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The following is a guest-post from Cheyenne Smith, a college student from Texas majoring in journalism/magazine design. She’s also a slam poet and nationally recognized editorial cartoonist – a firm believer in the power of words and image (check out her work at tumblr).  She pays the bills as a barista and is trying to tackle the publishing world one rejection letter at a time If you are interested in cross-posting or guest-posting at feministhemes.com, please contact me with your ideas at misswizzle@feministhemes.com. We always welcome new voices!

March celebrates the leaps and bounds made by women over the last few centuries, and with good reason. America in particular showcases the advancements made in feminine culture giving today’s modern woman a pertinent place in society. And though our country designates an entire month to shed the spotlight on once less-fortunate females, there still remains leagues of frenzied feminists standing up in protest to such an event claiming their “inferiority” in a “male-dominated” world. To these women, I roll up my Rosie the Riveter sleeves and ask, exactly what rights do you think we don’t have?

History shows us that a woman’s character is inherently linked to the image she projects. Though housewives, sex symbols and pinups used to rule the scene (visually pleasing men from coast to coast), an up rise in alternative lifestyles and appearances has caused gender lines to virtually disappear. With androgynous fashion rocking runways and same-sex parents in full attendance at their child’s PTA meetings, society’s’ cookie cutter view of the “perfect woman” mutated from a Marilyn Monroe super mom into an ever-changing idea of all that a woman can be: a multifaceted working girl with brains, beauty and sass. Especially considering American media, society’s rejection of the damsel in distress allows for females’ former weakness to become their source of power. Sex feels so mainstream now that any woman with the right amount of entrepreneurship can still run a fortune 500 company – even in a pinstriped micro mini and stilettos. Face it, sex doesn’t just sell, it commands.

With undeniable change in image comes an increase in power. Sure our salaries average out to 30 % lower than our male counterparts, but men automatically pay more for auto insurance – not to mention that filet mignon you ordered on last night’s date. Though the testosterone count sits lower, women’s hold on power in today’s world soars far beyond chauvinistic man’s expectations. Undoubtedly, men covet women as a source of power, but up until the late 1800s that power remained a source of fear that sparked the oppression of millions. One of the oldest games in the world, chess, exemplifies this “fear v. respect” relationship in its purest form. A 64 square board with32 pieces: two teams comprised of 16 male power roles- except for one – the queen. Able to movie in virtually any direction, the queen reigns as the most powerful piece on the board outranking even the king. For a once “gents only” pastime, the creators of chess sure acted upon the idea that behind every powerful man stands an even more powerful woman. Listen up ladies: don’t let men give you more credit than you give yourselves.

Between women’s’ suffrage and the right to choose, females proved totally competent in securing their authority in America. To hear young girls and grown women alike feign inferiority, using injustices of the past as an excuse to settle for less than their full potential in the future, completely negates all progress made by their fellow females. Next time you think you’re oppressed in a “male-dominated world” consider the shockingly low literacy rates for women in Afghanistan, the unmatched rape count in countries like the Democratic Republic of Congo and the sex trafficking lifestyles demanded of the women in Nepal. American women experience more opportunity, safety and privilege than any other group of females in the world, ad to take such an exalted state of living for granted is completely unacceptable. Once thought of as the lesser of two sexes, women should now hold themselves as not only equal, but elevated. After all, the male population’s signature Y chromosome is only an incomplete X, right?

Just about everyone’s seen a newsreel. Either in an old documentary, or in history class, or spliced into a period movie. But how many of us have heard a newsreel narrated by a woman? I know I never have, but it appears there were some women in the field, after all, and I have proof.

This is an article from the Hartford Courant originally published July 22,1938:

Woman Newsreel Commentator Finds Her Job Thrilling
Good Voice, Excellent Diction Won Job for Sue Read

Being a woman newsreel commentator is an exciting life, according to Sue Read, one of the few women holding such a position. Miss Read in an interview with Edna Gorman of the New York Sun says “I’ve never had a greater thrill from anything I’ve done than to see and hear myself describing some important front-page event, knowing that within four days 28,000,000 people all over the United States and in South America and Canada will be viewing these newsreels.

Miss Read was asked how it is possible to follow a news cameraman into all sorts of adventures and always have the right comments ready to synchronize with the picture as it is taken.

Everyone asks me that question, Miss Read replied. However, newsreels aren’t made that way. “Pictures are taken any place in the world and rushed to the studios, usually by plane. A short script is then prepared by the staff, and this is voiced on the sound track,” she explained.

Another question every one asks Miss Read is: “How do you get a job like that, and how does it happen that even though there are a few girls doing this work, they are almost entirely limited to women’s fashions, while you have been doing horse races and ship sailings and similar news events?”

Well it seems that little Sue Read liked the idea. And being one who doesn’t let grass grow under her feet, she hunted up a man she had met who was somebody important in the business. But the important man only laughed at her. “Run along, child,” he said, “we don’t want any girls in this work.” But, eventually, he gave her a letter of introduction, and although his secretary insisted she was wasting her time, Miss Read got an audition. And they took her on just when they had definitely decided a woman would never, never do!

As for the rest, she has had a thorough training in dramatic expression, and both her diction and her speaking voice are charming.

She is a brunette, with eyes as expressive as her voice and a freshing, sunny smile. She believes that any girl who is planning her career should never limit it by patterning it after some one else. No two careers are alike, she says.

“And don’t believe people who say you must have ‘pull’,” she insists. “Pull can be such a harmful thing. It can get you in long before you are fitted for a place, and then you are let out, and have to start all over again.

Miss Read is a Quaker from Philadelphia, and was educated in Quaker schools. At a very early age she displayed more interest in dramatics than she did in regular school work. After inveigling her parents into letting her go to dramatic classes after school once a week, she was soon devoting all her time to dramatics, with a few special school subjects on the side.

She says she came to New York to study singing and, finding her voice wasn’t great enough for an outstanding vocal career, she made her interpretation the most important part of her singing. Her dramatic training has been of value to her here, so that she is able to give dramatic interpretations which have made her singing of box-office value and which has now landed her the enviable job of feminine news-reel commentator.

Her hobby, at the moment, is tap dancing.

“As all advocates of feminist politics know most people do not understand sexism or if they do they think it is not a problem. Masses of people think that feminism is always and only about women seeking to be equal to men. And a huge majority of these folks think feminism is anti-male. Their misunderstanding of feminist politics reflects the reality that most folks learn about feminism from patriarchal mass media.”

- bell hooks

bell hooks is a noted feminist author, scholar, and social activist.  Her works often target the intersection of sex and race, as in her first book, Ain’t I a Woman?

It’s going to be a busy week folks, so I present to you a quick video from the Feminist Majority that clears up a few things about the f-word.  The clip features some familiar faces, such as Lisa Loeb, America Ferrara, Allison Janney (the awesome step-mom in Juno), Kate Walsh, Cameryn Manheim, Michael Moore, and Amy Brenneman, and features the sweet tunes of Ani DiFranco in the background.

Who are some of your favorite feminists, either that I missed in this clip or that you’d like to give props to?

“Womanist is to feminist as purple is to lavender.”

- Alice Walker

Alice Walker is the author of the powerful novel, The Color Purple, which was later turned into an Oscar nominated film.  She has also served as an editor of Ms. magazine, and coined the term “womanist” in contrast to “White” feminism to remember that black women (and all women of minority race/ethnicity and/or low socio-economic status) were ignored and silenced by “white” feminism through its second wave.

“‘Role Model’ is such a cliche term, but young girls need someone to look up to who isn’t just saying ‘Be cute, flash your vadge, and it’ll all be OK.’  When I show the film to girls, I’ve noticed them drawing strength from the fact that [Jeannette Rankin] existed and what she did.“

- Kamala Lopez on Jeannette Rankin

Kamala Lopez is an L.A. flimmaker who recently completed a film about feminist icon Jennette Rankin, the first woman elected to Congress in 1916 and cofounder of the ACLU.  You can learn more about the film, A Single Woman, at ASingleWomanMovie.com.

“It was we, the people; not we, the white male citizens; nor yet we, the male citizens;
but we, the whole people, who formed the Union.”

- Susan B. Anthony

Susan B. Anthony was a prominent figure in the women’s sufferage movement, which led to the 19th Amendment, ensuring women’s right to vote.  You may recognize her from the American silver dollar coin.

Identity – who you are, how you define yourself, how you understand yourself in relation to others.

Identity formation is fascinating.  It’s the stuff of teen angst, midlife crises, and classic novels.  Tracking your progress from one point in life to another, and trying to understand how you got from point A to point B can be quite an undertaking.

Identity formation is also an important concept in psychology.  However, the study of identity formation goes beyond Freud’s psychosexual stages and id, ego, and superego.  Recently research in identity formation has examined racial and cultural identity formation in ethnic and sexual minorities.  Less attention has been paid to the identity formation of women, but interestingly, a feminist identity theory has been developed.

So, without further ado, here are the stages of feminist identity development (McNamara & Rickard, 1998):

1. Passive acceptance – Yes, we’ve all been here, and some of us might stay here, ignorantly blissful, for the rest of our lives.  This is the stage of accepting traditional gender roles, seeing them as advantageous, and considering men to be superior to women.  Individuals in this stage are unaware of or deny discrimination based on gender, and male contributions to the arts, business, and theater are valued more than the contributions of women.
2. Revelation – Somewhere along the line an event involving sexism occurs in a way that cannot be denied or ignored.  The individual has a personal experience of prejudice and becomes angry, and may feel guilty about being unaware previously.  An intense self-examination occurs, and dichotomous (black-and-white) thinking develops; all men are seen as oppressors and all women are seen in a positive light.
3. Embeddedness-emanation – The individual beings to form close relationships with other feminists.  With their help, the individual is able to express emotions in a supportive environment.  The feminist identity is becoming solidified, and the individual begins to understand the gray areas rather than black-and-white thinking regarding males.
4. Synthesis – A positive feminist identity is fully developed.  Sexism is no longer considered the sole cause of all social and personal problems, and other factors are considered.  The individual can take a stance different from other feminists and still maintain a strong feminist identity.
5. Active commitment – The individual is now interested in turning attention and energies toward making further reaching, societal changes.

Can you see yourself in these stages?  Do you think this model applies only to women, or can men develop a feminist identity as well?  Does this model apply to all women, or only some?

Feminism has become one of the dirtiest “f-words” in the English language.  Although its specific origin can be debated, American feminism’s big break came as a result of the womens suffrage movement in the early 1900s, wherein white American women fought for the right to vote.  Additional concerns, such as sexual, reproductive, and economic rights were also present at the time, and continue to be key issues in following feminist “waves.”  When most people today think of feminism, they tend to associate the movement with women’s rights activists of the sixties and seventies such as Gloria Steinem, Betty Freidan, and their emphasis on the sexual liberation and labor rights of white American women.  Current feminist movements are continuously challenged – many American’s today see feminism as dead (“You can vote, you can work, what else do you want?”), unnecessary (“Third-wave feminism is superficial and only concerned with pop-culture”), or at the very least divided (“Your cause is less important than xyz”).

One of the most justified criticisms of past feminist movements (as well as many modern feminists) is its exclusivity: what about women of color?  In the 1970s bell hooks, one of the most outspoken feminists of color took up this question.  Although it took years, in 1981 hooks published her first book, Ain’t I a Woman: Black Women and Feminism.  Inspired by her experiences as an African American student at Stanford University, hooks set upon the challenge of compiling a record of the true history of black women in America, unfiltered by white patriarchal historians.

The book begins with an examination of the slave life of black women.  hooks argues that black women were the greatest sufferers from the slave lifestyle, despite the historical understanding that black men were the most put upon as a result of slavery.  hooks explains that historians allege that black men were “emasculated” by slavers, that their inability to “protect” their women was a great loss.  However, she reports that the struggles that black women were forced to endure were much more widespread and painful.  On slave ships, black men were shackled together while black women roamed free on the boats, naked and vulnerable to the sailors.  On land, black men worked long, hard hours in the fields, while black women were expected to work in the fields, in the house, and often in the bed of her owner.  Black men refused to do “woman’s work,” while black women were expected to care for both their men and their owners.  In order to reduce affairs between black men and white women, any child born to a white mother was considered “free,” while children of black mothers and white fathers were born slaves.  In this way, the sexual lives of all women were controlled by the white supremacist patriarchal society, with the greatest sexual freedom allotted to the white man and the least to black woman.

Throughout the book, hooks describes the dual exclusion that black women face in America.  For example, black women were forced to choose to fight by the side of the black man for his vote or the white woman for hers, knowing that either way she would remain politically voiceless.  Later on, black women could choose between the Black Panthers fight for black equality within a patriarchal framework or the feminist movement, which emphasized the rights of upper- and middle-class white women without consideration for women of color. Black women are subjected to sexual discrimination within their racial group, and racial discrimination within their gender group.

Ain’t I a Woman is a difficult book to read.  As a young, white feminist I often felt the need to justify myself to hooks as I read her book.  For example, “I would never do that,” or “This was written almost thirty years ago, its not like that now,” or “But I’m from the north, we were never as bad as the south!”  I felt angry, defensive, and guilty.  I didn’t want to be responsible or accountable for the exclusion of others from a movement that has begun to mean so much to me.  I often wanted to put the book down and walk away, but…  I didn’t.  And as I continue to learn about diversity, race, gender, and politics I will keep bell’s lessons with me, facing the painful and hoping to come through it a better person.  Feminism is a complex and controversial movement, but many young feminists like myself do not see feminism’s primary concern as the rights of privileged White women – we believe that all human beings are created equal and that gender roles and judgments are harmful to men and women alike, across many cultures, and within diverse groups.  Modern feminism seeks to give a voice to the powerless and extend the rights of the privileged to everyone.

To learn more about bell hooks, visit these links, or to purchase Ain’t I a Woman from South End Press click here.