This post will be my last official contribution to The Friedan Project so I thought I’d conclude it with what I have taken away from my experiences in researching and writing about this important topic.
My main inspiration for this project came from my family and my experiences growing up. I grew up surrounded by strong women- my two grandmothers (one loving and kind, and the other full of attitude and stories of adventure) and my almost regal great-grandmother. Add to this equation my selfless, hard working mum and it’s easy to see why I was arguing for equal rights from the dinner table from a young age. I never saw any reason why women couldn’t do anything men could do because all I knew were strong, independent, amazing women.
What really stirred me into starting this project though were two things:
Firstly, the lecture that I spoke about in my first post which is still stuck in my mind years later.
And secondly, a series of conversations I had with my grandmothers over Christmas last year which I also mentioned in my first post.
When I started The Friedan Project I had countless questions in my head that I wanted to explore and answer:
· What is a feminist?
· Does society still need feminism?
· Am I a feminist?
I was able to answer these questions fairly early on:
· A feminist is someone who believes in “equal rights and opportunities for women”.
· Society will need feminism for as long as sexism exists, perhaps longer
· Yes
From here, I went on to explore deeper into feminism than I had anticipated I would. It became an impulse to read everything I could find, to make up my mind about it, and to write. I am especially proud that I was able to write on such issues as victim-blaming, the sex industry and sterilisation as these are huge problems for so many women (and men) which haven’t been dealt with in the public sphere.
In my blog posts, I also included a lot of my own experiences. I chose to do this because I wanted to show how sexism is prevalent in most women's every day experiences- it’s not just something found in feminist texts from the ‘60s.
While I am proud of what I have achieved, I think that there were a few weaknesses in the project. For example, when I first started I felt like everything I wrote had to be an intensively researched, essay-like post which probably made everything sound a bit forced. As the project continued though, it became a much more natural process and I wasn’t afraid of posting up short blogs about a particular news article I may have found that day. If I could do the project over again, I would definitely approach it with a much more relaxed attitude.
Overall though, The Friedan Project turned out better than I had hoped. So much so that the conclusion of my media project class probably won’t mean the end for this blog.
The Friedan Project ignited something in me that I don’t think will be that easily extinguished. It gave me a creative outlet where I could read and write whatever I wanted whilst still passing it off as “study”- a refreshing change for a third year uni student.
But more than this, it helped me to straighten out my thoughts and organise my beliefs into something which feels much more meaningful than it did before. As Betty Friedan once said “The only way for a woman, as for a man, to find herself, to know herself as a person, is by creative work of her own. There is no other way”. The Friedan Project has done this for me.
It has given me a new identity as a feminist. It has made me feel as though I am part of something greater than myself- a movement that, as I learnt, is still moving and growing.
It did take a while to get to this new identity. One issue that I had when I started writing was that I felt as though I was all alone. Sure, there were a few old “classics” on my bookshelf (The feminine mystique and the second sex of course) and there were a few American websites I found, but there was nothing close-by to identify with. Nothing that was really “me”.
This started to change when I found the equality illusion by Kat Banyard which I have referenced a great number of times in my posts already. This book is much more modern and seemed to be echoing the same questions I had. But still, it was mostly based on British research, British interviews and British feminisms. I could find nothing Australian to identify with.
In more recent weeks however, the SlutWalk phenomenon has taken off in Australia and today, I went along to the one in Melbourne.
I have to say, it wasn’t quite what I expected. The media reports had made it sound like it was going to be filled with fishnet stockings and short skirts but it really wasn’t. Sure, there were a few people who dressed as outrageously as they could but overall most people were just in their everyday clothes.
There was also a much wider range of people than I expected. It wasn’t just the young and idealistic uni students like me- there were people of all ages, from all backgrounds and all sexualities. I was also very happy to see so many men supporting the cause.
By far the most overwhelming part however was the number of people that attended. Sitting here blogging from my home it’s easy to feel very alone in this movement but the SlutWalk today showed me that I am far from being alone in my beliefs. There were literally thousands and thousands of people taking to the streets today demanding an end to victim-blaming and slut-shaming.
Finally, Australia stood up and showed me that feminism isn’t dead in this country. It’s alive and well- it just took it’s time.
The event didn’t go off completely problem-free however. When the SlutWalkers made their way past Parliament, two lonely figures stood on the steps holding signs quoting the bible’s demand for women to dress modestly. The signs were soon torn from their hands and they were escorted away by police. This protest wasn’t the place to be messing with women. We were empowered and marching in our thousands against the very viewpoint that these two individuals were advocating for. They were never going to silence our calls.
I am also a bit disheartened by the media coverage of the event. There might have been a lot of it but most of it completely missed the point of the protest. The media has blamed the cold weather for the fact that most of the walkers were in jeans and jackets rather than the miniskirts they had anticipated. But the point of the SlutWalk was that we should be able to wear whatever we want so it was sad that the emphasis of the coverage was still on the way we dressed rather than the issue of victim blaming. I suppose this was to be expected after the event was given such a controversial name but it is frustrating nonetheless.
Even after the poor quality of media coverage and the clash on the steps of parliament, the day was still an outstanding success. The organisers, speakers and SlutWalkers should be very proud of themselves for bringing feminism back to the streets of Melbourne when I was all but convinced it had died out long ago.
For this feminist, The SlutWalk was an energizing experience and I hope the many other thousands of people there today feel the same way. This is just the beginning of something.
For those who may have followed The Friedan Project, I hope that what I have had to say has given you something to think about. If you’re interested in finding out more about feminism or about what to do if you feel you have been discriminated against, the following links may provide you with a place to start.
Feminist websites:
Where to go for help:
Getting men involved:
I think it is fitting to conclude The Friedan Project with a couple of quotes from Betty Friedan herself:
“A girl should not expect special privileges, because of her sex, but neither should she "adjust" to prejudice and discrimination.”“A woman has got to be able to say, and not feel guilty, 'Who am I, and what do I want out of life?' She mustn't feel selfish and neurotic if she wants goals of her own, outside of husband and children.”
The responsibility of finding out what we are missing out on is ours.
The responsibility of bringing about equality is ours.
We need to fight for it like we have never fought for anything before.
I hope you continue with this project. Its really inspirational. So impressed!
ReplyDeleteAw thanks! Thanks again for coming on Saturday. How good did the photos turn out?!
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