I Was A Childhood Feminist #1

Finally, A Post About Gloria Steinem

Ask any feminist born during or after the tumultuous 60's and 70's who their hero is, and the answer will come back a resounding Gloria Steinem. 

Gloria Marie Steinem was born on March 25, 1934, and is widely regarded as the poster-child for the modern Women's Liberation Movement. As one of the many women inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame - along with Abigail Adams, Betty Friedan, Ella Fitzgerald, and my personal favorite, Susan B. Anthony - Steinem is a renowned journalist and political activist who has devoted her life to bringing humanitarian issues into the public scope.

After my life-altering decision to call myself a feminist, it felt almost automatic that I should look up to Gloria Steinem, the woman whose name graces every reputable feminist book and blog at least ten or fifteen times. It wasn't until after I started researching her life and accomplishments, however, that I felt my admiration snow-balling; with every new triumph for feminists (and humanitarians in general), I thought yes, this is my idol.

Interestingly enough, Steinem did not come from a feminist family, or even one that was particularly conscious of women's rights or societal issues. How, then, did she go on to become an animal rights activist, civil rights ambassador, political commentator, and “the face of feminism"?

When Steinem was just a few years old, her mother had a debilitating nervous breakdown that hurled her into a world of delusions. The woman couldn't hold a job - let alone take care of herself for any length of time - so her husband ended up divorcing her. While Steinem has made it clear that she doesn't blame her father for leaving, years of being forced to care for her mother opened her eyes to many of the injustices women faced and still face, such as constrictive gender stereotypes and horrifically low wages.

Since her unintentional "aha" moment all those decades ago, Steinem has become an irrefutable force with a list of achievements ten miles long. She co-founded Ms. Magazine, the first magazine written exclusively by women, for women. She campaigned for the Equal Rights Amendment, and many other laws that would seek to destroy gender discrimination. She's appeared in every major magazine from Newsweek, to Time, to People, to Parade, and has been a major contributing factor in introducing the feminist agenda to a larger audience. She was arrested in 1984 for protesting apartheid in South Africa (which, like our nation’s own bought of racial segregation in the early-to-mid 1900's, is the forced separation of people based on ancestry), and has worked closely with countless organizations such as the Women's Media Center, Equality Now, Choice USA, the National Women's Political Caucus, the Planned Parenthood Action Fund, and First Peoples Worldwide.

When did she find time to breathe, I wonder?

To think that one woman - no, one person - accomplished all this is just mind-boggling. For a split second it makes me think "and what have YOU accomplished, Danielle?" but then I realize I still have another seventy or eighty years (keep your fingers crossed!) to follow in Steinem's footsteps. She is such an inspiration: it's one thing to be a loud, proud feminist nowadays when there are hundreds of thousands of women to back you up, but it was something entirely different to be a progressive (some would say "radical") feminist in an era when the woman's place was undisputedly in the home. I admire Steinem for her courage to stand up when few others did, for her ambition to take on the world without letting sexist stereotypes or expectations deter her, and for the fact that, even now, she doesn't give a flying fig about what people think of her.

When one thinks of our nation’s earliest pioneers of women's rights, they may think of the iconic Sister Suffragette made famous in the 1964 film Mary Poppins: prim, proper, middle-aged, white. While the suffragettes of the late 1800’s and early 1900’s did do unbelievable things for our country, Steinem took women's liberation a step further by grabbing feminist stereotypes by the horns. She chose to study politics in lieu of marriage and raising a family, showing that women are capable of making it on their own. She was one of the first people to tackle traditionally taboo subjects such as domestic violence, abortion, and genital mutilation, and gained a cult following for her insightful journalist pieces on said topics. She even used humor to deny (and perhaps stun) those who believed feminists are all stuffy, hairy hags who sit around drinking tea and thinking up what to complain about next. “Gloria Steinem” and “Women’s Liberation” are almost synonymous; Steinem is a pioneer, role model, and modern-day Superwoman.

If I’ve learned anything from Gloria Steinem, it’s simply to accept yourself for who you are. I mean, after claiming the feminist label a million thoughts ran through my mind: what will people think of me? What will my friends say, or my parents? Will people look at me differently in the future? Will they understand? It was almost as if my entire success as a feminist was dependent on how others viewed me. Isn’t that messed up? But after reading about Steinem and her amazing history, I knew she never cared about what people thought about her. Whether they worshipped her, mocked her, exalted her, or despised her, it had absolutely nothing to do with who she was as a person. So, in a way, Gloria Steinem has helped me to accept myself for who I am, and simply be.

Works Cited

"Gloria Steinem Biography." Biography.com. A&E Television Networks. Web. 29 Sept. 2010.

"GLORIA STEINEM." Feminist.com. Feminist.com. Web. 28 Sept. 2010.

"Gloria Steinem." The Women's Conference - Empowerment, Inspiration and Education for Women - The Home for Architects of Change. Web. 29 Sept. 2010.

"The Official Website of Author and Activist Gloria Steinem - Groups." The Official Website of Author and Activist Gloria Steinem. Gloria Steinem. Web. 29 Sept. 2010.

"Women of the Hall." National Women's Hall of Fame. Web. 29 Sept. 2010.

"Jewish? And feminist? Did I hear you right?"

No, I'm not Jewish. But a good friend of mine is, and when I posed the question "can feminism and religion truly coexist?" she was the first person to step up to the plate.

I consider myself a Unitarian Universalist, humanitarian, secular humanist - whatever you want to call it - so I know next to nothing about the inner mechanations of the major world religions. I wanted to write about feminism and Christianity, feminism and Islam, feminism and Buddhism (and so on), but it would be pretty hypocritical/stupid of me to try to write when I'm not "on the inside," if that makes sense.

Here to speak on behalf of Judaism is my good friend Talia, authoress of a blog cleverly titled Star of Davida. Talia describes herself as "A loudmouth, opinionated teenage Femidox (feminist Orthodox) Jew with a love of unadulterated Judaism, a fascination with her people's historical women, and way too much time on her hands," so you can bet her blog is worth checking out!

Here's what she said in response to my question:

"In June, someone asked me what my summer plans were. 'Well, I’m going to work on my Jewish feminist blog Star of Davida,' I replied. The person I was talking to looked confused. I could tell he was holding back from saying, 'Jewish? And feminist? Did I hear you right?'

It’s a reaction I’ve gotten from quite a few people; no one seems to be able to comprehend an Orthodox Jewwho’s also a feminist. I find it kind sad that Judaism, a religion that is so feminist, has been labeled as a patriarchal, sexist religion when it’s really not. The Torah, the central holy book of Judaism, continually affirms women’s equality.

When the Jews were given the Torah, God said to Moses, “So shall you say to the House of Jacob and the Children of Israel” (Exodus 19:3). The term “Children of Israel” is how the Bible refers to the Jewish nation, so commentators question the seemingly-extra “House of Jacob.” Most explain that “House of Jacob” refers to the women, while “Children of Israel” refers to the men. The commentators (who lived in medieval communities not famed for being pro-feminist) next question why it puts the women before the men.

At Creation, God created Adam and told him not to eat from the Tree of Knowledge. God then created Eve, but did not tell her to abstain from the Tree directly, leaving it to Adam to pass on the message. The snake was then able to convince Eve to eat from the Tree of Knowledge, Eve convinced Adam, and the two were expelled from the Garden of Eden.

Seeing how it didn’t work out so well when God didn’t command womankind, God made up for it and commanded the women first at the giving of the Torah. It worked this time: when Moses didn’t come down from Mount Sinai on the expected date and the Jews created the Golden Calf as his replacement, the women didn’t participate.

This is one example of many in Judaism that shows that neither men nor women should have supremacy. Having ovaries does not make someone less of a person, and Judaism is fully aware of the fact. God wants equality for all people, of any gender, race, or religion."

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Well, what's your opinion? Can feminism and religion truly coexist? Whether you're Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, athiest, agnostic, or a Unitarian like me, send me your answers! I'd love to hear from you and publish your thoughts in an upcoming post, along with your name, blog, and anything else you'd like to promote. Check out the submission rules here.

Pat Robertson's NOPE (Parody of Obama's HOPE)

Here's a little piece I whipped up for my AP Language and Composition class. We're studying parodies . . . but I was totally serious when I made this. *laughs* Pat Robertson is my nemesis, and I kid you not, that's exactly what I said during my presentation! My teacher really appreciated that.

Here are some lovely videos of Pat Robertson, well, just bein' himself!

Pat Robertson Being Himself
Pat Robertson . . ."Blessing in Disguise"
Falwell and Robertson . . . After 9/11

Make sure you watch the last one. Ol' Patty is talking with a guy who claims feminism is "an alternative lifestyle," and that we (and "the abortionists") caused God to punish us with the 9/11 attacks.

I'm Back (Kind Of . . . )

Hey everybody! It's been a while since my last post, so I thought I owed you all an explanation. I've been back at school for about a month now, and boy, it doesn't get any easier, does it? My routine has basically been waking up 6:00, going to school, getting home at around 5:30, taking a nap, doing homework until the wee hours of the morning, crashing, and then starting the cycle all over again. In short, I haven't had much time to relax, let alone write.

Though I don't think I'll be cranking out epics anytime soon, I thought up a pretty ingenious plan. To make school a little more bearable, I've been bringing my passions (i.e. read the rest of this blog) into the classroom. A week or two ago we had to write an article as if we were a "muckraker" back in the late 1800's exposing a dire issue; I wrote about women's rights. In my Interpersonal Relationships class we had to do a presentation on "someone we admire"; I did mine on Gloria Steinem. Even today we were assigned to write a satirical piece on a current societal issue; my topic is abortion. I figure: when given a choice, I'll relate my schoolwork to the issues that I actually care about, and then I can just post 'em up on here! Genius, pure genius . . .

On an unrelated note, I'm extremely excited for Real Beauty Revolution this year. For those of you who don't know, I started at club called Real Beauty Revolution at my high school, and it's for anyone who's interested in gender equality, body image, media stereotypes, relationships, self-esteem . . . you know, the juicy stuff. Though I've been having a heckuva time getting the word out, I think the club has had a good start. We only had about ten people at our first meeting (half of which were my friends, so they don't really count!), but it was really intense. We did some of the activities from If You Really Knew Me and saw that, wow, we're all dealing with crap in our lives. We talked about how people at school never stop to get to know the real us - that we're always stuck in a reputation, an image - but we're so much more than that. The first meeting saw a lot of tears, but I think that's so important in getting people to realize RBR is a safe place to talk, and vent, and most importantly, encourage one another.

We had our second meeting yesterday and I am ecstatic to report that we had almost twenty people attend! Our discussion topic for the day was "true beauty," so we looked at ridiculous ads that try to tell us how we "should" look. Bigger breasts. Plastic surgery. Virtually no fat cells. It's exhausting to be a women sometimes when we're tirelessly bombarded with these messages, but we don't have to let them control us. Next, we wrote our fears and insecurities on balloons and stomped on 'em . . . it was really fun and loud. I only hoped the administrators didn't come running into the breezeway thinking shots were being fired *smiles*

Anyway, that's my life right now. School, homework, Real Beauty Revolution. I'll try to write some original pieces in the near future when I actually get some free time, but for right now you'll have to settle for recycled History and English assignments!

"Souls Speak Out" Against Domestic Violence

Sexual and domestic violence is all-too-real for many women across the United States (and the world), though most of us can't even fathom what must go through a woman's mind as she is being abused and left to deal with the lingering emotional trauma, or in some cases, (undeserved) guilt. If you've been affected by domestic violence and/or sexual abuse and would like to share your story, or read stories from other survivors, check out SoulSpeakOut:

"SoulSpeakOut is a space for survivors of all ages, genders, sexualities, cultural identities, nationalities, and abilities who have experienced sexual assault, domestic violence, incest, child sexual abuse, sexual harassment or any other violation of one’s body or sense of self to connect, validate and empower each other. Either anonymously or by name, survivors are encouraged to submit stories, testimonies, poetry or artwork concerning their experiences."

Women know that when we talk, we're not always looking for a solution. Sometimes we talk so we can heal, and so others will listen, and that's enough.

My Interview on "Feminists For Choice"

I recently had the pleasure of being interviewed on Feminists For Choice, a site that puts a spotlight on young activists to see what inspires them. Check out this excerpt:

"Feminist Conversations is a weekly column where we talk to feminists from around the country to find out what Feminism means to them, and what types of activism they’re up to in their neck of the woods. Today we’re talking to Danielle Burch, founder of a new blog called Experimentations of a Teenage Feminist. Danielle is a teenager, humanist, Unitarian, progressive rock lover, compulsive doodler, worry-wart, and rice cake junkie. Here’s what Danielle said when I caught up with her.

When did you start your blog, and what was your inspiration?

I started Experimentations of a Teenage Feminist back in June. School had just ended, giving me plenty of time to tackle the 10-foot-high stack of feminist books I’d checked out from the library (but had been too busy to read), and I honestly felt like I was on top of the world. I like to call this my “aha!” period. I felt so good about my new discovery – a philosophy that encompassed the beliefs I’ve had since childhood – that I was bursting with an energy that desperately needed an outlet. My blog allows me to vent, rant, muse, gush, and decompress, and it was literally my “coming out” as a writer and feminist. In one fell swoop I went from a girl who cringed at the thought of letting people read her English papers (let alone her personal thoughts), to someone who was shouting “Hello World!” from the rooftops. It was absolutely liberating.

When did you first call yourself a feminist, and what influenced that decision?

Though I’ve always been a stickler for women’s rights (human rights, actually), it took me years to discover feminism. But now that I have, I’m turning into the strong, compassionate, courageous person I’ve always aspired to be – and I’m loving every minute of it!

I’m the typical “I’ve-always-been-a-feminist-I-just-didn’t-know-it” case. As far back as I can remember, I’ve been disgusted by discrimination – racism, classism, homophobia – but sexism hits especially close to home. Once I started becoming aware of the stigmas and stereotypes women face on a daily basis – most notably sexist crap in the media – I was shocked and appalled, but didn’t know what to do about it. About four months ago I started researching activist groups online, and I’m so glad that I did. It only took about two seconds after reading the definitions for “feminist” that popped up on Google to decide my place in life . . ."


(Continued)


Check out the full-length article to find out what feminism means to me, why I don't think more teenagers are calling themselves the "f-word," and which famous feminist I'd meet if I had the chance!

I'd Like To "Juice" Jose Canseco's Head

Hey everybody, I'd just like to make a disclaimer that because I'm back in school, I won't be able to post as frequently as I'd like to. (But don't blame me, blame the two hours of Calculus homework we're getting each night!) Anyway, here's my response to another article by Maureen Dowd called Where's the Road Beef?:

In this article by Maureen Dowd, we’re given a glimpse into the world of major league baseball via Jose Canseco’s Juiced, where behind the glitz, glam, and bobble-heads, America’s boys of summer are using terms like slump buster and road beef to describe women. What is a slump buster, you ask? “It could mean [a woman who is] big, or ugly, or a combination of both,” says Canseco, and it’s how some of our beloved hard-hitters are coping with a bad season. As former Chicago Cubs first baseman Mark Grace put it, they’ll find “the fattest, gnarliest chick” possible and (to put it lightly) use them.

I use toilet paper. I didn’t know it was acceptable to use human beings.

Dowd’s article isn’t exclusively about Canseco and friends; in the grand scheme of things it’s about archaic standards of beauty, and the stigmas overweight women face each and every day. As she points out, “TV is full of ‘Beauty and the Beast’ pairings, with fat, lazy husbands and foxy, impressive wives.” But do we ever acknowledge relationships between slender guys and larger women? No. We live in a society where women are judged by their looks and men for the size of their wallets, and heaven forbid we reveal the face of “real” women who don’t have money to shell out for liposuction, implants, or Botox - and who wouldn’t want those things, anyway.

This article hits home because I can relate to it. I’m sure a lot of women and young girls can relate to it. Feeling like an outcast, feeling like your worth is determined by your body . . . it’s an unfortunate, unavoidable reality. And even if Dowd doesn’t call us to do anything to change the mentalities of locker rooms everywhere, her last line deserves an Emmy: “One thing is for sure, though. Guys who look at fat women as ‘slump busters’ are fatheads.”

Fbomb, Smart Girls, and Ruby the Feminist

Gosh, I can't even remember what it was like before Fbomb waltzed into my life. If you've been living under a rock (kidding, of course), Fbomb is one of the most well-known (and kick-ass) sites for young feminist writers to vent their frustrations, debate, and ultimately validate each other's women-can-do-anything attitudes. Heck, it feels pretty good to know teen feminists aren't a dying breed!

Anyway, I was making my daily rounds when I came across a link posted for a site called Smart Girls at the Party; I had to check it out.

Lo and behold, Smart Girls at the Party is great! Sure, it feels like it's aimed more at the 6-to-12 demographic than at disgruntled teens surfing the Web at 2:00 in the morning, but thumbing through the videos - all about young girls and their endeavors as engineers, gardeners, something called a "yogini" - I just felt good. The site is all about recognizing girls who "change the world by being themselves," and come on, how could that not make you feel warm and fuzzy inside?

But what really touched me - more than the cutesy site design or learning that Amy Poehler is a feminist(!) - was this video about a seven-and-three-quarters-year-old girl named Ruby.

Not only is Ruby a singer, dancer, actress, skateboarder (and future president, I'm assuming), she is a serious advocate for women's rights and self-proclaimed feminist, wrote a book in kindergarten that asserts if boys can do it, so can I, and has even met the legendary Gloria Steinem.

It sounds kind of stupid, but I envy Ruby - not only for her unfailing optimism and the fact she found convictions at such a young age - but for her innocence. Ruby thinks feminism is the greatest thing in the world, she has the fundamental belief that girls and boys are equal, she's armored against all the idiotic feminist stereotypes out there - and if she's not, she doesn't seem to care about them. I'll admit, sometimes I wonder "what will so-and-so think of me now that they know I'm a feminist?" But seeing this video, I want to be more like Ruby and stop freaking doubting myself.

Watch the video, 'kay? It'll make you feel good.

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If you decide to join Smart Girls at the Party, look me up! Here's the link to my profile!

Want a better chance of getting married, ladies?

Part of our summer homework for AP Language and Composition was to find ten op-ed (opinion-editorial) articles and respond to them. I wasn't looking forward to it until I realized The New York Times website has a nifty feature where you can "search" for any topic that happens to suit your fancy. I looked up "feminism" and that was it. My next three hours were pretty much set, reading up on tons of issues that I actually care about (sorry politics, I'm just not that into you). One of the best writers I've come across is Maureen Dowd, who infuses humor and a down-to-earth personality into whatever she's writing. Here's my response to her article Men Just Want Mommy:

Maureen Dowd certainly didn’t unearth the alarming trend of men preferring secretaries, assistants, and nannies (among other subservient roles) over successful, career-minded women, but she describes the plight with enough statistics and wit to leave me sufficiently scared for the future. According to countless studies all over the world, men prefer “young women whose job it was to tend to them and care for them in some way.” Dowd muses: “it’s all about orbiting, serving, and salaaming their Sun Gods.”

The sad thing is, women who strive for top corporate positions and six-figure salaries are often stereotyped as manly, aggressive, vain, insensitive, and neglectful of their familial duties. As Dowd observes, “art is imitating life, turning women who seek equality into selfish narcissists and objects of rejection, rather than affection.”

These feelings are never more apparent than in Hollywood, where the “soothing aura of romances between unequals” brings in the big bucks. How many movies can you think of have a leading man falling for his nanny, secretary, maid? Now how many can you think of where said man falls for his (female) boss?* Men are intimidated, it seems, by women who are competitive and self-sufficient, as if they’re incapable of also being friendly, nurturing, and compassionate. This certainly isn’t what feminists have in mind for “equality;” is it fair that women are penalized for being smart, independent, and pro-active, when men are respected for it?

Like always, Dowd uses hardcore facts to put things in perspective. For example, it would probably scare (scar?) a lot of single ladies to know that, according to a study conducted at four British universities, “the prospect for marriage [increases] by 35 percent for guys for each 16-point increase in I.Q.; for women, there is a 40 percent drop for each 16-point rise.”

Well that’s... ridiculous, sexist, and little disheartening.

Our conclusion, however, shouldn’t be to dumb ourselves down (possibly by listening to Pat Robertson for five seconds?) until we’re “desirable enough” for a man. We should strive to be all that we can, and if a guy comes along who just happens to love and appreciate our hard work and incandescent personalities . . . great.

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*I'd like to point out that the only movie I know featuring a man falling for his boss is Bob the Butler, which I'm pretty sure was pulled from the Disney Channel for a scene involving Tom Green's nipples.