Feminism chat for right wingers

But how does that translate to the vast majority of women in the UK? What policies contribute towards equality?

I'd like to join this thread. I am politically homeless but from a Tory background that has been diluted by life in a big city showing me that Home Counties isn't life as other people experience it. Some of the other feminism threads are such a massive deterrent to wider engagement. Reminded me of an under graduate sociology unit I had to take, so many labels, so much jargon. So off putting for people who would otherwise be interested. Thank you OP for a timely thread that I hope can steer away from all that.

I'm on the right mainly, but I do like to look at politics as a whole and would vote elsewhere if I felt strongly enough.

I stand firmly against self I.D. and I won't allow tribal politics to stop me speaking out with my Labour sisters. My peak trans came with the election of L. Madigan, I simply couldn't understand how a male with no real life experience of woman could be appointed woman's officer. It also turned me completely against the Labour party headed by Corbyn. I have never liked his politics much, just too radical for me, but this was the straw that broke the camels back.

I'm now trans peaked on an almost daily basis and have to my great surprise found myself being followed by and following Labour voters on Twitter, and you know what? I'm more than fine with that. This is an issue that goes above party politics/loyalties as it could easily infect out whole society. It probably wouldn't effect me (old and live rural) but it will effect my daughters and grand-daughters.

So, I say I'm with you comrade sister.

Oh, and... I will not be referred to a cis woman, I am simply a woman. (another peak trans moment).

I started reading the thread but after reading a few mind-boggling sweeping generalisations about right wing women I figured that clearly we need to hear more right wing feminist voices.

I am a centre right feminist. As soon as DS is old enough I intend to become more politically active. I think it's my social responsibility. As a conservative I believe in personally giving back to society - rather than expecting the government to do it on my behalf.

Websites like ConservativeWoman terrify me, sometimes I wonder if it's actually a front for a Momentum smear campaign. What worries me even more is that there is no sensible alternative. There is nowhere for people like me to go. I suspect this is because of the enormous amount of bullying usually propagated by hard left men. Ive often wanted to put something on Facebook and chosen not to for fear of abuse or negatively affecting my career. Occasionally I've felt the same on here.

It's interesting how many people don't see Theresa May as a feminist. Scratch the surface of virtually any conservative female politician and you'll find Women2Win were involved.

I could go on and on but I've got to go swimming. Hopefully more right wing feminists will come on the thread and we can start the conversation properly. Thanks so much for this OP. We need a safe space as much as anyone!

The thing about the Tories having had two women leaders to no Labour ones is interesting. Two things strike me.

It is beyond shocking that Labour has never had a woman leader. No two ways about it. Outrageous.

However. I don’t think that the Tories have the advantage here in anything but numbers. Margret Thatcher was never intended by the party grandees to be Prime Minister. They were expecting her to be an interim, puppet leader. As we now know, that was a catastrophic misjudgment. And I would put money on Theresa May not still being party leader if the party had not been in disarray. The male candidates wanted a sacrificial candidate so when she was perceived to have screwed up one of them could step in to save the day. The fact that she is still there is proof that none of the men want the poisoned chalice.

So not feminism but expediency. Not sure if that’s better or worse than Labour’s straight open misogyny.....,

LeslieKnopefan
Hope you feel better soon

It's a great thread, thanks for starting it

It's strange because I consider myself left wing but actually see myself more and more aligned with Tory policies (wouldn't consider Tory right wing as so many connotations of extreme right wing)

For example - I consider myself a radical feminist.

As part of that radical feminism I am devoutly anti-abortion - seeing this as yet another male tool to usurp female creativity

I am pro SAHM and against shared maternity leave. I would pay stay at home parents £60,000 basic

I am anti self id

I am pro giving sex workers full rights while acknowledging that prostitution is another symptom of male sexual and economic oppression

I am anti censorship & would not ban porn while realising that porn degenerates the amazing cultural and aesthetic gifts of film and photography and again puts women in a position of economic and sexual inferiority to men

I love gender play in arts particularly drag, intelligent cabaret burlesque and panto as the most modern equivalent of commedia del'arte

I respect the wishes of all to disagree with me and debate

I realise my feminism is filtered through a prism of my own experiences as a woman in my own individual space in time and place and culture.

But where does this leave me politically?

Thanks for starting this thread OP.

I was born in the mid fifties. When I started work in the early seventies, I was bullied persuaded to join the union - union subs were therefore taken directly from my (not as much as the males on the same grade got) pay.

I absolutely dreaded union ‘meetings’ where you were barked at by the union leaders. The smell of agression was palpable and I always felt unsafe. I was surrounded by people who were apparantly ‘socialists’ - they were by and large racist, mysoginistic homophobes. These people were not people that I wanted to associate with.

I’ve never really understood ‘wing’ politics. I don’t know where it came from and how some ideas are seen as right or left. For example, racism is seen as a far right position, but the most racist people I ever encountered were/are on the ‘left’. I’m pretty sure that much of the appalling grief that Diane Abbott gets is from her own side.

Because of my early experiences I’ve never voted Labour, although I’ve admired many individual Labour politicians (but definitely not Tony Blair - who has something of the slime about him). I’ve in the past voted Tory, Lib/Dem and Green, but for the last couple of decades I’ve been voting for independants.

Like others on this thread I’m state light, slightly right on economic matters and slightly left on social matters.

I’ve read elsewhere on these boards that the Whigs are poised to regenerate themselves, but are waiting for Brexit to be over. The SDPs are another potential new way, but they seem to be only active in the Sheffield area. No idea what their positions are on self id.

I am not sure if I am quite who you are after op, as I am (depending on the perspective) centre left on most issues. For example I am to the left of the current and previous government when it comes to the economy.

But, even before momentum, I always felt like I had more in common with the centre right than the far left.
One of the things that makes me feel the most sad about the current political situation at the moment is the polarisation; the centre ground isn't being well represented and nuance seems to be eschewed in favour of shouting insults. Or maybe politics has always been this bad and I've only just noticed it!

I don't see a conflict in being both right wing and feminist. I do consider the views espoused by many on the far right to be incompatible with even a very broad definition of feminism, but that is the extreme end. I have had conversations with those more right wing than me where we broadly agree on what "fairness" looks like, but disagree on how to achieve it.

JaimesGoldenHand post is spot on in my experience about what many think of the Trans issue:

I suspect that that many right wingers fall into one of the following categories:

- trans what? Never heard of this. Sounds like a load of rubbish. File with other PC gone mad stuff like equal rights (eye roll)

- hahahahaha. This isn't serious and will never go anywhere so we can ignore it

- doesn't affect me

- sounds bad but I don't care enough to stick my head over the parapet

- bloody hell women are always banging on about something

Ta assassinated

I was coming up with delectable

Which didnt sound right at all

LassWiTheDelicateAir I think.

What was her full name?

Lass with the what?

Yeah same here Quentin

I've not seem her for ages rufus I think she's gone. Hope she's ok

No education is absolutely not wasted didnt mean that at all.

Where is lass?

LLLAAAASSSSSSSS!!!!!!

InfiniteSheldon Sorry, do you mean that the education is wasted or are you agreeing with my comment? I can quite imagine that Blair did nothing for women in your position. Single working parents get shafted by government after government. And society in general TBH.

'I'm not on the right, but when I was a SAHP I drew comfort from some conservative politicians because they didn't dismiss or belittle that contribution to society in the way that the left did. I know that their motivation for this probably didn't match mine but it was appreciated. I was crushed when a Labour woman in government said that SAHMs wasted the money spent on our education and should get out to work.
Absolutely,vas a working single parent i really suffered under Blair whilst my non working friends prospered whilst i disagree with many Tory policies i like the rational behind them better than Labour. I'm probably a natural Liberal voter but they've severely blown it. We need the trans debate to include all of the political spectrum and sometimes the Left week to exclude anyone who disagrees. The poster upthread who said except UKIP obviously exemplifies that position of vote like me or you're a kitten killer and we need to avoid that and act together.

They often had very opposing views but on this issue, they could set aside their differences and work together. And actually that probably terrifies both left and right men.

Yes. It will give us a strong foundation to fight self ID if we can do this.

This thread makes me think of Beachcomber and LassWiTheDelicateAir on prostitution threads. They often had very opposing views but on this issue, they could set aside their differences and work together. And actually that probably terrifies both left and right men.

I'm a Remainer first, feminist second, and LibDem distant third. So wouldn't describe myself as right wing by a long way and suspect we'd disagree about a lot, but women's issues should transcend traditional party lines. And also I feel very let down by the wishy washy crappy way my party are dealing with the whole trans/GRA question. Glad you started this thread.

I'm not affiliated with any political party, but somewhat right/libertarian leaning. I like the way some recent issues like the trans debate have united women/feminists across the political divide.

I have questioned whether I can call myself a feminist. The main sticking point is the one people have touched on above - biology is unequal when it comes to parenting, and aside from the very wealthy/highly paid few, mothers are stuck with the choice of depending on a man or depending on the state. Neither seems ideal. I've not found any neat solution or easy way of reconciling my views, but will be continuing to listen and think.

I sometimes wonder if there's a possible radical feminist 'third way' (for want of a better phrase!).

Tories certainly don't value SAHP. Remember when Ian Duncan Smith was in charge of welfare? He basically said SAHMs were economically worthless and wanted to get them into the workplace, where they would generate two incomes - their own and the child minder's!