My feminism is not the same as anyone else’s feminism. My feminism is shaped by my experiences, my upbringing, my education and my ideas. It is not set in stone—it is constantly being molded and reshaped to reflect my new opinions and understandings of my life and the world around me. My specific feminism is in a position of progress. Women such as Beauvoir, Butler and Steinem guide my feminism. I am constantly looking for influence and change.
Myself
My feminism starts from within. It starts from an acceptance of myself. It starts with a belief in my life and everything that goes along with it. It is knowing that though my beliefs are constantly changing, my feminism will never falter. It is pure openness—openness to others and their differing beliefs, to different ways of life, etc. It is free from judgment—me judging others and others judging myself. It is taking chances--never letting fear get the best of me. It is challenging what I know to be truth. Love, Friendship and Family mold it. It is revolving, turning, growing and changing. It is my own.
Others
It is the belief that all human beings should have basic necessities in life. My feminism is a focus on the individual, rather than the collective. It is small-scale. I think that smaller changes will ignite larger changes. I believe in the act of ‘paying-it-forward.’ It starts with a respect for humanity. It is the belief in freedom—freedom from harassment, freedom of speech, freedom of protest, etc. As people living in Canada, we have the luxury of these freedoms. It is, in part, the hope that others will be challenged daily by their ideas and findings, as I am. It is based on respect.
The Rest of the World
I want a world where women feel safe in the streets, where girls have the same opportunities as boys, where saying the word equality is no longer necessary (whether that be for gender, race, sexual orientation, etc). My ideal feminism should start from birth. It should focus on education outside of the classroom, meaning teaching people the values of feminism in their everyday lives. My feminism starts from the inside out. In order to inflict change elsewhere, we must have committed to the change here.
My feminism is my own—it is unlike anyone else’s; it is personal and committed and pure. It is growing.
Erin, your introduction to your manifesto really caught my attention because this is how I feel about my feminism as well, it is a constant shaping and reshaping based on everyday experiences. We all view life from different views, not one solid view. One part of your manifesto I really believe we all need to adopt in life is openness to others and living free of judgement – not many people can say they truly accept taking on a responsibility to others by being open and judgement free. With regards to your feminism relating to others I agree with you in that small individual changes need to occur before large scale changes can be made. We cannot expect great things to come full circle if we do not first take action for our own individual self. Proper education about feminism is truly important but sadly we live in a world full of stubborn people who refuse to change their ways or take the time to learn something beneficial. Your final point was excellent and very true as well – we all grow more and more each day, and this shapes everything that makes us who we are. Your manifesto was awesome overall!
ReplyDeleteErin,
ReplyDeleteAs I was readying your manifesto, I was really inspired when you said that, “My feminism starts from within. It starts from an acceptance of myself.” And I believe it is very important to realize that on your own and be confident to sharing that with all of us, which can definitely be hard thing to do. I could relate a lot to that particular line because when I started studying Women Studies at the University, I had to come to terms what feminism meant to me and it all started with accepting myself and being okay with reshaping my life and not caring what others think.
One of the other points I really believe everyone should live by was when you said, “openness to others and their different beliefs, to different ways of life.” I think that as a society we should not judge anyone no matter how different they are because we have to realize that everyone is the same but believe in different things in life. Everyone has the freedom to live their life any way they want and we have no right to exclude others.
And finally, I really enjoyed the point you made about how your feminism was your own. I believe it is very important to distinguish yourself from others because that is what makes you, you. Your manifesto really inspired me because I too one day hope to help and create a world that is safe for everyone. And all it takes is small steps that will lead to a bigger step. Overall, Awesome manifesto very inspiring.
Erin, I love how confidently you stated that your feminism is your own and is in a state of progress. As I wrote in my manifesto, my views of feminism are not set either; they change as a result of my experience and education. I however, did not state this as confidently as you did. Although, I think that it is important for one’s feminism to be in a state of progress, it often makes me nervous that my feminism is not fully developed. I admire that you accept that your “beliefs are constantly changing” and know that your “feminism will never falter.”
ReplyDeleteI like that you spoke about how your feminism is about openness and accepting others that differ from you. I too, think that it is very important to respect all people, regardless of difference. You also spoke about how your feminism is individual and small-scale in nature. I think that small-scale activism is important in that, if everyone made small changes to their everyday life, society as a whole would see change.
I really enjoyed how you structured your manifesto. I think that it is important to consider your feminism perspective on yourself, others and the world. Acknowledging this will help individuals live all aspects of their lives according to their feminist beliefs.
I also very much enjoyed your manifesto because it is the truth, it does start with an individual effort. It does seem that feminism is an aspect of day to day life and once you get that realization for self-improvement/help, then you want to continue to grow and that it so important. Your manifesto allows women to take responsibility regardless of their circumstances and to go from there- very wise of you to say. It is important to realize the power of your personal feminism because that is a kind of self-awareness that is fundamental to growth and happiness, and so much I find is taken for granted that we do lose ourselves and the sense of who we are.
ReplyDeleteGreat job.