There are many women nowadays who will describe themselves as anti-feminists, with great passion and vigour to their voices. They speak about being anti-feminists with the same passion of the suffragettes and suffragists, when they fought for the fundamental right to vote.
Every woman (and every man, for that matter) should be a feminist. Now, a radical feminist might hate the idea that a man is writing this. Men, after all, are the cause of patriarchal oppression and so having the default perpetrator of millennia of oppression suddenly speaking out for feminism might be seen as wrong, somehow. But then, I never said I was a radical feminist. I am just a feminist who is occasionally radical. There is a difference.
Those who misquote, misrepresent and focus their views of feminism on rare, fringe, radical feminists have, in my opinion, done more to destroy the common ground for the last battles of feminism than any sexist man could ever have done.
I am not talking here, about the questions asked by radical feminists who challenge the societal, defined roles of women, nor about any of the vital points that have contributed to a vast body of theory and argument which cannot be neglected or dismissed. But there is a lot of wacky radical feminism out there, and it is a deep shame that feminism is seen nowadays as inseparable from that wacky fringe. When we watch debates, or listen to radio shows, or watch TV political programmes, that sort of “fringe” feminism is seen as the feminism by which we should define ourselves. It is wrong, and as I wrote above, it has in my view weakened the fight for true equality.
I do not believe... no. That is not strong enough: in no way, at all, ever, would I ever accept or even condone the view that all men are intrinsically motivated towards violence or abuse. That is a view shared by many of the “fringe” feminists. I also fundamentally believe that our society has changed so much for women in the past hundred years, to make the UK almost unrecognisable today. That is not a view shared by many of the “fringe” feminists.
So, before I get to the point of this blog post, let me be clear about what I mean by feminism. I do not mean that narrow-minded fringe feminism that paints men as villains, that decries women for choosing to marry and have children, that denounces women for giving up jobs to raise children. I am talking about the feminism of choice and freedom. It is a feminism of choice and freedom that allows women to seize whatever opportunity they wish.
(I am aware that the tone of this blog post may end up seeming patrician and patriarchal, as if I am anyone of import to deign to talk about allowing women the freedom – I apologise if it comes across that way, but unfortunately, I am bound by the words that exist, and it is hard to qualify exactly what I am trying to say.)
So, what do I feel are the biggest battles left to fight? What issues do I think that all people should rally round as if marching to war?
The lingering, un-ending horror of domestic violence and the woeful lack of care for women suffering from eating disorders.
These are, I feel, two of the biggest battles left to fight for feminists. There are, undoubtedly, far more. They are all important: greater access to childcare for example, ensuring representation of women in our democracy, and ensuring that the glass ceiling is well and truly broken, to name another three. But, and though it pains me to say it, none of those three issues are anywhere near as important as the first two I named.
In England and Wales, two women a week are killed due to domestic violence. That is just one of the terrifying statistics concerning domestic violence. It is a livid scar on the face of our country. It is a mark of shame that it still continues unabated. Unfortunately, it will never be possible without a Big Brother state of gargantuan proportions, to prevent every single incident of domestic violence. However, there is still a lot we can do. I am sure every single woman’s charity has suggestions on how to help deal with domestic violence. I am also aware however, that all these suggestions cost money which, in the current climate, is hard, or impossible, to find.
So, perhaps it is worth contemplating an action so grubby, so dirty, so sickeningly statist, that it might make our liberal stomachs churn. I would suggest that any man convicted of domestic violence or rape should be forced (yes, I used that dreaded word forced) to pay a huge amount of money to the Government, which would then be used to fund the support systems that victims of rape and abuse need.
Let’s say a man living in a beautiful house, with a beautiful car, and a fantastic job, leaves his wife emotionally and physically scarred, living under the shadow of a terror that may never fade. Why should he not be forced (yes, that word again) to lose a large part of that money, to allow other suffering women to find a way out?
I am also very supportive, for perhaps the first time in my life, of the illiberal, draconian, heavy-handed measures by France to electronically tag violent husbands. I am still working out what I think about the nuances of the law, but in practice, I actually strongly support this idea and, if UK women’s charities believe it would help here, I would be 100% behind a similar move in our country.
Illiberal, yes. But arguably necessary, in a way that ID cards just are not.
Eating disorders are responsible for more loss of life than any other type of psychological illness.
At least 1.1 million people in the UK are affected by an eating disorder.
A survey by Beat of 600 young people found: only 1 per cent of children felt they could tell their parents. 9 per cent of children felt they could tell someone in school. 17 per cent of children felt they might be able to talk to a doctor or a nurse. 92 per cent of children felt they couldn’t tell anyone.
There is a temptation when it comes to talking about eating disorders, to focus on body image, and magazines. Whilst these are obviously contributory, and remain one of the key reasons I offer my resounding support for the Real Women campaign, the issue of eating disorders cannot be so easily dealt with. It requires massive changes in the way we deal with these disorders.
For example, (if it has not already been done) we should start to count eating disorders as a cause of death. I have been told that when people die as a result of eating disorders, the cause of death is entered as heart failure, or kidney failure, or such like. By ensuring that doctors note the eating disorder’s cause of the death, we can begin to get a much greater impression of the scale of eating disorders.
There are many other issues raised by Beat, a fantastic charity, which I urge you to look into. They make the case for action on eating disorders far more eloquently than I could ever hope to.
These two issues do go beyond feminism. But they also serve as a potent reminder (and a shameful one) that feminism is not redundant for the 21st century. They serve as a call to arms for all caring people to take real action to beat these problems. Whilst perhaps not as “glamorous” as the right to vote, they are nonetheless just as vital.
We are talking about the rights of women to live safely in their own home, and to live a life free from the terrible burden of anorexia, bulimia, or any other eating disorders. The right to life a healthy, safe life is something that all of us take for granted.
And it is a right that is denied to an incredible number of women every single second of every single day, in the UK.
So no, feminism is not dead, and never will be, whilst these infections linger in our society.
Maybe think about that if you ever listen to a radio debate when someone phones in and talks about feminism being irrelevant, or the fact that there are no struggles to fight any longer for women in the UK.
And maybe wonder why so many people think that, and who is insisting on focusing our minds on the wacky fringe feminism, as opposed to the hugely relevant, vital battles still to fight.
It is something to think about. No, more than that: it is something to act on.
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