As the moment faded, cultural critics began endlessly debating whether or not Beyoncé was, indeed, a feminist. It was a glorious spectacle to see this pop star openly embracing feminism and letting young women and men know that being a feminist is something to celebrate. At the 2014 MTV Video Music Awards, she performed in front of the word "feminist" 10 feet high. (Laughter) She has emerged, in recent years, as a visible feminist. Take, for example, Beyoncé, or as I call her, The Goddess. They're afraid to stand up and say, "Yes, I am a feminist," for fear of what that label means, for fear of being unable to live up to unrealistic expectations. Too many women, particularly groundbreaking women and industry leaders, are afraid to be labeled as feminists. Like I said, I am a messconsider me knocked off that pedestal before you ever try to put me up there. When they disappoint us, we gleefully knock them from the very pedestal we put them on. We have this tendency to put visible feminists on a pedestal. There is also this: As a feminist, I feel a lot of pressure. Listen, if that's good feminismI am a very bad feminist. I reject the mainstream feminism that has historically ignored or deflected the needs of women of color, working-class women, queer women and transgender women, in favor of supporting white, middle- and upper-class straight women. The problem is not that she makes herself economically vulnerable in that choice the problem is that our society is set up to make women economically vulnerable when they choose. If a woman chooses to stay home to raise her children, I embrace that choice, too. If a woman wants to take her husband's name, that is her choice, and it is not my place to judge. Some of my transgressions are more flagrant. I watch "The Bachelor" and romantic comedies, and I have absurd fantasies about fairy tales coming true. I enjoy fashion magazines and pretty things. I firmly believe in man work, which is anything I don't want to do, including(Laughter)all domestic tasks, but also: bug killing, trash removal, lawn care and vehicle maintenance. (Laughter) Poetry, right? I am utterly mortified by my music choices. Bitch, you gotta shake it 'til your camel starts to hurt!" (Laughter) Think about it. (Laughter) "Make it work with your wet t-shirt. (Laughter) Even though the lyrics are degrading to womenthese lyrics offend me to my corethe classic Yin Yang Twins song "Salt Shaker"it is amazing. When I drive to work, I listen to thuggish rap at a very loud volume. There are many ways in which I'm doing feminism wrong. I hold these truths to be self-evident, but let me be clear: I'm a mess. Without this kind of inclusion, our feminism is nothing. We need to take into account these differences and how they affect us, as much as we account for what we have in common. We are people with different bodies, gender expressions, faiths, sexualities, class backgrounds, abilities, and so much more. When we talk about the needs of women, we have to consider the other identities we inhabit.
We have the right to make choices about our bodies, free from legislative oversight or evangelical doctrine. We have the right to easy, affordable access to birth control, and reproductive services. We have the right to move through the world as we choose, free from harassment or violence. I hold certain truths to be self-evident: Women are equal to men.
You don't want to be that rebel woman, until you realize that you very much are that woman, and cannot imagine being anyone else.Īs I got older, I began to accept that I am, indeed, a feminist, and a proud one.
I was labeled a woman who doesn't play by the rules, who expects too much, who thinks far too highly of myself, by daring to believe I'm equal(Coughs)superior to a man. The feminist label was an accusation, it was an "F" word, and not a nice one. (Laughter) These days, I look at how women are treated the world over, and anger, in particular, seems like a perfectly reasonable response.īut back then, I worried about the tone people used when suggesting I might be a feminist. When I was younger, mostly in my teens and 20s, I had strange ideas about feminists as hairy, angry, man-hating, sex-hating womenas if those are bad things.
So, what started as a bit of an inside joke with myself and a willful provocation, has become a thing. Or at least, I wrote an essay, and then I wrote a book called "Bad Feminist," and then in interviews, people started calling me The Bad Feminist. I'm a feminist, but I'm a rather bad one. I have passionate opinions about gender equality, but I worry that to freely accept the label of "feminist," would not be fair to good feminists. I am failing as a woman, I am failing as a feminist.