Feminist Friday XVIII: Reverse Sexism
For me this is an easy one; reverse sexism is not okay. Being a feminist for me is about equality and that is for men too. Sure patriarchy means men have had advantages for thousands of years but that doesn't mean they should now be disadvantaged to make up for it. Women and men should be on equal footing, have the same opportunities and equal advantage. I'm raising Blondie Boy to be whomever or whatever he wants to be and to know that any little girls around him can do the same.
I'd never call NotBlondeHusband "Mr Mom" because to me that undermines his role as a father. Being a Father is just as important as being a Mother and saying that a man who does what are considered "traditional" female roles is a "Mr Mom" isn't just reverse sexism, it is straight up sexism as well. Not only are you saying the role of father isn't one of value but you are also playing into the stereotype of a mother's place is in the home.
Does that make sense? Is it just me who thinks this is a no brainer?
Feminist Friday XVIII:
Reverse Sexism
Here's how it works. Write a blog about being a feminist mom, raising a feminist child, a rant or anything that falls under the realm of the theme for the week. Come back and link your post and post the button on your blog.
That's it.
You don't even have to be a blogger to take part - just send me your post and I will publish it on my blog for you. You don't even have to include your name if you prefer.
When you've published it, come back on Friday and via a widget thing you can add a link to your post and share it with everyone. The link remains open for 4 days.
Visit others, comment if you like them or feel inspired by them. Just go out and encourage and support other feminist Moms.
The more support you give, the more you will get back! I can't wait to meet and interact with other feminist moms around the world!
8 comments:
For me reverse sexism is less about the disparaging of men for taking on traditional (albeit patriarchally defined) gender roles (i.e. Mr Mom) than suggesting that they CAN'T do these things BECAUSE they are men.
"Mr Mom" is only offensive if you recognise and accept that the role of "Mom" is hierarchically inferior to other societal roles. It's not. And for me that's the real battle.
It's much worse, and far more insidious reverse sexism, to hold the view that a man cannot be a nurturing parent because of some innate quality women (and only women) posses that makes them the sole gender suited to that role.
PS And I am kinda in favour of positive discrimination if it goes some way to redress the balance in our lamentable employment statistics! Some pundit form the Royal Bank of Scotland (a man) said this week that the huge rise in unemployment wasn't that bad cos it was mainly part-time jobs that were affected. I wonder if he has a clue who does the vast majority of the part-time work in this country? (hint - it aint the men!)
I think it is definitely a tough one. I mean I am all for Title IX and Affirmative Action in the US two measure which help to make up for years of inadequacy but I still don't think others should be disadvantaged. I guess in my ideal world we can fight/break down the patriarchy without fighting/putting down men.
Do we have to use the button on our posts? If so, do you have one that just says "feminist blogger"?
As for your topic... I don't think there's such a thing as reverse sexism. If someone if picking on someone because of their gender, it's sexism. Just because it happens to women more often, doesn't mean it's "reversed" if it happens to guys. Just the same as it's not OK to do it to guys "so they know what it feels like". All sexism is bad and, quite frankly, pointless.
I agree sexism is sexism. I think I just say "reverse" to indicate when it happens to a man. I think a badge redesign might be in order!
Interesting post. I hate any lumping together of people into one category - it's just lazy. I think man bashing has become a lot more acceptable these days and I don't think it's helpful to anyone. Not all men are rubbish at helping around the house or with the kids. A lot of them work hard and come home and then devote themselves to their families. Reverse sexism isn't good for anyone and just makes it more acceptable for men to be sexist back.
Exactly. I have an amazing husband who does WAY more than his fair share.
Sent from my iPad
Exactly. I noticed even in the tween department at stores like Walmart or Target they sell girl T-shirt with man-bashing words on them. Also, teenage girls are allowed to yell or even slap at boys whistle at them, but the world won't accept the other way around, right? Better to respect each other and accept that men and women are indeed complementary different, in my opinion.
Though, of course, now that I'm back to living in Asia again, at least here in Indonesia, women are still happy being women and men being men. I think that't the real feminism! ^_^
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