Can a man teach feminism?

[lucydogz]

Reading the Guardian colour supp today, an article about gal dem quotes 2 young black women saying they were shocked, when taking a class on Feminism at Bristol university, that it was taken by white man.
Firstly, I see no relevance in his race. But why shouldn't a man teach Feminism?

It would be closely akin to teaching a pig to sing, I would have thought!

Men have no business teaching feminism.

You mean...as in the very fact of taking a wage that could go to a woman is displaying patriarchy in its basest sense?

No. No man can or should teach feminism.

I disagree that men have no business teaching feminism.

I think it is amazing that a man is teaching the important issue of gender equality for men and women in all aspects. I agree that maybe some people would prefer the tqlk to have come from a woman and feel more inspired by it but I would not be offended if a man gave the talk. The message is what is important, not whose mouth it comes out of.

It is not about preference. It is about a man taking the place and wage of a woman.

Before you even get to the message.

gender equality for men and women in all aspects.

That is not feminism.

Men can't teach feminism because any man who wants to teach feminism, by wanting to teach it, has failed to understand what feminism is.

My feminism course at uni (I was doing Government degree) 25 years ago was taught by a male lecturer, we had no women lecturers on my degree course. The first lesson included a protracted debate on whether he could teach feminism. But as an academic subject I don't think it matters, I don't need an ancient Roman to teach me classical civilisation. I definitely would have preferred to have been taught by more women across my degree course. I think it was pretty disgraceful that our government and politics dept was so male dominated. The cohort was split evenly by sex so it was not reflected in the students.

I enjoyed the course and I did my dissertation on Mary Wollstonecraft so I think I learned stuff. So although I perhaps would have benefited from a female perspective on the subject, if the subject is taught with proper academic rigour then it is possible to teach feminism as a man. I am less certain that the man can understand feminism in the same way iyswim? It is hard to say how much I would have gained with a woman teaching the course.

I think it is amazing that a man is teaching the important issue of gender equality for men and women in all aspects.

^ That isn’t feminism.

Men can't teach feminism because any man who wants to teach feminism, by wanting to teach it, has failed to understand what feminism is.

^ Agreed.

It is hard to say how much I would have gained with a woman teaching the course.

Before the course even started, a woman lost out on a yearly wage. This is patriarchy not feminism.

Teaching feminism as an academic subject is not the second as inspiring people to be feminists... That is about political engagement and is not academic. I don't have to study feminism to be a feminist ( though it helps to read up on the subject).

I think it is unhelpful to equate being a feminist with being a teacher of feminism (or any subject), it is not the same.

*IncrediblySturdyPyjamas

'the advocacy of women's rights on the ground of the equality of the sexes.'

That is the caption from the english dictionary on Feminism. How is what I said not feminism? He is speaking out at the university on the right for women to have equal rights as men.

How is what I said not feminism

For a start you said gender not sex.

On that note it probably isn't worth discussing it with you if you don't even know the difference.

I think that a few people on this thread have completely taken feminism to think that it is now a war between men and women.

It is the EQUALITY of men and women. Not a hate journey on men or revenge because of the history of suppression against women.

It is exactly the same as racial issues! I absolutely cannot stand racial suppression yet because I am not in the minority, does that mean I cannot stand with them and fight against it? Absolutely not!

Yes, women engage more with a female talking about these issues but don't hate on a man also speaking out against it, you're fighting the wrong battle.

Hmm, the feminism course equated to two terms, it was part of a degree, not a degree in itself. So in the tiny politics department we had three or four lecturers teaching various modules, the feminism module was part of a full-time job not equivalent to a full-time lecturer alone. It was far from ideal but I was in a "new" uni (former Poly) with bigger ambitions than budgets hopefully now it has improved!

It is the EQUALITY of men and women

No it isn't. But keep shouting, that always works when telling people they are feministing wrong.

Of course it's possible for a man to teach feminism. They may not have the same perspective as a woman and this may enrich the learning experience rather than detracting from it. If it's an academically rigorous course then it shouldn't matter which sex teaches it.
A man teaching feminism isn't taking the job away from a woman as it doesn't need to be a woman teaching it .... just as an 'American studies' course doesn't need to have an American teaching it in order to be academically rigorous.
Some people have a very different idea of what feminism should be.

*IncrediblySturdyPyjamas

Yes, you are correct and I apologise for that. Gender is a completely different issue to sex.

I still stand by what I said regardless. Women speakers on feminism are far more inspirational but men can also speak on the subject.

*IncrediblySturdyPyjamas

If I am so wrong apparently, please elaborate?

I still stand by what I said regardless. Women speakers on feminism are far more inspirational but men can also speak on the subject.

By taking a wage from a woman, they are already demonstrating they support patriarchy and thus cannot teach feminism.

What the fuck is so hard to comprehend?

How can you teach equality of the sexes, even if you think that is what feminism is, if you remove the ability of a woman to earn the money saying the same thing?

Let along man teaching actual feminism which is about freedom from a patriarchial system. Which a man cannot even comprehend due to their socialisation in patriarchy.

From my experience of uni, the curriculum is designed/organised by some people, then each topic is taught by your seminar leaders on the course, if there are male seminar leaders they will obviously be teaching it. If there are no women, that's bad (speaks to the equality practices of the university/department) but otherwise it's luck of the draw. Should feminism not be covered at all because not all the seminars can be led by women?

It is the ultimate mansplaining.

Maybe he identifies as a woman. Otherwise teaching feminism would be odd. Gender equality fine, it is different. A man preaching feminism is like a protestant recruiting for the IRA.

Equality of the sexes would be women killing two men a week.

Should feminism not be covered at all because not all the seminars can be led by women?

To teach my subject I need experience and qualifications.

Men teaching feminism have neither.