Read on Twitter
On gatekeeping what is or is not radical feminism:
There are some poor souls operating under the assumption that if you are a heterosexual woman in a relationship with a man and/or pregnant, you can& #39;t be a "radical feminist." This is absurd on multiple fronts.
There are some poor souls operating under the assumption that if you are a heterosexual woman in a relationship with a man and/or pregnant, you can& #39;t be a "radical feminist." This is absurd on multiple fronts.
Radical feminism gets to the root of female oppression, the root being the exploitation of women for their reproductive and sexual labor. Marriage has traditionally been a patriarchal arrangement of ownership over women; lots of feminist thought has rightly critiqued it.
Power imbalance often occurs in het unmarried couples as well. But of course, it IS possible to have a het relationship that is founded on principles of equality: shared domestic & parental labor, equal financial contribution, open communication.
Women have been and continue to be exploited for their sexual labor. But that doesn& #39;t mean it is inherently oppressive for a woman to become a mother. Reproductive healthcare allows women to choose when and how to have children, so that each child is wanted. That is the goal.
Radical feminism has rightfully critiqued compulsory heterosexuality. Sexual orientation is not something one chooses. But just as there are gay women, so too there are straight women.
Women who are het often struggle to find good partners. I was in an extremely (physically & emotionally) abusive relationship for years. I was alone for a long time after that. I wished many times I was not het, that I wasn& #39;t attracted to men. I was afraid of them.
But eventually I met a man who is kind, gentle, and strongly believes in sexual equality. Exploitation, coercion, and abuse are not elements in our relationship. This IS possible. Some of our radical foremothers were also in equal het relationships!
And many of our radical foremothers were mothers. I am joyfully expecting. And I& #39;m angry that medical science knows so little about pregnancy because most studies center the male body. I& #39;m angry that women work throughout pregnancy and immediately after birth, pumping at work
And struggling with post partum depression bc there is little to no support for mothers. There is SO much work to be done. And anyone claiming that heterosexuality is inherently exploitative has missed the point, and is no better than anyone else peddling
Conversion therapy. Anyone advocating against giving birth under any circumstances is someone who has no interest in improving the lives of women.
But these purist views are generally held by young women who suffer from misreading/ selective reading and likely spend far too much time in echo chambers on the internet. These views are not often held by women doing actual organizing and collaborative work.
