| Salaam writes: Cycads, who is perhaps the only blogger - Malaysian or otherwise - doing feminist analysis of life in that country, has written a piece about why the feminism movement has been stillborn there.
Cycads writes, "Feminism was, and still is, the temporally-frozen, bra-burning, anti-men boogiewoman of the general Malaysian imagination." American political progressives will immediately recognize this as the legendary DFH (Dirty F***ing Hippy) stereotype that US rightwingers are always throwing around to freeze out progressive/leftist alternative ideas.
Anyway, herewith follows an excerpt of Cycad's attempt to address and respond to the criticisms and fears of feminism:
Conversations with Malaysian anti-feminists are almost always destined to doom. But I think it's only fair that we understand their grievances by teasing out their usual beef with gender equality.
Feminism is a Western, secular ideology. (This includes claims of feminism as elitist)
This is a good enough reason to forget about feminism altogether for many. Truth is, third-world, indigenous concepts of feminisms are growing in numbers around the world and are constantly in negotiations between non-racist, non-patronising feminist frameworks and local cultures in many societies.
Feminism has failed in its objective and fragmented into in-fighting groups.
Many developed nations that are pro-women in law and socially have struggled to establish equal pay between the sexes and to achieve a greater female presence in the top ranks of politics. These issues are still being addressed and debated in the public sphere, and are not the failings of feminism. Feminism is a political movement, and is bound to break into different sub-ideologies based on values that are not represented by constituted powers-that-be. These values, of course, sometimes do not see eye to eye, like socialist feminism vs lipstick feminism for example.
The Superwoman is a myth.
The woman who has it all: a family and a great career, is often blamed for family breakdown, neglected children, high rates of singlehood, and late motherhood, among other things. We still live in a culture that often turns a blind eye to neglectful fathers and castigates women for delaying marriage and motherhood in favour of high-flying careers. Men are congratulated for being a father at 80 - just don't expect the same for women. Yes, I know that women are normally not fertile at 80, but the risk of miscarriage and fathering a child with congenital defects such as autism and schizophrenia increases for men beyond the of 35. So everyone has a biological clock. Bummer for you and me.
Feminism supports the right to abortion.
That means ending the life of an innocent human being for anti-choicers. Now, feminism sees that women should be given the right to her every aspect of her body, and that includes terminating an unwanted pregnancy. Abortion is never an easy decision to make. It is traumatic, painful, and risky.
Feminism is to blame for all that gender role confusion and so-called social construct stuff. (This includes supporting the sexuality rights of LGBQT groups).
Girls are not hardwired to play with make-up and the mini washing machine, and boys are not born to shoot and kill. Children brought up with gender specific toys grow up internalising their respective roles. As a result, men don't expect to do the washing, sewing, or cooking, and women are not expected to work with power tools.
Feminism justifies morally-questionable acts of empowerment.
Can pole dancing, shopping sprees, and binging on alcohol be empowering? This is something that might have little to do with what feminism stands for, that is against oppression and exploitation. If women choose to sexually exploit themselves and submit to oppressive standards of beauty for the enjoyment of men, let them.
Feminism encourages women to compete rather than working with men and then take over the world.
Not like that is a bad thing, of course, but this is born out of an ancient male insecurity of female sexuality and its power to give birth, hence the need to contain it. |
