Long thread on my feelings about the SpaceX launch. I find it really really hard to be excited about the launch, which pains me because it is such an amazing achievement. But, like it or not, everyone excited about the launch is ultimately advancing anti-feminism. Here goes...

I was never really really into space travel as a kid (I was into dinosaurs big time) but growing up a nerd, it was a thing that was interesting somehow. Recently though, I read different books where space travel plays a big role

especially the scientific part of it. First the Martian, then Artemis (also by Andy Weir) and finally the Lady Astronaut series by @MaryRobinette. Artemis is great, but especially the works by Robinette are distinctly feminist, they feature strong female leads, and talk about the

role of women in space. They cover stereotypes of physical strength, mathematical abilities, and also cover race as complicating factor, the white lead realizes she has privilege too. Those works made me optimistic, they are set in an alternate reality where

space travel started earlier and was more advance, and included women quite early on. I was like: "it could happen here too!" Of course, I should have known after 2016 that any optimism regarding the advancement of feminism are idle fantasies. Moving on to today:

In the already complicated history of women in space travel (see: Hidden Figures) now Elon Musk plays the starring role. Already known as a union buster, who wiggled himself into Tesla (little known fact: he is not their founder!), decides that right before this launch would be

an amazing moment moment to come out as a men's rights activist. Excuse me for not being super excited about this. And who get to go on this historical Tesla commercial and/or hommage to Musk himself (ow oops I mean cool space trip)... two white men?

Seeing people I think highly of applaud this launch, but seeing them say nothing about Musk's antifeminism, nothing about the fact that yet another generation of girls and non-white kids will grow up without role models makes me so so sad.

PS don't come at me with "IT iS aBOUt TEchNoLoGy noT FeMiNiSM" If the world's most influential tech guy being an open anti-feminist is not about feminism, I do not know what it.