Monday, January 12, 1998
Under my thumb
GENDER: Why men hate ‘femi-nazis’
By Pauline Vu
Daily Bruin Contributor
They do not support certain brands of feminism, but do not
consider themselves chauvinists either. Nor would they say they’re
sexist.
They are men who simply feel that one form of feminism has grown
too radical. And this is why, in a world where political
correctness reigns, they are willing to voice their adversity.
"Femi-nazis are the extreme of feminism," said David Elster, a
second-year business-economics student, giving a name to this form
of feminism.
"I have no problem with women seeking equality in life, but in
femi-nazism, wherein women go out of their way to oppress men, they
forget their goals," he continued.
Simone Wallace, a feminist and co-owner and co-founder of the
Sisterhood bookstore, said in response, "Rush Limbaugh coined the
phrase ‘femi-nazism’. Do men who use that term realize who they’re
quoting? An extreme misogynist, right-wing person."
"Nazis," Wallace stressed, "tortured and murdered people. I
doubt people who call themselves feminists really believe in
that."
Feminism today is under constant attack from all different
sides, including, ironically enough, women who consider themselves
strong feminists. This break by some feminists is explained by Dr.
Christina Sommers, associate professor of philosophy at Clark
University, in her 1996 book "Who Stole Feminism?" According to
Sommers, there are two types of feminism today: equity feminism,
which focuses on women’s basic fight for equality, and gender
feminism, whose advocates appear more concerned with their beliefs
of tyranny and oppression against women.
"It’s important to realize the word ‘feminism’ does not
represent the opinion of all women," said Kathy Rose-Mockry,
director of the Women’s Resource Center at UCLA. "Within the
women’s movement there are a lot of different views."
However, in Sommer’s view, it is unfortunate that many people
associate all feminism with the radical "femi-nazism" that so many
men oppose.
Some men say they do support women’s rights to a large degree.
They favor feminist views on several women’s issues, such as a
woman’s right to choose, equality in the workplace and law, and
women serving in the clergy. But other aspects of radical feminism
have turned them off.
"My objection to radical feminists is that their approach is
wrong," said Bobby Kortright, a first-year business-economics
student.
"They’re offensive and aggressive, acting in a way that the
audience doesn’t want to listen."
Elster agreed that some feminists’ approach offends men. He
recalled a high school English teacher he called both "a femi-nazi
and a very good teacher." However, she not only "made it a point to
belittle the men" in her class, he said, she clearly favored women
and called only on them, going as far as only giving the females
A’s.
"The statement going around campus for her class was that ‘B is
for boy,’" Elster said. "It’s made me a little bitter."
It was this women-first attitude which turned off Alan
Weinfield, a first-year political science student. "I don’t agree
with women who would vote another woman president just because
she’s a woman," he said
Elster also dislikes what he called women "trying to become more
like men" and the "lack of femininity" he sees.
But Wallace argued that this view assumes all feminists are
alike and have the same objectives. "Some people who aren’t really
discerning will see one or two women act like that and think, ‘Oh,
that’s the feminist movement.’ Do I decide that all men are pigs
just because I see one really deranged person on a street corner
ogling women? We should all stop generalizing."
Although some of these men disagree with the way feminists go
about fighting for equality, others don’t even understand what
women are fighting for.
"Women are already treated equal," said Sam Fermatt, a
first-year political science student. In his opinion, women already
have preferential treatment by law and are equal in politics. He
recalled a tuxedo shop he once worked in, where all the managers
were women and even most of the higher management positions were
filled by women.
"Women already did what they set out to do. To ask for more
would be pushing it," he added.
Others feel today’s radical feminists are also reaching for more
than was once expected. Stephanie Herman, creator of the "A New Old
Feminism" web site, agrees that women are reaching for far more
than once expected. "Progress has been made and is being made in
the fight for female equality," she comments. "This is something,"
she said, "that most feminists refuse to acknowledge."
Not everyone agrees with this rosy picture of the world.
"There are many areas in which progress has been made – but
there are also areas for improvement," Rose-Mockry said. She cites
tenure as an example, referring to an article in "The Chronicle of
Higher Education," which showed that women professors are more
likely to be overlooked for tenure in favor of men. The same
article also reported that the higher the academic level, there are
fewer women involved.
"How many women are CEOs, or in the Fortune 500?" Wallace asked.
"How many are senators in Congress? There’s a report showing that
in marriages where both spouses work, women are still more
responsible for all the domestic work."
She considers the talk about women being equal as "just a
joke."
Brian Carnell, a freelance journalist who has written for the
Detroit News and Kalamazoo Gazette, has another reason for his
dislike of radical feminists. He sees them as making – and
repeating – inaccurate claims.
"I read radical feminists claiming that 95 percent of those who
engage in domestic violence are men, when the best studies show men
and women abuse each other at almost equal rates," he said.
"Some of the radical feminists go so far as to claim that pain
during labor is a socially constructed phenomena. It’s something
the patriarchy imposes on women, and it would disappear in their
utopia," he added.
Carnell’s main criticism focuses on radical feminists’
willingness to distort the facts in order to promote the
ideology.
However, part of the distortion may simply be the fault of
statistics, and a disagreement as to what some women consider rape
and sexual harassment. There also may be a discrepancy in the
numbers, considering some figures might add the estimated number of
women who have not reported their abuses to the police, while
others rely solely on official police statistics.
"I know many women don’t report crimes to the police. They’re
afraid of people not believing them, of their friends looking down
on them. They try to take care of the problem themselves,"
Rose-Mockry said.
On a lighter note, some men are disappointed they can no longer
be "gentlemen." Elster complained how asking co-workers on dates is
a workplace taboo, and opening doors for women, pulling out their
chairs for them – once considered a respectable and gentlemanly
thing to do – now means that the man is assuming the woman cannot
do it herself. Simple courtesy has become a negative.
"Feminism has brought about the death of chivalry," Elster
stressed grimly.
"It’s nice for both men and women to be polite," said
Wallace.
"Sometimes men open doors, sometimes women open doors. There’s
no reason to think only men are genetically able to send
flowers."
Feminism today is in a precarious state. Only 16 percent of
college women "definitely" consider themselves feminists, and, with
the onslaught of radical feminism, it is not gaining any popularity
with men.
Men who don’t fully support feminism may not be the chauvinist
pigs society paints them to be. They may or may not support women’s
full equality, but many are thoroughly turned off by the attitude
and tactics of the radical feminists.