Fake Feminism

Let’s take this step by step. Let’s start with “what is feminism”? When a woman desires to be a capable, strong individual with equal rights, opportunities, and freedom as a man, it is called ‘Feminism.’

It means the liberation of women, in which women are given the rights to education, freedom of their own choice of career, not forced into marriage, and not being obligated to work inside the house.

As a strong and capable woman, it means that I am not inferior OR SUPERIOR to any male counterparts.

Here is where it gets a little complicated. 

What if you (a woman) and another man have the same opportunities. But, because you’re smarter and better, you become more successful. In that sense, you are a superior woman. But that does not mean you can bring other women or men down.

So What Is ‘Fake Feminism’?

This is when the idea of feminism is misinterpreted and twisted in order to serve one’s purpose. Fake feminism: when one claims to be a feminist and ignores the prevailing point of feminism; equality.

We believe in the liberty and equality of women. What creates this idea of ‘fake feminism’ are specific actions people do in the name of feminism that doesn’t match equality’s goal.

We have all encountered fake feminists. Nowadays, being a feminist has become mainstream culture. It is viewed as something’ cool’ or something that makes you better and more of a forward thinker than anyone else.

The Beginning – First Wave Feminism:

Let’s talk a little about how it all started. The Suffrage movement happened during World War One and included overcoming complex political challenges, such as the right to vote.

The outcome of this movement was that women started to be seen as capable of making decisions and working hard.

Women started to gain importance during that time. Since the men were at war, people were needed to provide for the families they left behind.

So, women took the step and started working at factories and doing the ‘manly’ labor-heavy jobs. This was the first wave of feminism when women gained political rights.

Second Wave

The second wave of feminism happened between 1960-1980. This wave primarily focused on sexuality, family, and reproductive rights. But the most important thing women were fighting for in this was the idea of equality.

Third Wave

This is still being fought for. The third wave consisted of fighting to remove biases against women in the workplace, slut shaming, victim-blaming, body image issues, and mental health. Around the third wave, we also started to see the rise of some radical feminists. Here is where you can read about the different types of feminists: https://www.redletterpress.org/feminism101.html

Achieving Equality:

Each country’s socio-economic level is different; therefore, every country in the world is at a different developmental stage right now. How much they can focus on issues like feminism depends on the socio-economic level.

This goes hand in hand with the education provided in certain countries because the predominant way to make a long-term change is to weave it into the school curriculum from a young age. Hence, children understand these issues and prevent them when they grow up.

Last Words

It is no secret that women have struggled to build their caliber over the past decades. The main point of feminism is to ensure equality for both genders.

No matter how much of a feminist you are, you need to lift up women instead of putting the men down. That is not called achieving equality.

Image Courtesy: Photo by Samantha Sophia on Unsplash