Feminism. The Elephant in the Room.

[DJLippy]

I wondered what people think Feminism's Elephant in the Room was. What is the big taboo that we're not supposed to talk about?

Yes, Breastfeeding agree Neuro - the vested interests have been really successful at preventing women from discussing structural / societal issues around breastfeeding and ensuring it becomes a purely personal discussion. Even when you get posters providing population wide statistics (e.g. the huge drop off rate for UK mothers bf at 6 months to a year, which isn't seen in other countries) it still becomes a personal debate. And the saddest thing is that it is so rare to really find a mother who judges another mother for their feeding choices, it's all imagined, fuelled by the media. I really believe it's a made up argument which generates cheap and easy column inches. Which ensures that the scandalous state of bf support in this country isn't addressed and barely discussed in the media at all.

'know that event in Manchester next Saturday evening organised by MakeMoreNoise?

Well now ... someone else with a hugely valuable contribution to make has been added to the list of speakers:

"Barrister Sarah Phillimore has been added to the event. “Her elephant in the room is the hijack of the law to serve purposes actively hostile to important rights for both women and children.”"

That mothering is different to other parenting and childcare.

I've probably just unleashed hell. The younger me is appalled I've even written this; now me is more angry and feminist than ever

“The reality is that men oppress women, generally they don’t support changing this because they benefit from it, women are under the cosh globally in every way imaginable, but if anyone dares to say, even offhand, ‘god I bloody hate men’, all of a sudden everyone is jumping to the defence of men in a way few jump to the defence of women who are being shown in actions how much they’re hated, not just exposed to a few angry words.”

^
This

And also many/most women have internalised the idea that their likes/dislikes are a consequence of their hormones, biology etc, at least to some degree, and can’t conceive that socialisation could really have had such a big impact on them. I think everything then stems from this TBH, e.g. women naturally like to be submissive, naturally like rough sex, naturally like to be in low paying occupations etc, etc. So the elephant in the room to me is that most women don’t recognise how much socialisation has actually had an impact on their perception of things.

On the issue of breast feeding ... does the 'controversy' arise because patriarchy has sexualised women's mammaries .. breasts have become the sexual property of men rather than their original purpose of creating milk to feed human young?

That mothering is different to other parenting and childcare.

I've probably just unleashed hell. The younger me is appalled I've even written this; now me is more angry and feminist than ever

This.

Abortion. The pro-life argument is right. I wish it wasn't so: I've had an abortion and would desperately want another if ever I fell pregnant again.

A lot of the 'rights' arguments for abortion seem to assume we're individuals in the same way that men are, but when pregnant, we're not: for a season two human beings exist in one body. Complete nightmare obviously if you don't want the baby.

“The reality is that men oppress women, generally they don’t support changing this because they benefit from it, women are under the cosh globally in every way imaginable, but if anyone dares to say, even offhand, ‘god I bloody hate men’, all of a sudden everyone is jumping to the defence of men in a way few jump to the defence of women who are being shown in actions how much they’re hated, not just exposed to a few angry words.

I just don't think you should generalise in certain ways.

Yes, men as a class are 99.9 % of sexual abusers, but "I hate men" is all encompassing, and, therefore, unacceptable to me.

Would you say 'I hate POC"... no.

There are nuances to language which are important. Hope Sakura doesnt read this.