Really baffled by the statement "I'm proud to be a woman!"

[Ava5]

Which is normally uttered by women claiming not to be feminists.

But I haven't been able to articulate exactly why that rubs me the wrong way. Help me out here, fellow feminists! Is it because it's usually code for the patriarchy-approved way of being a woman?

IME, you hit the nail on its annoying head.
They tend to be defensive and assume they are under attack, hence the statement.

Is it because it's not really something you have a choice over? Can you be proud about something you have had no hand in?

I find it irritating but that's because I don't understand pride in something you have no say in. Pride should be for achievements.

It is the same as people who say they are proud to be British (or proud to be Scottish, which you get a lot of up here in SNP land). How can you be proud of an accident of birth?

It tends to be a pronouncement of 'surrendered wives' and glamour models who are proud to support spouses or who are proud of their 'assets'.

I've only heard it said by Dustin Hoffman in 'Tootsie'. Never by an actual woman.

I've never heard it either. I've never heard it said but have seen it written by very conservative/ traditional women that they are proud to be a wife or proud to be a woman.

Googling "Proud to be a woman" doesn't quite accord with the interpretation on here.

19 Reasons You Should Be Proud To Be A Woman
www.theodysseyonline.com/being-woman-matters

Are you proud to be a woman? - Quora
www.quora.com/Are-you-proud-to-be-a-woman-1

thoughtcatalog.com
www.google.co.uk/amp/thoughtcatalog.com/marisa-donnelly/2017/03/you-are-a-woman-and-you-should-be-proud/amp/

26 Great Feminist Quotes That Will Make You Proud To Be A Woman
www.marieclaire.co.uk/opinion/26-great-feminist-quotes-that-will-make-you-proud-to-be-a-woman-105779