Insightful article by pro-life feminist Heather Wilhelm. Wilhelm is smart and attractive so when she claims to be a feminist we'll have to take her word for it. Here's an excerpt:
The problem, I suppose, is that most “real” feminists I know of—Caitlin Moran and Slate writers like Marcotte likely among them—would probably consider me a weapons-grade woman betrayer with a full-time residence on Planet Patriarchy. I am, after all, pro-life. I have been known to vote for Republicans. If you want to be a stay-at-home mom, I think that’s fine. If you want to be the CEO of Yahoo and say you’ll only take three weeks of maternity leave—interestingly, Mayer is getting pilloried for this decision as well—that’s fine too. I believe that casual sex is destructive, not empowering. I often don impractical footwear crafted by male oppressors.
I also generally shy away from celebrations of meaningless vulgarity, which, sadly, seems to be the leading theme in both Moran’s book and in the gigantic, flaming, multi-car pileup that is modern-day feminism. In “How to Be a Woman,” it’s OK to be a “slag” or a “slut,” as long as we’re “simply being honest about who we really are.” In interviews, Moran expresses approval for the recent rash of mortifying “Slut Walks,” in which young women strut down the street in ill-fitting, body-baring “clothing” in order to prove that they are empowered, not sexual objects. Which totally makes sense, if you’re crazy.
I see in Wilhelm's analysis the birth pangs of the new feminism that Pope John Paul II saw the need for.
I've blogged on this topic before and it is really near and dear to my heart. The "old feminism" has become crazy and senseless—decrying strip clubs yet favoring "slut walks"—and amid it's insane ravings, desperation may be easily sensed. Here's now new feminist Heather Wilhelm ends her article on the impending doom of the old feminism.
No wonder certain feminists are getting so wound up. They have reason to be worried. Something new is out there—conservatism, decorum, chastity, and respect are downright radical these days—but it’s not poor Gaga.
It also shouldn’t be all that surprising that more and more high-profile women are shrugging off the traditional “feminist” label. It’s gotten kind of embarrassing. “How to Be a Woman,” celebrated as it may be, shows off that fact in spades.
