What's your approach to learning about feminism?

I grew up thinking feminism was an ugly word. I thought they were all lesbian baby-killers.

But one of my uni courses had some feminist theory in it. Around the same time I was coming out of a violent relationship and started to see the connection between events in my (and my friends) lives that were explained by feminist writers.

So I started reading all the feminist books I could get a hold of and eventually set up a women's group to raise awareness of these issues.

Feminism is now my religion.

Just a quick answer if that's OK

Pretty non-sexist upbringing but not a feminist one either

Went to all-girls schools until 6th form and so did not feel limited there

Sixth form onwards - always said I was a feminist if people asked but not really with any clear ideas.

What made me sit up and take notice in terms of being treated in a sexist manner - mainly the low level sexual harrassment that you get all the bloody time when you're a young woman, the shouting, groping, badgering, and worse, all of that stuff made me really angry.

Reading in the news about the terrible things happening to women all over the world.

Then later on realising that I was being paid less than the men at work and my complaint would go nowhere as I was pg when I found out.

Then I came onto MN, and there was a thread about rape or something like that, and Dittany was there in full flow, and the rest is history

From that encounter I have been on here loads which has been my main source of conversation and discussion and information, I hope to go to the event in London in october and want to get more involved with stuff.

It's Dittany that turned me from a person with an idea that things weren't quite right, to a person who can happily chunter on about the patriachy and the male gaze and all sorts of things

So there you have it.

I know what you mean, lifeissweet, I remember not even thinking about taking up the feminism module at university. Somehow it seemed dry and irrelevant compared to other things I was interested in. There's a ghostly whack making its way towards my 20 year old self right now!

I had a feminist mother - not in a big F kind of way, but she dressed me in the clothes my brother had outgrown and we had the same toys. She tried hard to bring my sister and I up with exactly the same opportunities, experiences and expectations as my brother.

I studied Politics at university and chose a module on feminism.

Now I read books, mainly, but also read things on t'internet.

I live on my own as a single mother, so don't have to worry about how my partner would respond.

I have feminist friends and we tend to discuss issues like employment rights for mothers, the 'pink' culture surrounding little girls (a constant source of hand-wringing and depression) and the patriachical structure of the economy which serves to keep women in their place and worships money over people.

I think I am becoming more aware and more angry with age (which I think is inevitable) I can remember as a teenager trying to argue that feminism is irrelevant these days. Do you ever feel like going back in time and wacking yourself round the head?

Are you doing a survey?

My exposure to feminism (if you can put it like that) was a combination of being brought up in a totally non-sexist household, somewhat isolated from sexist ways of thinking. My mum also bought me books and talked to me about women's history, although she now says I am more feminist than she is.

In terms of learning more about it I started (by accident initially ) on the internet, now I'm reading more books. I have been to some feminist events but that was a result rather than a cause of the way I think.

I do discuss things with family/some friends/my partner. Not all the things, not all the time (and I'm a secret MNer so that's out) but I'm frequently bringing up a feminist aspect to things. When I'm on a mission about something (e.g. rape anonymity thing) I tend to talk about it a lot more.

My feminist friends are incredibly precious to me, as is my partner who - despite the problems of being able to "ignore" sexism because of male privilege - does not have a sexist bone in his body, and 'gets it' just about all the time.

I look into my heart, if my gut tells thats bullshit and sexist it probably is.

The only thing that has changed over time is that I gain life experience that lets me see things more and more as they really are.