Feminist Versus Femi-Not

Feminist Versus “Femi-Not”

The Feminist Majority Foundation and the Eagle Forum discuss similar topics like assault, a woman president, and women in combat. However, their ideas about the topics are vastly different. The feminist website deals with facts, while the conservative website thoroughly enjoys slander, religion, and stereotypes.

When the topic of assault and domestic violence comes up, there is a drastic divide in beliefs between the two sources. The feminist website provides relief numbers and victim hotlines, whereas the conservative website proudly states “[t]he radical feminists have devised a scheme to cash in on a flow of taxpayers' money in a big way. Their good buddy Senator Joseph Biden (D-DE) has just introduced a bill called I-VAWA (International Violence Against Women Act.)” (Schlafly par.1) One would assume that a woman would be for the protection of women, considering “ninety-four percent of victims from all murder-suicides involving an intimate partner are women.” (NCADV, Statistics) This is not the case. Not only is Schlafly demonizing feminists and domestic violence victims, but she is also using productive (and necessary) legislation as an insult or excuse to encourage her followers to be outraged. My biggest complaint is that progressing domestic violence laws and views saves lives, while knocking back legislation and demonizing victims hurts internationally. Any normal person sits and thinks about the pros and cons of their actions. In this situation, there are millions of cons to defunding and dehumanizing. How can a group preach to be pro-life but slaughter women and children daily by endorsing the dismantling of safe places and resources for victims of abuse?

This most recent election has arguably been the most controversial election in American history. Although there are many reasons why, one of the biggest would have to be because one candidate of the two major parties was a woman. As one could imagine, the two websites had contrasting ideals and opinions. The conservative website stated “Hillary lost because (a) she simply is not likable, and (b) the voters (especially Democrats) suffer from Clinton fatigue.” (Schlafly sec. 6) For some odd reason, Schlafly also begins to mock sexual harassment statistics “…And what does this 'harassment' consist of? Unwanted romantic attention, demeaning gender-related comments based on their appearance, and unwanted physical contact. Where did the authors of this nonsense find females to claim that light-hearted banter at which no boy would take offense can now be defined as sexual harassment?” (Schlafly sec. 9) You would think this would be related to Trump, but no. This has nothing to do with what her article is claimed to be about and honestly, it is disgusting. Sometimes, when one tries to discuss controversial topics with someone who is more conservative, it can lead to ranting about things that make no sense or have nothing to do with the topic at hand. It is a defense mechanism called deflecting. If you have no clue what you are talking about, just change the subject five times and rant about immigration. It doesn’t matter that the conversation was about recycling, because if you confuse the enemy you ultimately win.

On a lighter note, the feminist website posted an article about Taiwan electing its first female president. Although it is not about Trump versus Hillary, this group handles news about a woman president rationally and positively. They utilize facts such as focusing on the president’s education and skills, describing her visions for the country and using direct quotes. “For now, Tsai [(president)] has pledged to not only work to establish Taiwan's unique identity independent of mainland China, but also to address Taiwan's flagging economy, low wages, and deepening income inequality once she is inaugurated in May. ‘The results today tell me the people want to see a government that is willing to listen to people, that is more transparent and accountable,’ Tsai told reporters following her declaration of victory, ‘and a government that is more capable of leading us past our current challenges and taking care of those in need.’” (“In a Landslide”.)

It was not until I talked to my great grandmother about her experience in the air force, that I found out women couldn’t hold the same positions as men. She always told me how she wished she could have been in the moments of gunfire on the front-line. The Feminist Majority supports women being allowed to have all of the combat opportunities a man could have. “Women's groups have celebrated the decision, which opens up new career opportunities and helps to break down deeply entrenched beliefs that men are more physically powerful than women.” (“Defense Secretary”) On the other terrible hand, the Eagle Forum says, “History offers no evidence for the proposition that the assignment of women to military combat jobs is the way to win wars, improve combat readiness, or promote national security. Women, on the average, have only 60 percent of the physical strength of men, are about six inches shorter, and survive basic training only by the subterfuge of being graded on effort rather than on performance. These facts, self-evident to anyone who watches professional or Olympic sports competitions, are only some of the many sex differences confirmed by scholarly studies.” (Schlafly sec. 11) Schlafly’s beliefs are that women should not have equal opportunity because women and men are inherently different.

The Feminist Majority focuses on factual information, (with citation) protecting women, and empowering women. The Eagle Forum does not cite their “information,” is not concise with topics, and is ultimately degrading and extremely harmful to women and children. The feminists want equal opportunity and safety. The anti-feminists ironically want everyone to conform to the cult of domesticity and pretend it is 1952 (considering they are afraid of communism.) Honestly, reading the forum was the most migraine and anger-filled experience I have ever had.

Works Cited

“911 For Women.” Feminist Majority, 2014, www.feminist.org/911/index.html.

“National Statistics.” NCADV, ncadv.org/statistics.

Schlafly, Phyllis. “Feminist Abuse of Domestic Violence Laws.” Eagle Forum, 28 Nov. 2007, eagleforum.org/column/2007/nov07/07-11-28.html.

“Taiwan Elects First Woman President.” Feminist News - Feminist Majority Foundation, 27 Jan. 2016, feminist.org/news/newsbyte/uswire.asp.

“Why Hillary Clinton Lost.” Eagle Forum, 2018, eagleforum.org/column/2008/june08/08-06-25.html.