Why do we need feminism? Has feminism gone too far?

This is for people who might question if we really need feminism - and for the people who are about to despair at the state of the world and wonder: Is anything even getting better?

Did feminism go to far or not far enough?

So many times, especially in the last few months, I have been filled with so much hopelessness. On the one hand, I see people comment how unnecessary feminism is, how it went too far… while on the other hand, women tell me they don’t know what to do with their rage against this whole system. It chews away at their energy levels and fills them with despair.

Here is some perspective to answer the question above:

It is crucial to remember that many of the feminist achievements that we now see as our daily reality are actually really quite recent. The people who didn’t want you to own a credit card, a bank account, a job, be able to get a divorce, or own a house—they are still alive or just about to die. Our society was built by the same men who barred women from voting, arguing with studies of the brain comparing our intelligence to that of a chicken (yes, that happened).

Their children grew up with this bias (consciously or subconsciously reproducing it), and the families who had the most influence back then still have it today. These people, men and some women, are now occupying all the important seats. And those holding the most power then lift up people who resemble them and share their beliefs.

The people with a sexist bias are still in positions of power.

They decide on the school curriculum. How we teach sex education, what books are seen as noteworthy, how to interpret art and whose art is shown, who is hired as a teacher and what is the appropriate way to teach. They decide on the salaries, hiring processes, work hours, paternity leave, insurance packages. They decide on medical studies, giving out grants for research, hiring the staff who do the research. The old worldview seeps into everything. Even little things we don’t consider, like how seat belts are less safe for women because they were tested on men and men are built differently. Patriarchy is everywhere.

Of course we still live in a patriarchy.

The world you are living in was built around the idea that men have more value than women. We are not represented in medical research, history, art, literature, sports—you name it. Our contributions have been erased and suppressed.

So if you feel like things are not changing or question if we really need feminism, be aware that the structure around you is still very much built by people who wouldn’t want you to be able to speak in public, hold a political position, or have a job besides being a mother.

We live in exciting and excruciating times. Don’t give up. And don’t believe that we don’t need you in this movement. Feminism is important and it just takes a lot more time to dismantle the patriarchal structure the world has been built on.

Don’t feel comfortable describing your self as a feminist? Here is a post for you.