AIBU to wonder why any woman would identify herself as [2]

[garlicnutter]

... not a feminist?

Since I killed the old one.

Hello. We've been following the various recent threads about the Feminism boards with interest. Just a couple of things we'd like to make clear (we've posted this on Lenin's thead in Femimism, too)...

The Feminism board is, like all Mumsnet Talk boards, open to a range of opinions and views. We'd like to think it's a place where all are welcome to post, whether you're a hardened rad fem or a non-quite-sure-what-all-this-feminism-is-about type. And, wherever you sit on that spectrum, we'd hope you'd respect and respond respectfully to others - even if they're sitting right at the opposite end of that spectrum to you.

We know there have been a few "interesting interlopers" on the Feminism boards recently - and that one of their declared objectives has been to sow dissent and division on these boards.

We've been doing all we can behind the scenes to make sure these people's interloping days are over - but it remains our policy to delete personal attacks and any accusations of trolling. If you have any concerns about any particular poster, please let us know about them by using the Report link instead - and we will get onto it ASAP.

In the meantime, we'd be ever so grateful if you could bear in mind that feminism, like parenting, can come in all shapes and sizes. And we think Mumsnet is a big enough and tolerant enough beast to flourish with all of feminism's shapes and sizes being reflected, discussed, agreed with and disagreed with (respectfully!) on the boards.

I wonder when the thread will really end.....

Never mind Jesus, its that St Paul you have to watch out for.....

Oh no. It's been extended. There'll be another 900 posts by tomorrow .

Baby Jesus has got the right hump.

Has it been extended (apart from the fact that it clearly has)? Why?

This is the thread that never ends, it just goes on and on my friend...

I have learnt a lot from this thread, in amongst the fighting. It's made me realise that I want to be more active in the feminists section. And I'm going to try and follow Lenin's lead and try to disregard any more offensive messages and stick to engaging with the people who are actually there to discuss things.

I may not agree with all that's said in that board, but (until joining MN) I was proud to call myself a feminist, and was quite active in some of my previous jobs in trying to affect change. Seems silly to let a few (wrong) people tell me I'm a rape apologist or any other crap force me to step away from something I care deeply about.

Well I still have a suspicion that people (a minority of people it has to be said and the same old names plus a couple of recent joiners) are angry because quite often, the rad fems have better arguments than them.

I'm sorry we argue better than you. That's not our fault. Go away and learn to argue better instead of setting up bitch-fest threads. Are you going to do thread number 3 now, to keep the momentum up? Do you only want liberal feminists on here, who will back down as soon as a man comes on and tells them they're wrong? Because this section without Dittany would be a much poorer place, posters like her and Sakura move the Overton windo - nay wrench it to a completely different place, while Garlicbutter et al stay in the cosy unthreatening zone. We need radical voices, but it's clear that there is a concerted effort going on to silence them.