A Movement for All!
Why men must be included in the Feminist Movement too
I wrote in a previous blog about solidarity and coalition building between women from different cultures and backgrounds, but for this blog, I want to elaborate on the idea of coalition building to reach more than just women. Men can be feminists too. In fact, men should be feminists too! So why are the number of men who participate in the feminist movements so minute? I concur with bell hook’s argument that alienating all men as the “all-powerful, misogynist, oppressor- the enemy” it made men feel unwelcome and isolated from the feminist movement.
While we resent that men hold powerful positions in society, that is the way it is right now and why not use that to our advantage? If we can gain the support of men to join the feminist movement, more change can take place. In this case, can we use the master’s tools to dismantle his house? Can we use patriarchal power to gain more widespread support for women’s movement?
Alienating potential allies is more of a disservice to the women’s movement than it may appear. When you isolate those who may want to join forces with your movement, you make it so all the work is left for the people directly affected by the movement, which makes social change and policy change more challenging. Dr. Carlisle mentions that this is prevalent in the Sex Worker Movement as well; she says that because there are few allies outside of the industry, all the work of fighting for sex worker’s rights falls on the sex workers themselves.
Polarizing people within the feminist movement does not just occur when women polarize potential male allies. It happens to me frequently when my peers who are either women of color, queer, or both speak in class about their disdain for straight, white people. I have sat in one class at UCR where my classmate shouted, “We don’t need those fuckers” in reference to heterosexual, white women. This was disturbing to me for several reasons, but one being that it was extremely counterproductive. By isolating white, straight women from the feminist movement, queer women of color are actually isolating themselves and halting the potential for powerful allies.
So I ask you again, to open your mind to coalition building with people from different backgrounds, different genders, different races. Do this in order to increase the expanse of the movement, in order to increase the potential for an improved society for all people.
