Last year a friend of mine suggested that prostitution was analogous to the domestic service industry, arguing that poor pay and conditions and trafficking can be an issue in both sectors and as such, feminists should be campaigning to decriminalise prostitution and improve conditions for sex workers. I had recently attended the first Women’s Conference…
Category: feminism
Beyond the Binary
As a feminist I spend an inordinate amount of time thinking about gender. I have generally seen gender as an oppressive social construct that tries to put us in neat little pink and blue boxes. So, you like lipstick and dresses and hair extensions, you must belong over here with the girls, and you like…
The Power of the Feminist Lens
I got into an argument online this week with an old friend of mine. He is an intelligent and thoughtful man who I considered to be a feminist ally. He mentioned that he had nearly lost some friends on Facebook after he commented that he felt that class or racial oppression was far worse than gender…
Feminism, empowerment and sexiness.
The hotly debated notion of ’empowerment’ is often conflated with whether something is ‘feminist’ or not. I have had numerous arguments with other women who believe that because they feel ’empowered’ by X (insert activity that would traditionally be seen by feminists as a product of patriarchy), then it is good and therefore feminist. This…
Woman As Subject 