Last summer, I wrote an article here at HuffPost, Why the 'Pro-Women' Movement Should and Will Replace Feminism. Sarah Palin had just declared herself a 'conservative feminist,' while endorsing a slew of diverse women candidates and working to get them elected. I found her efforts to get more women into leadership, admirable. The women who apparently own the term "feminist" vehemently disagreed with me. Rather than welcome Palin with a sisterly embrace, they pursued her with machetes of words for daring to utter their sacred "F word."
The vitriolic reaction by the coterie of women who have anointed themselves (some might say, hijacked) the voice of feminism defies both logic and common sense. Put another way, it's simply bad business. A stated goal of feminism is gender equality. Yet, how can feminism get us there while excluding half the gender? Gender equality is impossible to achieve within a framework in which some women are viewed as less worthy, less equal. Until and unless feminism is willing to meaningfully address this incongruity, feminism may be headed for extinction. Feminism will be replaced by the Pro-Women Movement, which is following a simple business ethos: provide the customer with what she wants. And as with most start-up brands, the Pro-Women was spurred by an unfilled need.
The feminists so eager to exclude conservative women from their clique won the battle, Palin backed off; but, sadly, they lost the war. GOP women decided they didn't need to be "feminists" after all. Yesterday, Rep. Michele Bachmann told The Daily Beast that she does not consider herself a feminist, but she is "pro-woman." Last week, Rep. Kristi Noem told Greta Van Susteren (1:50) she too is not a feminist, but is "pro-woman." In fact, Noem took to the House floor with other GOP congresswomen to let women to know that her party is "Pro-Women" and will fight for women on today's women's issues. Noem welcomed all women to join her: a very appealing and positive message which could attract even more women voters in 2012. This after the shocking 16 point migration of women voters to the GOP from 2008 to 2010.
Where did feminism go so terribly wrong?
Post the 2008 presidential election, 20% of women considered themselves feminists. At the same time, there was a historic opportunity to harness the depth of women's anger in the aftermath of Hillary Clinton's and Sarah Palin's campaigns. To rally all women around their awakening to gender bias in the media, in the workplace and in our society generally. Tina Brown challenged: So passe is "feminism" that the bi-partisan woman's activist group New Agenda, formed by Amy Siskind in August after Hillary's defeat, is canvassing for new names to re-invigorate the cause (suggestions gratefully received).
Changing the F-word alone would not save feminism. But changing its framework to be inclusive of all women looking for help would have been fruitful for increasing participation in feminism. Legions of women were stark raving mad at the biased treatment Clinton and Palin received not only in the media, but also from the boys' club establishment in the DNC and RNC. Women's anger and passion for change provided fertile ground for social change. Palin supporters took the opportunity to act out their outrage by becoming activists in the Tea Party Movement and bucking the establishment. As so, 2010 became The Year of GOP Women, with a possible follow up bang in 2012 with a female GOP candidate for president. As Chris Matthews (of all people) noted: Rep. Bachmann is going to make a real bang in this coming election season... Bet on the pitchforks to take it from the country clubbers. Those pitchforks are Pro-Women.
And what of Clinton supporters? The legions of women who felt they no longer had a home in their party. Among Clinton supporters, there was a rather widely held view that women's group (and many feminist) were either ineffectual or complicit in Clinton's demise, preferring candidate Obama. The women claiming the mantle of feminism did little to heal these wounds, excoriating Clinton supporters for their criticism of President Obama. One particularly spiteful Obama supporting feminist coined the term "Clinton dead-enders" for those loyal to Clinton, leading the charge for more Clinton supporter bashing and exclusion.
Since most Clinton supporters were silenced and had no means to act out, they chose instead to act in. More like a raft afloat. Each wave washing them further from political ideology. 2010 was the first year since exit polling was taken that women went GOP. But a closer peek,reveals a truth: Women, 60 and over, the largest and most reliable voting block, shifted from +6 D in 2008 to +12 R in 2010. The second largest voting block, Women, 45-59 went from +10 D in 2008, to tie. These are Hillary's women.
There is one place that is making a home for all women, and that is the Pro-Women Movement. It's last call for feminism: go inclusive or go extinct!
Follow Amy Siskind on Twitter: www.twitter.com/AmyTheNewAgenda
Marie Griffith: The New Evangelical Feminism Of Bachmann And Palin
Palin and Bachmann want PP gone, while democrats and centrist republicans like Lisa Murkowski are fighting for poor women to have access to affordable healthcare through Planned Parenthood. It's just a difference in political beliefs. It's okay for women to have differences of opinion.
Where does The New Agenda stand? I look at your blog and notice that Planned Parenthood isn't covered at all.
It goes back to why should I pay for your political beliefs? If PP only did the non abortion services, not many people would be against federal money going to PP.
How does this not make them feminist? don't understand how feminist can be so selective on who is supported and who they oppose?
I'm sure there are plenty of conservative women that believe in the feminist movement, but their voices get drowned out by the rest of the neocons.
His name is Glenn Beck, his last show was yesterday wasn't it?
Otherwise, based on the need to be for abortion and Planned Parenthood, Liberalism.
If that is the case feminism is dead.......mainly because of narrow minded thinking and a lack of class.
By defining equality and social justice in terms of unfettered abortion rights, old-line feminists purchased their sexual freedom at the cost of traditional morals and human decency. Many women are unsatisfied with that approach and are searching for new kinds of self-identity and self-fulfillment. Many old-line feminists can't forgive them.
The law of the land is everyone's business.
Excellent article. Well done.
As I understand it, feminists are defined by their striving for equal opportunity for women, whereas women who use what has been achieved of equal opportunity doesn't automatically qualify as being feminists. Also, conservative ideology has trough history been and remains in some aspects the arch enemy to women's striving for equal opportunity, thus the idea of a 'conservative feminist' strikes me as something of an oxymoron.
"A stated goal of feminism is gender equality. Yet, how can feminism get us there while excluding half the gender? Gender equality is impossible to achieve within a framework in which some women are viewed as less worthy, less equal. "
Firstly, I think that equal opportunity for women should among else mean a social climate in which women can feel fully free to express whatever negative perceptions they may have about other women's opinions, without being scolded for not being solidary to women's interests.
Moreover, work towards achieving profound societal change is a process that history shows tends to arouse plenty of divisiveness. Feminism is a radicalism, thus it's divisive. I regard it as only natural that what feminism has produced of change over the course of time is generally much more well-liked by the many than the movement itself - to accept that feminism is divisive seems to me to be the only realistic stance.
~Signed, a disaffected Clinton Supporter, & registered Democrat (until I change my registration later this month so I can vote for Bahcmann. Suckers.)
This is the problem: what they think "she" wants instead of what "she" needs which is affordable health care, pro-parenting programs like paid maternity and paternity leave and affordable day care, a living wage for men and women, safe food and drugs for everyone, etc.
What the conservative women politicians constantly display is horizontal hostility towards othe women in wanting to limit choices on all aspects of other women's lives. When Phyllis Schafley and her Pink Ladies worked so hard to defeat the ERA, they hammered on women's roles as mothers and homemakers yet Schafley was a career woman who lived the very choice she was disparaging. These women are not humanists like so many feminists are; they put themselves a cut above other women and above the fray of all the things that women need not only for themselves but for their families and men.
Man, this is one telling post.