capitalism together. I say that this scares me because I don't think capitalism promotes equality; in fact, I think it does quite the opposite.
I can also see how people would want to use Palin as an example that feminism is no longer relevant because, if Palin can be a successful politician and mother and whatever else it is that she does, then obviously things are equal and all is well in the world. Making the hasty generalization that one woman's success proves an equal society, is also something I would hate to see arise from this.
I do, however, think that we can use Palin as an example of feminism in action, just as we can use Hillary Clinton as an example of feminism in action. Yes, they have been successful in the world of politics that is dominated by men and also raised families. But they are also both white and extremely wealthy. The single mother in my classroom working toward her nursing degree and maintaining a full time job to support her family is also an example of feminism in action. As am I, and as are you. Every time we pursue our goals, be they motherhood, a career or both; every time we don't put up with a crude sexual joke at the office; every time we negotiate for a higher salary; every time vote we are examples of feminism in action.
Its like saying because we have a black president, racism has ended. Not quite.
ReplyDelete