Fear Of Feminism

Have No Fear, Equality is Almost Here!

It should not come as a surprise that feminism is not exactly a “hot topic” of conversation for young women such as myself in this day and age. In fact, I have always considered the phrase, “feminist”, to be a negative connotation; at least I did before I took this class. Is this because I did not know what it meant to be a feminist? Or is it because every time I was exposed to the topic in the past, it was always pertaining to a group of radicals that would come across as overly assertive and aggressive in their efforts? If a majority of young women grew up with a similar experience to mine, how could we not be afraid of becoming a feminist? In the article, “Fear of Feminism: Why Young Women Get
Lisa Hogeland recognizes that young women are not ungrateful for all of their efforts, but rather we are scared of joining the feminist movement in fears of changing how we would view our outlook on life, and also, how people would view us. A particular example that Hogeland brought to light was homophobia. She states, “Allying across differences is difficult work, and is often thwarted by homophobia—by fears both of lesbians and of being named a lesbian by association” (Hogeland 656). She goes on to describe that young women are given such a small range for exploration and discovery when growing up in society that we become unaware of all of the alternative pathways that are available for us in our futures. We believe that to achieve success and happiness in our lives means to grow up, find the “perfect catch,” marry him, have kids, and live happily ever after. How can we accomplish this aspiration in life and live happily ever after if our “perfect catches” think we are lesbians simply because we are
After all, how can you fight for something that you do not fully understand? It is not just about reading and listening to other feminists. Being a feminist is not as simple as calling yourself a feminist. You must work for it and take your mind places they have never been before, which is asking a lot from young women today. A lot of people in the U.S shy away from hard work and fear becoming involved in something as time demanding and ruthless as the feminism movement. Not only must you be knowledgeable on the subject of feminism and change the way you view the world, but also you must become an activist and do something about it. Simply being aware and knowledgeable of an issue does not solve it—in fact, it is just the beginning—the hardest part is the fight and raising awareness of the issue, because only then can it be resolved. Most people, especially younger women who are in the prime of their lives, find that much responsibility and accountability can be terrifying. Hogeland goes on to explain that in order for you to make a change, you must understand the differences amongst people. It does not consist of solely understanding how inequality holds you in particular back, but understanding how inequality affects different races, cultures, and women all over the world. Simply put, “The differences between women, as Audre Lorde pointed out over and over again, are our