• PRO

    If may address con's first rebuttal. ... And if you use...

    current state of feminism in first-world countries

    If what con stated is true, then that only affirms feminism's necessity. Feminism, as I stated before, is the belief that men and women should be equal. If, as pro stated, women have more priviledges than men, then feminism still needs to exist to combat these injustices. Pro also stated that some feminists do not care about this, and some even want to diminish the rights of men. This is true. I have encountered many feminists with slogans such as "KILL ALL MEN!" or "SEX = RAPE!" In this, my opponent is not a lair by any standards. However, these feminists are simply a small nuisance: a very vocal and very small minority. To liken all feminists to these radical misogynists (I use the term on them because of their nasty habit to ignore other women who disagree with them, and sometimes downright contribute to rape culture.) is a strawman point that I am convicted that every rational person is above, con included. However, while I do believe women have some priviledges men don't, women are still less fortunate in society than men. If may address con's first rebuttal. That the wage gap is because of women's collective bad habit of getting knocked up. This does NOT excuse an employer paying all female employees less. Firstly, not all women get pregnant. Just because they can is no excuse to cut their pay. Next, what happens when they actually get pregnant? Well, unlike what con said, they don't miss work for 9 months. Women can still work far into pregnancy in most fields. Next, when they actually get to the point where they can't work, their job just isn't left to get neglected while they get paid for doing nothing. Their pay is cut while on leave, and a temporary employee is hired on a reduced salary (Usually the rest of what the mother would get paid) to work until the now proud mom is ready to work again. I also feel the need to note that even with this practice, women are still paid less. I respectfully assert, pro, this pay gap is NOT justified. The "problem" has a simple solution which is being ignored in favor of a misogynist and, to be perfectly honest, lazy one. Lastly, I'll deal with con's point that women have more privileges than men. Before I state them, I must clarify one thing: Male privilege is not contraband. You are not a bigot for having privileges. The only reason privileges are at all a problem is because many people don't have them. Men have the privilege to not be considered deviant for persuing a life goal outside of raising a family. Men have the privilege to not be as worried about being raped as women. Men have the privilege of being potrayed in a candid, non-sexualized way in most media. Men have the privilege not to be marginalized or tokenized in any setting. There are many more privileges that are a huge problem in society, but these few are sufficient to serve my point. But we could argue all day about who oppressed who, about who has more privileges, about who's less equal to who, but none of this will change the simple fact: there are inequalities. Inequalities exist. And until all of us are equal, none of us are. The actions of a vocal minority do not invalidate the whole lot. The fact that there are some aspects of life where some people have it worse does not change the fact that other times those same people have it better (And vice versa!). Who has what unfair advantage will never justify that advantage. Pro seems to think that "feminism" is just some dirty work that a bunch of lesbian supremacists cooked up and that a real advocate of gender equality ought not to call themselves that. I say, who cares? Who gives a monticum, of a fraction, of a MOLE of a rat's arse what it's called? The fact is, whatever you call it, whichever genders rights you happen to be currently protecting, whatever reprihensible acts have been comitted under such a false banner, it doesn't matter. As long as you believe men and women should be equal, and you persue this goal peacefully, you will always be a feminist. And if you use feminism like that and only like that, then it will never become obsolete; Because peoples' rights, male or female, are always worth protecting.