Feminism.... Is that still a thing?

In the last few weeks I had a lot of discussions about feminism. About its implications, the word itself being a kind of slur, and the question whether or not there is even the need for a such a term "feminism" ("It kinda excludes man, don't you think?")

If you asked me two years ago what I understood by the term of "feminism" I would have looked at you with disinterest and probably replied something like "Oh that's this Alice Schwarzer thing; those militant women that make a fuss about nothing."  My path towards a different understanding of feminism(s) started when I first saw Sookee's "One Billion Rising". I was taken aback by this female Berlin-based rap artist who strongly criticizes sexisms and racisms in her songs. Her lyrics started to work in my mind, it changed how I perceived my surrounding and my own position in society. 

 I now know that ideologies operate powerfully in a society or even on a global level precisely because they naturalize themselves. By "naturalizing" I mean that they present themselves as the only possible ideology or say perception of the world (for example concerning bodies, relationships, economy, morality, religion). Let's take for example capitalism: capitalism is an ideology that has emerged as one of many possible economical systems, still it has managed to present itself as the only possible system worldwide that is presumably able to satisfy the needs of the individuals (as consumers) that constitute a society.

The same is true for such an ideology as heteronormativity. Heteronormativity embodies the idea that gender can only be thought of as binary, biologist categories (man-penis and woman-vulva) and that these two sexes (rather than gender) are "naturally" attracted to one another. In this ideology the only "normal" possibility for a woman is to be in love and have sex with a man and vice versa. A heterosexual relationship is therefore considered to be the standard, the "norm", everything else is seen as "unnatural" or even "pathological".  Very often this heteronormativity is also linked to an essentialst, repressive understanding of the social construct "gender", mainly against women* that culminates in mysogony, homo- and transphobia. On a very basic level the gender roles heteronormativity naturalizes imply for women that they are f.ex. the "weaker sex", who belong to the kitchen, who are "better" with children than men, unable of rational thinking and (absurdly enough) to drive cars. No question, such ideas of "what it means to be a woman" are damn scaring and pressuring!!!

And the problem is: these are not only ideas. Oh no, they do come with real-life power. We have parents and teachers telling us how to behave like "a girl" or "a boy". And, oh holy sh*t, we do have media that reflect it back to us again and again. And again. And again. We find ourselves surrounded by media telling us how to fit into gender categories: women's bodies are subjected to a "male gaze", where women are seen as objects that should arouse "male" pleasure (f.ex. sexiness and thinness). Such patriarchal representations of gender culminate in women (and men) being street harassed, in rape culture and slut shaming, only to name some of the effects. 

Racism on a structural as well as individual level very often intersects with heteronormativity. It is another ideology, a system of oppression that shares with heteronormativity a biologist understanding of identity and an objectivication of bodies. And then there is islamophobia. And transphobia. And poverty-shaming. And many other ideologies or powerful systemizations of what is "normal", that often work together in different ways.

Oppression has many faces. And at the same time many people that indirectly benefit from it and therefore consider certain aspects of society as "normal". I think that is why it took me so long to have a different understanding of feminism(s). In my White middle-class bubble I was privileged enough to not see the many shapes oppression takes on and to not acknowledge the many forms of resistance it provokes. Feminism to me is the response to these structures; it is resistance and takes on many different forms. So, I am looking forward to present to you some of my "Favourite Feminists" in the next few weeks.

So, after I just filled your head with terms and terms and concepts. And, hurrah, you made it to the last paragraph. I will therefore release you with this fantastic video of Sarah Jones's - Revolution.

Love to you
xxx