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Feminism: Sex and gender discussions

Terri Strange

60 replies

Delphiniumum · 01/06/2018 01:35

I'm really struggling with her ideas. In theory, I can see where she's coming from, but I'm unsure how they would practically work.

For example, she states it's unfair that women with children take up priority in refugees or homeless spaces over childless women. I'm unsure what we could do to rectify this? One home available and two homeless women - the only difference between them being one has a child and one doesn't, who should take the house? Surely, when we have limited resources, those resources have to be given to the most vulnerable. Would she suggest that the childless woman take the homeless space while the mother and her child stayed in the streets instead? Until we have equal resources for everyone, not prioritising is impossible. Confused

She also thinks that women should stop breeding and instead focus on creating a better more equal society. Again, good in theory, but wouldn't the human race die out if everybody did that? Does she mean that we should reduce the birth rate until this better society has been realised?

She recognised that lesbians and heterosexuals and bisexuals exist, and feel sexual atttaction, but rejects the language of "sexual orientation". She positions herself as "against heterosexuality" and feels women should resist it.

I'm not a radfem, and apparently these are basic rad fem ideas, she says.
Any thoughts and/or help understanding? Pointers in the right direction.

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SomeDyke · 01/06/2018 02:46

From when I was younger, the whole objection to the language of sexual orientation and resisting heterosexuality isn't new. The push for gay rights saw the idea of an innate sexual orientation become the mainstream, but that also carries with it the idea that heterosexuality is also innate (and hence fixed) so cannot be resisted except by abstinence. I personally prefer the view that i'm just luckySmile What's so scary about wondering if sexuality was possibly more flexible, who does it currently serve believing it is not? And why the current focus on popularity of ideas rather than quality or insight they offer?

Battleax · 01/06/2018 02:36

It’d be interesting to know what has informed and shaped her views.

Delphiniumum · 01/06/2018 02:35

Should have said how mainstream/popular those ideas are in Radical Feminism

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Delphiniumum · 01/06/2018 02:33

@Battleax

Thanks for your thoughts. It just made me rethink everything and I had a bit of a crisis thinking I'd been "feminisming wrong" Blush I have listened to many radfems and thought my ideas generally aligned with theirs until I listened to some of Terri's views.

I just wanted to see how popular/mainstream the ideas on resisting heterosexuality and not having children/not prioritising women with children (in situations where that is warranted such as homelessness) really is.

I mean, this is Mumsnet though, I might get an entirely different response if I asked this on a website geared around childless-by-choice women (not that there aren't any on Mumsnet, but the demographic would be more in favour of mothers).

She's definitely a "no bullshit" woman and I admire her tenacity even if I don't agree with her on everything.

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Battleax · 01/06/2018 02:09

I know. I slept much better before youtube. And smartphones. And Mumsnet Smile

Battleax · 01/06/2018 02:08

Wow that’s quite hardline. TBF she does warn at the beginning that it’ll be “a bitchy rant”.

Women are responsible for for “perpetuating the patriarchy”? Of course we are. Sleeping with men is “selling out” and “sleeping with the enemy”. Okay so only lesbianism is acceptable to her. But lesbians “being onseminated by SPERM. That’s gross. That’s a waste of time” doesn’t seem to meet with her approval either.

That’s a pretty small audience she’s appealing to. Even in the second wave, lesbianism by choice (as a political act of rejecting the patriarchy) swept up and included the children.

All I can think is the alternative she wants to “build” is going to be pretty short lived 😏

There’s nothing plausible there to engage with. (And I’m sick to death of that sneery, empty phrase “mummy privilege”.)

Delphiniumum · 01/06/2018 02:00

I know! I was about to go to bed when I stumbled across a tweet of hers which led me down the rabbit hole to her videos. Now I don't feel tired Brew

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Battleax · 01/06/2018 01:52

I just know this isn’t going to help the insomnia Grin

Delphiniumum · 01/06/2018 01:52

@Battleax

That was what I was thinking. It's about child protection, you can't have children living on the streets.

She has a YouTube channel and a Twitter.

Here is a link to the video I watched before I posted here...

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Battleax · 01/06/2018 01:39

For example, she states it's unfair that women with children take up priority in refugees or homeless spaces over childless women. I'm unsure what we could do to rectify this? One home available and two homeless women - the only difference between them being one has a child and one doesn't, who should take the house?

It’s not about a competition between childfree women and mothers. It’s about child protection. It doesn’t need “rectifying”.

Do you have a link? I haven’t seen her work.

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