Feminism and Politics

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Feminism and Politics

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1PaulaDail
Feb. 10, 2016, 1:13 pm

Do any of you believe feminism has moved beyond Hillary Clinton? There seems to be a growing concern about this, and I'm very interested in the idea...what I fear is that younger women don't quite grasp the need to be forever vigilant around these issues or risk getting steamrolled when they aren't looking... Thoughts??

2southernbooklady
Feb. 10, 2016, 1:26 pm

Can you clarify what you mean by "beyond Hillary Clinton"? Are you asking if having a woman as a serious contender for President there's a perception that feminism has achieved it's purpose? If so, I don't think about feminism like that at all. Feminism is a way of thinking more than a checklist of goals to be achieved. The latter are simply the end effect of the former.

3LolaWalser
Feb. 10, 2016, 2:26 pm

I wonder if part of it isn't something similar to concerns about "post-gay"... in case anyone finds the analogy helpful.

It's not that the "gay" disappeared, but that the topics widened, themes shifted, other problems came into focus... perhaps the best I can do is offer as illustration the society and questions in Alison Bechdel's Post-Dykes to Watch Out For (hyperlink not touchstone). (By the way, Bechdel is throughout a questioning and ironic chronicler of the times, not some sort of "post" ideologue.)

So, are we in a post-feminist age? In one sense, definitely not--as they say, the comments on any article dealing with feminism justify feminism--but in another--especially if Hillary Clinton is taken as a symbol embodying feminism... perhaps yes. Perhaps we are beyond such feminism as embodied in Hillary Clinton, Gloria Steinem etc.

I'm reminded, for instance, of that discussion between Erica Jong and Roxane Gay. Something connects these two women, no doubt, but they also failed to communicate. Gay may very well be post-feminist to Jong's feminist.

4PaulaDail
Feb. 10, 2016, 8:53 pm

I agree that feminism is a perspective, but feminism has traditionally been defined in terms of the right to make one's own choices. Today, unlike the era when Hillary came of age, most women take choice for granted and may not quite grasp what's left to fight for? I'm trying to figure out why she isn't resonating w/younger women, which is curious to me, and I'm wondering what that is saying about where women are today?? Plus, I'm conflicted about her candidacy myself...

PS: Hope I do this right this time...

5Jesse_wiedinmyer
Bearbeitet: Feb. 11, 2016, 2:27 am

One of the interesting themes that I've heard bandied about in think pieces on the subject says that many younger women consider the eventual election of a female president to be all but a given and simply a matter of time. As it's been reported, this has led to a less pressing desire on their part to feel the need to break that particular barrier at any particular time or with one specific candidate, so they're a bit more willing to bide their time and wait for a candidate that they feel aligns more specifically with what they want.

6.Monkey.
Feb. 11, 2016, 4:47 am

Well of course, what kind of idiot votes for someone solely because of their gender?! Any intelligent woman is going to vote for who she believes will support the most/most important issues facing us in the way she views as correct, and if that doesn't happen to be a woman, then too bad. Who would go against their beliefs when dealing with something so important, just because someone has the same genitals?! Ugh. The segment about that on The Daily Show (by Jessica Williams, on the 9th) was very well done, if anyone hasn't seen it and has access to view it, I'd recommend it.

7PaulaDail
Feb. 11, 2016, 9:57 am

Check out Gail Collins' op-ed in today's New York Times (2/11/16). She makes some interesting points abut the question of why women are voting the way they are - and the generation gap.

8LolaWalser
Feb. 11, 2016, 12:14 pm

Article in question: Hillary, Bernie and History

I’ve always generalized that {women} won’t vote for men who yell. However, it appears that is totally inaccurate when the man in question is shouting, “Medicare for all!”


This is what I meant by a moment come too late:

The women who grew up in Clinton’s time thought of a female president as a distant, glorious achievement, like going to the moon. Then the moon landing happened, but they still couldn’t get a car loan in their own names.

It took almost 40 more years before a woman won a major presidential primary. That was, of course, Clinton in 2008 in New Hampshire.


Forty years since the moon landing for a woman to win even a primary in the USA is too damn long...

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