Poll on Feminism

Playing anti-fem bingo with me again?

This needs "feminism = fascism"

I'll try and find the stats, but I say that on stats I've read before.

Not necessarily. That's an assumption. She might be, but you also get people who dress like that who aren't. Why is she more likely to claim false rape? Even if she was more up for sex, why would she be inclined to lie about it?

It is horrendous. It isn't fair. I really do not see the relevance of judging someone by what they're wearing in this way

1) Nothing. I'm not disagreeing with that

2 How? Why could someone's sexual history be relevant? If someone;s into casual sex, and is raped, should they be disbelieved because of it? It would be appropriate to ask any questions about where she was, what she did, her version, anything that contradicts. Just not about what she wears or sexual history.

I am very fed up with how sexist I feel the general atmosphere we live in is these days

Are you suggesting it was less sexist in the past?

Objectification of women is a fantastic way to sell things, as is the Victorian model of gender roles. A huge amount of sexualised advertising and t.v. etc. is now seen by young children and so lots more young boys are growing up thinking it's super funny to tell a girl to get back in the kitchen or discuss her body as one might talk about livestock. That's all fine now.

In the recent past, yes I am. The recession has really exacerbated it (along with homophobia and racism). Popular culture has gone through a series of metamorphoses and is now reverting to a more sexist phase. When my parents were my age, government policy was more sexist than it is now, because people held sexist values and justified them as 'traditional'. At that time there was a reasonably widespread popular movement towards gender equality - condemning the objectification of women and challenging the rigid definitions of gender roles. That trend has reversed to a noticeable extent and in my opinion, that has largely to do with the fact that what is presented to us depends on who can pay the most. Who can pay the most are large companies wanting to sell things. The target group for selling things to is now everyone, from newborn babies to dead people. Objectification of women is a fantastic way to sell things, as is the Victorian model of gender roles. A huge amount of sexualised advertising and t.v. etc. is now seen by young children and so lots more young boys are growing up thinking it's super funny to tell a girl to get back in the kitchen or discuss her body as one might talk about livestock. That's all fine now. Young girls are growing up with some chronic role models, and the way they LOOK is strikingly sexualised and homogenised. The culture of lazy sexism is stripping them of the confidence to be individuals. It's really hard not to get sucked in my all this ****. I'm an active feminist and I have to consciously stop myself saying sexist things sometimes because you just hear this stuff around you all the time. This is not paranoia. If you think that what you are shown in films, on t.v., in magazines, in songs etc. doesn't affect your behaviour you are either admirably self-aware or just naïve.

(sorry, didn't realise how much I wrote...)

I think you'll find a huge amount of "man-bashing" in advertisements, too, whereby men are portrayed as buffoons, often directly being shown as being outsmarted by women, and female-male violence is glorified (think, girl kicks guys in the nuts).

Personally, I don't think things like sexualised advertising are necessarily bad.
In 1990 rape within marriage was still legal. Clearly things have improved, even recently.

Sexualised advertising is damaging because now we see more advertising EVERYWHERE than at any other time in history, and the audience has been extended to kids to the extend that it changes (negatively) the way they think about themselves and interact.

That's sexism too. That's as negative a thing to see.

So why focus only on that which is sexist against women? Also, are men not sexualised, too? I agree that men tend to sexualise women more (while women use men for money more), but I see plenty of topless, muscular men, adorned with big biceps and six-packs (and am most definitely not complaining, on this front ) in the media. I can't say that, these days, I see a HUGE difference, when it comes to the extent to which men and women will be shown scantily-clad.

So why focus only on that which is sexist against women? Also, are men not sexualised, too? I agree that men tend to sexualise women more (while women use men for money more), but I see plenty of topless, muscular men, adorned with big biceps and six-packs (and am most definitely not complaining, on this front ) in the media. I can't say that, these days, I see a HUGE difference, when it comes to the extent to which men and women will be shown scantily-clad.

I've seen that so many times Such a predictable response.

So why focus only on that which is sexist against women? Also, are men not sexualised, too? I agree that men tend to sexualise women more (while women use men for money more), but I see plenty of topless, muscular men, adorned with big biceps and six-packs (and am most definitely not complaining, on this front ) in the media. I can't say that, these days, I see a HUGE difference, when it comes to the extent to which men and women will be shown scantily-clad.