This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Health & Fitness

The Way We Are(n't)?

Happy Women's History Month. Are We Still Roaring?

March is Women’s History Month.,  Hear it roar. Time once again to ask the
question:  ‘How are WE (women) doing?’


It’s been almost 93 years since women won the right to vote.  50 years since the Equal PayAct.  41 years since  Congress passed the Equal Rights Amendment
(which ultimately failed at the state level). What have we achieved and what have we yet to achieve?   And, are we  united by a common cause?    Or have
we throughout  history been divided by different  goals and beliefs?   Is
there a  Sojourner Truth, Susan B.Anthony. Betty Friedan or Angela Davis in each of us screaming to get out?   Or are each of us bound to each other only because of our gender?   

The Feminist movement was supposed to be a  beacon of hope and change for all women.   Empowering  women to be and do their best—at whatever was
their life’s choice.  Who could argue with that?  In the 1970s,  I wanted to be a teacher—not a doctor or a lawyer or an engineer or an astronaut, or even a politician.  But my  life’s choice seemed  too traditional, even ordinary compared with other Feminists-- out of step with the collective aspirations of women.  As a result, I felt isolated, not empowered.  The  “Borg” definition  of Feminist 
seemed to marginalize women who aspired to traditional female roles as
much as it uplifted  those who aspired  to be CEOs and superwomen.  

Find out what's happening in Miller Place-Rocky Pointwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Of course if I had been born at the turn of the century, being a teacher might have been considered the ultimate feminist choice.   After all, the  early feminist leaders ( the so-called first wave) were concerned about educational equality as well as the right to vote, and what better way to fight for educational equality than by becoming an educator?   The second wave also pursued meaningful cultural and political reforms for women, which resulted in equal pay for equal work.  In  the third wave,  Feminist leaders like Gloria Steinem and Germaine Greer  went a step further—challenging  women to pursue not only the traditionally male dominated professions, but all bastions of maleness. Fine for other women,  I thought, but it just wasn’t my choice.   And at the time, I didn’t see  that the movement was improving my workplace equality, or quality, period.   In fact,  the Movement seemed to be more about Feminists writing books and giving speeches about our  collective victimization and oppression, rather than actually empowering women to succeed.

Ms. Greer wrote in The Female Eunuch  that “women do not realize how much men hate them, and how much they are taught to hate themselves”.  It was a concept that fostered divisiveness, negativity  and misunderstanding not only between men and women, but among women.   I guess I was too busy to notice that cramming my 34A breasts into “bras constructed like mini-Vesuviuses” was a “symbol of male oppression.” Happily, wearing bras and head bands did not turn me into a Stepford wife. Or a man hater.

Find out what's happening in Miller Place-Rocky Pointwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

There are many women throughout history whose accomplishments and character empowered  women of then present and future generations.   And there are women today whose work focuses  not simply on Feminist or gender-based issues, but on solving problems affecting all members ofsociety.  The remarkable achievements of these women  engender success for women in ways that transcend Feminism.

It saddens  me that the movement has evolved into little more than another  special interest group.  So many women are struggling with basic life challenges
--- providing a home, food, clothes, protection, medical care, education  for themselves and their children, while still striving to find their life’s purpose.  Yet 21st century Feminists seem  out of touch with the most urgent needs  of other  women.

One of the newest spokespeople for the Feminist movement, Sandra Fluke, has demanded free contraception,  as if its absence represented a major threat to women’s health.  There are many serious health issues affecting women, and the treatment for these are not free, nor are they funded by society. Maybe we need to examine our priorities, Sandra.  It’s not all about you.  While women’s reproductive rights may be an important issue in the Feminist conversation, it is not the only issue; and should not be presented as the banner of our collective identity.

In spite of the Feminist push to free women from traditional
female stereotypes, many women’s media outlets (e.g.,  Vogue, Cosmopolitan, Essence) continue to advance beauty, makeup, fashion, and relationship issues as "priority" concerns  among women—at least they are presented as the “issues” women want to hear and read about.  Many women in entertainment  also play up to the same stereotypes or make statements that make the rest of us look shallow and silly.   It’s  difficult to take us seriously when the culture we’ve allowed to be created does not.  Clearly, we have some work to do.

So, as we celebrate Women’s History month, let us recognize the women  that represent how we want to be remembered.  What have we learned from them and where will that take us?  We are Women. All roaring aside, we can do better.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?