Feminism! Hooray!
Thanks for the debate Mister Man, it has been a pleasure. To finish up, I'm just going
to write a short closing remark rather than readdress the issues we've been going
back and forth over. ---- As I hope I have shown, feminism since its first 'wave' in the late 19th Century through to today is a vibrant and
relevant movement. It is not, as my opponent believes, now unnecessary and nor does
it constitute a demand to gain more rights than that which currently exists for men.
It is a movement that strives for equality and to retain existing gains hard won over
the last century. While society has granted women equal rights under the law, it is
clear that this does not always manifest itself in social, cultural and industrial
spaces. The pay gap remains despite legislation, and claims that the existence of
the pay gap can be explained by individual women's choices rings hollow. Women are
regularly paid less than their male colleagues for the precise same work and hours.
Moreover, the social structures in which we live are gendered. The routes open to women, deemed to be feminine and appropriate for women, are also
socially constructed. Feminism, as a movement, is at the front-line in highlighting culturally damaging gendered
stereotypes that affect both men and women. The feminist movement also highlight other
issues such as the objectification of women and the negative influence of that on
the lives of women not only in the United States of America, but world wide. The feminist
movement is also on the front lines in combatting forms of violence that predominantly
effect women and, as a side effect, cause considerable financial damage to the state
as it attempts to pick up the pieces. My opponent quite correctly notes that much
headway has been made in these arenas. However, this is not, as he believes, a sign
that we, as a society, should drop feminism or that we should move ahead into a post-feminist world: First, the work is yet to
be completed as I believe I have demonstrated with ample evidence over the course
of this debate. Second, just because progress has been made does not mean that it
is time to take our collective feet from the metaphorical gas peddle. If we drop feminism this opens up a window of opportunity for the forces of reaction. Already, as again
I have demonstrated, various groups and individuals have striven and continue to strive
to set us back as a society when it comes to gender issues - be it in the name of
religion or cultural conservatism. A healthy feminist movement identifies and combats
these malignant social forces. Third, my opponent argues that feminism is problematic because it ignores issues which affect men. I disagree. While women's
issues are indeed at the heart of the feminist cause, it is not the case that feminists
do not champion wider causes for general equality. feminists were centre stage in
the Civil Rights movement; they were centre stage in the peace campaigns of the 20th
Century (I've just been reading a fascinating book called 'Pioneers for Peace' about
the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom); and have campaigned more
generally on issues of sexual, racial, and social equality, and they continue to do
so today. Ultimately, I believe in the continued need for feminism because what Shirley Chisholm, the first African American woman to be elected as
a member of the US House of Representatives, believed back in the 1970s was true then
and remains true today: "The emotional, sexual, and psychological stereotyping of
females begins when the doctor says, 'It's a girl.'" - Shirley Chisholm [1] [1] Walter
B. Hoard, Anthology: Quotations and Sayings of People of Color (1973), p. 36. Feminism is just one branch of a wider desire for progressive social change, necessary to
bring about an equable society.
Pro vs. con view
Topic space view
