to be depressed that only 9% of women identify as feminists?

[parklyfe]

www.telegraph.co.uk/women/life/only-7-per-cent-of-britons-consider-themselves-feminists/

''When split out by gender, women were more likely to identify as feminist, with nine per cent using the label compared to four per cent of men.''

That said, Third Wave Feminism had a lot of elements within the varying philosophies that made me think WTF?

Seems a lot of you think feminists are man haters and don't want to come across the same way. Why is the approval of men and the need to seem "nice" so important to you? And those of you who want to be "equalists", how do you not see that men and women don't have an equal playing field and sometimes things like quotas and affirmative action are needed?

I believe in equality, I don't think women need special treatment / privilege
So, you're feminist.
In some cases, some form of what looks like special treatment may be advocated to encourage equal opportunities, though.

After mumsnet I would say that the boards here have given me an aversion to feminism.
I'm not in the jargon and, in fact, rarely participate in specifically feminist threads or boards, but I wouldn't say they put me off feminism. If anything they have slowly given me a slightly better understanding of different points of view and perspectives I had not considered.

And I wouldn't like to say I'm a feminist, rather that I'm feminist.

I'm a woman, a mother, a biologist, a teacher. And with feminist ideals.
Not sure what "a" feminist is, but that's probably me just being difficult or pedantic?.

You can believe in the principles of feminism without identifying as a feminist

How?

Surely, if it looks like a duck, behaves like a duck and talks like a duck, it's a duck.

If I don't believe in God I'm atheist. If I believe in God, I'm not atheist. (Simplistic terms)

'Surely, if it looks like a duck, behaves like a duck and talks like a duck, it's a duck. '

Yup, but some get very tangled up in what sort of duck and then start trying to define what's the best sort and what thinks it's a duck, but isn't really according to other ducks of a different species. Then they spend time squabbling and defining and shibbolething.
Whilst the foxes can't believe their luck.

"Surely, if it looks like a duck, behaves like a duck and talks like a duck, it's a duck."

Could be Bobby Davro. He's got powers you know.

I know i going to make some of you cross with this but im just londonrach, i dont have any other label. I love being female and having men (and woman) hold the door open for me. Id hold doors open too but do find the men are better at this and think its because im female. Its called manners but being female i notice men let me on the train first more often than not and hold doors open, offer seats which is kind of them. I dont see anything wrong with that and always thank them, smile and if a teenage boy thank them for being a gentleman who always gets me a smile. I certainly never call myself a feminist as its a negative word. I agree with owl on the first page, we just who we are but being female i can achive alot by just being female. My 2p worth which is worth as much as everyones elses 2p. . Sorry im not good with words and expressing myself but i hope you understand what im saying.

SlowFJH
As soon as you say you're an "ist" (of any kind), you are asking to be grouped together with others (of the same "ism"). Then you're constantly having to explain why you're not all actually the same - especially if your particular "ism" has/had a radical wing.

That's the thing - adopting a label indicates a set of beliefs and also suggests an alignment with others who use that label. Like other ideologies, there is a variation of beliefs within feminism, and even if you call yourself a feminist, your beliefs could still have more in common with those who don't describe themselves as one. On top of that, I think when people think of feminism, they're likely to think of radical feminism, rather than a broader range of feminist beliefs.

Feminist is a negative word? There is more to it than being cross about people opening doors - in fact I know no feminist who cares about that, that's just some sort of Daily Mail caricature of what a feminist is. Most feminists have more important things to care about like the gender pay gap, domestic violence, FGM.

being female i can achive alot by just being female

Meaning?

but being female i can achive alot by just being female. My 2p worth which is worth as much as everyones elses 2p
Because feminists have worked hard to make sure you have the door open (degrees, jobs) and your voice can be heard.

Still not as much on a level with men in general, though.

Do you truly believe an employer won't think you're most likely to quit the job to become a sahp than a male candidate?

Do you truly believe an employer won't think you're most likely to quit the job to become a sahp than a male candidate?

But it's true. A woman is more likely to become sahp than a man. Which is a big thing that needs to change.

Wether the employer uses that to make the decision is what's important.

I am a lifelong feminist.
But I am a bit exhausted now defending my brand of feminism in the face of the pro-censorship, No Platform, safe space ideology that is a serious assault on free speech, and generated from our universities. The very institutions that should be able to trust debate, dialogue and dialectic.

Yes, it's true. But the key is that the employer is probably thinking about it when employing. Rather than just looking at merit.

Yup, Blu - me too. There's this sort of victim cult thing that has taken over all kinds of rights movement and has pernicious effects. I came to feminism because I wanted more agency, not less.

But the key is that the employer is probably thinking about it when employing. Rather than just looking at merit.

I don't believe you can judge someone for having a thought that's is backed up by evidence.

The thought is sexist. But acting on only that, would be.

This will only go away when everyone (female and male) embraces men as sahp (or both parents working PT) as the norm.

Too often Ideological movements inadvertently give their opponeness the gift of allowing the movement to be defined by its extreme wing. Feminism walks runs full pelt into this bear trap time and time again.

Extremists aren't actually interested on solving problems. They just want to make you feel even more scared of the problem (Your gynaecologicist might be a man in drag!!!!!, Cologne!!!!!!) and then to tell you who to blame for the problem (The Patriarchy!!!)

Ironically the extremes of both left and right sound remarkably similar. If you looked at any of the Trans threads and replaced the word "Trans" with any minority - there would be any outcry.

A mass sexual assault isn't an imaginary problem, slow.

Don't think I ever said it was. Did I?

Another characteristic of "movements" is to misrepresent the views of others - further alienating rather than engaging the very people they need to involve in a pragmatic, practical solution.

The thought is sexist. But acting on only that, would be.
It could be more or less conscious.

I agree that giving equal time for parents and actively encouraging fathers to take it (and not discriminate those who do) would level the field even more.

Very well then.

What's "extreme" about discussing the mass sexual assault in cologne? There were a large number of threads on it on MN (not on FWR). So I am unclear what you mean by including it in your list of "extremist scare stories" (ie problems that you postulate extremists use to scare people)

"Another characteristic of "movements" is to misrepresent the views of others"

Am I alone in seeing the irony of this statement?

Have you read some of the threads on Cologne here?