Looking for Feminist Friends

Again for those still reading and willing to listen, patriarchy isn't a conspiracy theory where men sit in a room and devise ways to oppress women. Patriarchy is a system that through history has given advantages or privileges to those who haven't necessarily earned it, in this case usually men and generally those who are white and straight. Think of it more as a leaning in one's favor kind of system. There is a built in favoritism towards men in our society, and in most societies. It doesn't make all men right or wrong. It just means our system is unequal, and feminism acknowledges this and strives to correct the imbalance. We aren't trying to take away men's rights, we're trying to give more rights to those who don't have them.

word.

Again for those still reading and willing to listen, patriarchy isn't a conspiracy theory where men sit in a room and devise ways to oppress women. Patriarchy is a system that through history has given advantages or privileges to those who haven't necessarily earned it, in this case usually men and generally those who are white and straight. Think of it more as a leaning in one's favor kind of system. There is a built in favoritism towards men in our society, and in most societies. It doesn't make all men right or wrong. It just means our system is unequal, and feminism acknowledges this and strives to correct the imbalance. We aren't trying to take away men's rights, we're trying to give more rights to those who don't have them.

I've been a member of MFP since December 2011 and have had a pretty mixed experience. I have made some great friends here, but when I come to the message boards I often get discouraged. I see a lot of jokes about sexual and domestic violence, anti-gay comments, comments objectifying women, etc. It's pretty discouraging.

I'm looking for some feminist/progressive friends on MFP! I'm always thinking about how to balance my weight loss goals with a feminist rejection of fat hatred and body shaming. It's hard to want a thin body while rejecting patriarchal standards of beauty - it's a daily struggle for me.

I'd love to find some friends and create a community where we can motivate, follow, and support each other while holding ourselves and each other accountable as feminists!

I guess I'm a "Feminist", I'm definitely a Lesbian, but I sure don't believe in the BIG Beautiful Movement! Rejecting "patriarchal" standards of beauty is cool if there is such a standard...Men would MUCH rather a woman with "a bit of flesh" rather than a bone, history shows us that. ACTUALLY, Gay men have set the standard for female beauty and style for the last 50 years!!! Remember, it began with Twiggy...Straight men really Love Marilyn Monroe, Jane Russell types. But Gay men run the fashion Industry and they were coming into their own relative to power, so they designed for what THEY like, Flat chested, no hip women that look like 14 year old boys>>>hence Twiggy and what we see now!

So I'm all for progress, but I'm all for Truth, feminist or not.

I've been a member of MFP since December 2011 and have had a pretty mixed experience. I have made some great friends here, but when I come to the message boards I often get discouraged. I see a lot of jokes about sexual and domestic violence, anti-gay comments, comments objectifying women, etc. It's pretty discouraging.

I'm looking for some feminist/progressive friends on MFP! I'm always thinking about how to balance my weight loss goals with a feminist rejection of fat hatred and body shaming. It's hard to want a thin body while rejecting patriarchal standards of beauty - it's a daily struggle for me.

I'd love to find some friends and create a community where we can motivate, follow, and support each other while holding ourselves and each other accountable as feminists!

I guess I'm a "Feminist", I'm definitely a Lesbian, but I sure don't believe in the BIG Beautiful Movement! Rejecting "patriarchal" standards of beauty is cool if there is such a standard...Men would MUCH rather a woman with "a bit of flesh" rather than a bone, history shows us that. ACTUALLY, Gay men have set the standard for female beauty and style for the last 50 years!!! Remember, it began with Twiggy...Straight men really Love Marilyn Monroe, Jane Russell types. But Gay men run the fashion Industry and they were coming into their own relative to power, so they designed for what THEY like, Flat chested, no hip women that look like 14 year old boys>>>hence Twiggy and what we see now!

So I'm all for progress, but I'm all for Truth, feminist or not.

I've been a member of MFP since December 2011 and have had a pretty mixed experience. I have made some great friends here, but when I come to the message boards I often get discouraged. I see a lot of jokes about sexual and domestic violence, anti-gay comments, comments objectifying women, etc. It's pretty discouraging.

I'm looking for some feminist/progressive friends on MFP! I'm always thinking about how to balance my weight loss goals with a feminist rejection of fat hatred and body shaming. It's hard to want a thin body while rejecting patriarchal standards of beauty - it's a daily struggle for me.

I'd love to find some friends and create a community where we can motivate, follow, and support each other while holding ourselves and each other accountable as feminists!

I guess I'm a "Feminist", I'm definitely a Lesbian, but I sure don't believe in the BIG Beautiful Movement! Rejecting "patriarchal" standards of beauty is cool if there is such a standard...Men would MUCH rather a woman with "a bit of flesh" rather than a bone, history shows us that. ACTUALLY, Gay men have set the standard for female beauty and style for the last 50 years!!! Remember, it began with Twiggy...Straight men really Love Marilyn Monroe, Jane Russell types. But Gay men run the fashion Industry and they were coming into their own relative to power, so they designed for what THEY like, Flat chested, no hip women that look like 14 year old boys>>>hence Twiggy and what we see now!

So I'm all for progress, but I'm all for Truth, feminist or not.

Please don't be offended (I don't think you will), but I could kiss you for that.

THAT, is what I believe in as 'feminism'.

I've been a member of MFP since December 2011 and have had a pretty mixed experience. I have made some great friends here, but when I come to the message boards I often get discouraged. I see a lot of jokes about sexual and domestic violence, anti-gay comments, comments objectifying women, etc. It's pretty discouraging.

I'm looking for some feminist/progressive friends on MFP! I'm always thinking about how to balance my weight loss goals with a feminist rejection of fat hatred and body shaming. It's hard to want a thin body while rejecting patriarchal standards of beauty - it's a daily struggle for me.

I'd love to find some friends and create a community where we can motivate, follow, and support each other while holding ourselves and each other accountable as feminists!

I guess I'm a "Feminist", I'm definitely a Lesbian, but I sure don't believe in the BIG Beautiful Movement! Rejecting "patriarchal" standards of beauty is cool if there is such a standard...Men would MUCH rather a woman with "a bit of flesh" rather than a bone, history shows us that. ACTUALLY, Gay men have set the standard for female beauty and style for the last 50 years!!! Remember, it began with Twiggy...Straight men really Love Marilyn Monroe, Jane Russell types. But Gay men run the fashion Industry and they were coming into their own relative to power, so they designed for what THEY like, Flat chested, no hip women that look like 14 year old boys>>>hence Twiggy and what we see now!

So I'm all for progress, but I'm all for Truth, feminist or not.

Okay... "Men would much rather...". That's just playing in to patriarchal beauty standards. All bodies are good bodies. Fat, thin, and in between.
And seriously, blaming stuff on gay men also comes off as kind of homophobic.

I love men, but I don't think they're that smart :laugh:

(No offense, y'all)

No offence taken, we're not that smart!

Again for those still reading and willing to listen, patriarchy isn't a conspiracy theory where men sit in a room and devise ways to oppress women. Patriarchy is a system that through history has given advantages or privileges to those who haven't necessarily earned it, in this case usually men and generally those who are white and straight. Think of it more as a leaning in one's favor kind of system. There is a built in favoritism towards men in our society, and in most societies. It doesn't make all men right or wrong. It just means our system is unequal, and feminism acknowledges this and strives to correct the imbalance. We aren't trying to take away men's rights, we're trying to give more rights to those who don't have them.

Then stop treating us all as if we're wrong, just because we're not of your gender, and don't bow down to your belief system.

Seems pretty easy to me.

I've been a member of MFP since December 2011 and have had a pretty mixed experience. I have made some great friends here, but when I come to the message boards I often get discouraged. I see a lot of jokes about sexual and domestic violence, anti-gay comments, comments objectifying women, etc. It's pretty discouraging.

I'm looking for some feminist/progressive friends on MFP! I'm always thinking about how to balance my weight loss goals with a feminist rejection of fat hatred and body shaming. It's hard to want a thin body while rejecting patriarchal standards of beauty - it's a daily struggle for me.

I'd love to find some friends and create a community where we can motivate, follow, and support each other while holding ourselves and each other accountable as feminists!

I guess I'm a "Feminist", I'm definitely a Lesbian, but I sure don't believe in the BIG Beautiful Movement! Rejecting "patriarchal" standards of beauty is cool if there is such a standard...Men would MUCH rather a woman with "a bit of flesh" rather than a bone, history shows us that. ACTUALLY, Gay men have set the standard for female beauty and style for the last 50 years!!! Remember, it began with Twiggy...Straight men really Love Marilyn Monroe, Jane Russell types. But Gay men run the fashion Industry and they were coming into their own relative to power, so they designed for what THEY like, Flat chested, no hip women that look like 14 year old boys>>>hence Twiggy and what we see now!

So I'm all for progress, but I'm all for Truth, feminist or not.

Okay... "Men would much rather...". That's just playing in to patriarchal beauty standards. All bodies are good bodies. Fat, thin, and in between.
And seriously, blaming stuff on gay men also comes off as kind of homophobic.

SHE'S A LESBIAN!!!

And second, you're 100% wrong, not ALL bodies are good, unhealthy bodies, when they can be healthy bodies...are bad.

Just setting you straight...which I'm sure will piss you off to no end.

Again for those still reading and willing to listen, patriarchy isn't a conspiracy theory where men sit in a room and devise ways to oppress women. Patriarchy is a system that through history has given advantages or privileges to those who haven't necessarily earned it, in this case usually men and generally those who are white and straight. Think of it more as a leaning in one's favor kind of system. There is a built in favoritism towards men in our society, and in most societies. It doesn't make all men right or wrong. It just means our system is unequal, and feminism acknowledges this and strives to correct the imbalance. We aren't trying to take away men's rights, we're trying to give more rights to those who don't have them.

Ok...so what right's don't we, as women, have? I can't think of a single thing that men are allowed to do that I'm not. Maybe certain people have prejudices against women, but that's not the same thing as us not having certain rights.

how about the fact that women who hold the exact same jobs as men don't get paid as much as their male counterparts?

Maybe they don't do it as well.

how about the fact that women who hold the exact same jobs as men don't get paid as much as their male counterparts?

how about the fact that women who hold the exact same jobs as men don't get paid as much as their male counterparts?

They do in my office. And I will fight tooth and nail to ensure equal rights and no form of discrimination happens while I'm here.

how about the fact that women who hold the exact same jobs as men don't get paid as much as their male counterparts?

They do in my office. And I will fight tooth and nail to ensure equal rights and no form of discrimination happens while I'm here.

"Feminism has fought no wars. It has killed no opponents. It has set up no concentration camps, starved no enemies, practiced no cruelties. Its battles have been for education, for the vote, for better working conditions.. for safety on the streets... for child care, for social welfare...for rape crisis centers, women's refuges, reforms in the law." (If someone says) 'Oh, I'm not a feminist,' (I ask) 'Why? What's your problem?'" - Dale Spender, author of For the Record: The Making & Meaning of Feminist Knowledge, 1985

Is this quite accurate, though?

I think this quote adequately describes what feminism has done to American society and the opinion of women who stay at home in this day and age:

"Of course, much of the world would agree that being a housekeeper is acceptable as long as you are not caring for your own home; treating men with attentive devotion would also be right as long as the man is the boss in the office and not your husband; caring for children would even be deemed heroic service for which presidential awards could be given as long as the children are someone else's and not your own. " Mrs. Dorothy Patterson

Simone de Beauvoir, a French Feminist said:

"No woman should be authorized to stay at home and raise her children. Society should be totally different. Women should not have the choice, precisely because if there is such a choice, too many women will make that one.

And American critic and memoirist Vivian Gornick said:

Being a housewife is an illegitimate profession... The choice to serve and be protected and plan towards being a family-maker is a choice that shouldn't be. The heart of radical feminism is to change that."

It seems to me the war feminists have waged is on family. It may have had some use when it first began but what good is it doing now? Statistically, our kids are running amok because there is never anyone home-everyone is out at work. Gang membership is rising, crime is getting worse, drop out rates are rising-and when I show up at my kids' school I hardly ever see other parents there-they are all at work.

I'm not bashing anyone who legitimately has to work to support their family, I know those circumstances happen-but I personally believe the rise in teenage trouble-and the higher prison population, has a direct correlation to the fact that nobody is at home raising their children...back in the day, our mothers were home, they were there for us-they didn't have to schedule us in between meetings and other commitments-family was sacred. Nowadays the government feels the need to pass more and more laws that should have been left to the parent-but too many parents aren't doing their jobs properly so the government feels it has to step in and parent our children as well. As one of the few SAHMs in my neighborhood it saddens me how many children/teens come to me with their problems because their parents are constantly unavailable. Often, people would rather have a good income, large house, fancy cars and electronic gadgets-and they sacrifice time with family to work long hours and attain those things. I really feel that if more families decided to sacrifice keeping up with the Joneses, make a few budget cuts, and make family a priority again, things would change. It would take time, but it would be a good thing.