How to Be a Feminist in the Twenty-First Century
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How to Be a Feminist in the Twenty-First Century Georgia Christinidis (University of Rostock) Feminism, the Assault on Women’s Times on 20 October 2017, that Reproductive Rights, and Sexual “feminism”, as a purely western credo Harassment born in America of postwar affluence, is no longer particularly relevant, to me or to n 2006, feminist cri- others. The principle of equality between Itic Toril Moi claimed that the sexes is now sturdily enshrined within a general notion of liberal human We are witnessing the emergence of a whole rights; feminism has done its work there new generation of women who are careful to preface every gender-related claim that seems laughable to me at a time when just might come across as unconventional there is a backlash against those very with “I am not a feminist, but_”. rights, with various incarnations of It is a familiar phrase; one that I suspect the alt-right leading the assault while everyone who teaches gender and/or decrying what they often refer to as feminism has heard their students use “gender madness”, and purportedly at least occasionally. In the face of the ‘mainstream’ politicians like US assumptions usually implicit in this President Donald Trump, President disavowal of feminism, that feminists of Brazil Jair Bolsonaro, and Prime are “strident” or unreasonable in their Minister of Hungary Viktor Orbán not demands, or, on the other hand, that far, if at all, behind. A central goal of the feminism has nothing more to offer alt-right seems to be to curtail women’s contemporary women because its aims reproductive rights; this ties in both have long been achieved, I find it not with the patriarchal view of the family only easy but necessary and urgent to frequently espoused by its members, and self-identify as a feminist. To argue, with its claim that the comparatively low as Jan Dalley did in the Financial rates of childbirth among ‘white’ women Page 127 Hard Times 102 (2/2018) How to Be a Feminist in the Twenty-First Century amount to a form of genocide. Their Great Britain, between 65% and 93% anti-abortion stance unites prominent of the population support the legality members of the alt-right, like Steve of abortion, depending on the reason Bannon, with traditional conservatives why a pregnancy is to be terminated, a like Gloria Prinzessin von Thurn und majority of the population of Northern Taxis. Donald Trump’s nominations Ireland think abortion should be illegal of ultra-conservative candidates to the if a woman does not want the child, Supreme Court have given rise to concern but support its legalisation in cases that Roe v. Wade, the case in which it was of rape, incest, or foetal abnormality found, in 1973, that State legislation (Taylor 2017). The legality of abortion banning abortion was unconstitutional, within the US is supported by 58% may be overturned in the near future. of the population, a relatively small An increasing number of Republican- majority (“Public Opinion” 2018), and controlled states are banning abortion anti-choice movements are increasingly after the first six weeks of pregnancy. using the popular media in their effort to turn people against women’s right to lbeit abortion has been legal in Great choose. On 29 March 2019, the film ABritain for over fifty years, it remains Unplanned opened at 800 US cinemas. It is based on the memoirs of Abby Johnson, a former employee of the NGO Planned Parenthood turned anti-abortion activist. Johnson denounces Planned Parenthood for profiting from abortions and argues that the legality of abortion does not in fact empower women. It is one of a wave of anti-abortion movies. While it may be tempting to dismiss these developments as primarily confined to the bible belt of the © Tiocfaidh ár lá 1916, taken June 2017 United States or historically Catholic Anti-DUP march in London countries like Ireland, Hungary, or Brazil, the anti-abortion message illegal in Northern Ireland. The DUP, is not confined to single-issue movies currently at centre stage of UK politics like Unplanned; rather, it is becoming due to the Brexit deadlock, are strongly prevalent in the mainstream media. anti-abortion in their stance. While in Page 128 Hard Times 102 (2/2018) Georgia Christinidis he Twilight franchise is, perhaps, its share of criticism due to the high Tthe most successful instance of visibility entailed by its exceptional this development. In 2012, Dorothy popularity, its politics are most clear- Pomerantz wrote in Forbes that sightedly summarised not by a liberal critic, but by the conservative James P. [o]verall, the films have earned $2.5 billion at the global box office. You can probably Pinkerton in a celebratory article that double that number when you include appeared on Fox News in 2010. He DVD sales, cable and television showings exults in the fact that “Bella, the classic and the gobs of merchandise sold annually. damsel in distress, relies on men to protect her, and she will reward only The protagonists, human teenager Bella one with her virginity—and, of course, and vampire Edward, wait until their at the same time, her hand in marriage.” wedding night to have sex, a decision Pinkerton reads the Twilight films as a that is motivated in the story by Edward paean to Authority with a capital A, and having been born as a human in the suggests that by watching them, kids early twentieth century and therefore will receive “Conservative Imprinting”. being old-fashioned. When Bella gets pregnant and her life is threatened by y comparison with the immensely the half-vampire baby who is effectively Bpopular Twilight-franchise, The eating her from the inside, she refuses Frankenstein Chronicles has largely to terminate the pregnancy, albeit her remained below the radar of critical and vampire in-laws unanimously advise her academic commentary. The critically- to do so. She explicitly states that she is acclaimed series was first broadcast on willing to sacrifice her own life for that of ITV in 2015, but has since been picked her baby - and her choice of words, too, up by Netflix. Set in an 1827 London is significant here. Though it is Bella’s where a serial killer inspired by Victor choice not to have an abortion, and Frankenstein’s experiments dismembers author of the Twilight books, Stephenie and reassembles the bodies of street Meyers, therefore, argues that the story urchins, one of its central characters is a is not anti-feminist, all other characters poor, underage girl, Flora, who is made consistently use the term foetus, while drunk and impregnated by a surgeon. Bella vehemently insists that what she is In dealing with this plotline, the series carrying, a few weeks after conception, is rehashes many of the tropes invoked by a baby. Her choice of term is consistent anti-choice activists. Flora wants to “get with the anti-choice movement’s rid of the baby”, but Marlot, a retired contention that a fertilised egg is a officer who investigates the case of the human baby as soon as conception has murdered children on behalf of the taken place. Albeit Twilight has garnered Page 129 Hard Times 102 (2/2018) How to Be a Feminist in the Twenty-First Century Home Secretary, as well as his Constable presumably not an organisation prone sidekick, Nightingale, want to protect her to spreading ‘fake news’ or conspiracy unborn child and place her in the care of a theories, finds that anti-choice extremists practitioner of alternative medicine. The within Europe collaborate in a highly latter, Daniel Harvey, however, is pro- organised, systematic, and deliberate choice and provides Flora with herbal manner, with the declared goal of remedies that induce a miscarriage. “roll[ing] back human rights for sexual Nightingale, albeit distraught, assures and reproductive health in Europe” her that God will forgive her if she (Datta 2018). They affirm that the repents, in a manner that is reminiscent Agenda Europe “movement would force of the “hate the sin but love the sinner”- women to carry unwanted pregnancies, rhetoric of fundamentalist anti-LGBT restrict access to contraception, decide rights activists. Flora herself is full of who can marry and decide who can regrets for killing her “baby”. Most call themselves a family. Many will be importantly, however, while Flora’s surprised that they also target divorce actions are represented as driven by and access to IVF treatment.” Though the desperation, Daniel Harvey, the only 100 to 150 members of the “clandestine” character who explicitly advocates a network that the Forum was able to woman’s right to choose, turns out to identify may sound like a small number, be the psychopathic child killer whom it appears to enjoy significant levels of Marlot has been pursuing. Furthermore, support among wealthy players willing his sister, Marlot’s love interest, who is to bankroll its strategies, including represented in unambiguously positive members of the European aristocracy terms in the series, clearly considers like Otto von Hapsburg. According the fact that her brother helped Flora to the report, Agenda Europe’s to-do to induce a miscarriage to be just as list includes points like “Repeal all monstrous as his dismemberment of laws allowing divorce”, “Prohibit sale the street children that he uses in his of all pharmaceutical contraceptives” Frankenstein-inspired experiments. and, of course, they would like to see “Abortion bans in all jurisdictions, he salience of anti-abortion topoi including in international law”. The Tin the popular media is not merely report suggests that Agenda Europe evidence of ‘residual’ attitudes that has hitherto been significantly more may safely be shrugged off.