The Right To....
Before this course, my assumptions were that feminists were females fighting for women’s rights. Other than that, I knew nothing. I knew that I thought it was important, but I had no idea to what extent feminism really stretches. I was raised on a farm in a house with two younger sisters and a mother and a father who both worked. When I was first born my parents were both in Graduate School in Green Bay. My mother was student teaching, so my father had to take me to classes with him. I grew up in a household where my father taught us the things he did around the house and I played with Lincoln logs and bugs outside rather than Barbie dolls. My parents have always told my sisters and I that we are able to do anything that we put our minds to, no matter the stereotypes that accompany that particular dream.
From reading these articles and chapters, I realize how lucky I am. I realize not only how lucky I am to grow up in such a motivational and loving family, but also to be growing up in the time that I am. I have so many opportunities at my fingertips, and it is because of the powerful people with voices who have come before me. I have them to thank for the mentality that my parents have passed on to me. My mother went through natural childbirth in my parent's home in Green Bay with me, and she is proud to have accomplished such a birth. Reading of the limited options and sometimes forced operations that took place in 1970 was appalling. “If a woman goes under the knife to see if she has breast cancer, the surgeon won’t wake her up to consult about her options before performing a Halsted mastectomy…� (Baumgardner and Richards 8) was the most shocking, depressing statement that I read. It is said that this procedure was a “disfiguring and debilitating surgery [that] was performed on virtually every woman who presented with the disease, regardless of the degree of the cancer's severity at the time of diagnosis.� (Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Society). To know that these women could wake up and find the “the choice had been made for her� (Baumgarder and Richards 9) really represents how unequal the times were. My mother had the option of natural childbirth in her home because of the movement for women's rights to chioce. I look forward to being able to make such choices for myself when the time comes, thanks to the caring, motivational people before me.
Feminism in its most absolute form is the power to feel confident in yourself because of the equality that supports you. A feminist is someone who will strive to create an environment that is inviting to people of all races, gender and class. A feminist is someone who will celebrate differences that make people unique. Feminism is the movement to create peace.
Comments
My parents were always supportive of me growing up to be whatever I wanted. I grew up playing in dirt and being a tom boy, and there was never a problem with it. However, my father worked and my mother stayed home to raise us. When we were reading the article about child raising, I wonder if it's more about the messages that we are told then the roles that we see our parents doing. I really appreciated reading your blog and hope that feminism really does create peace and keep the option of choice going in a society that seems to be reverting back to its old ways.
Posted by: Abby Newberg | January 29, 2007 12:31 AM
I was struck most by your last paragraph; it's so true. I'm listening to Amy Goodman's "Democracy Now!" and it's making the day even colder...."The movement to create peace..." It's an odd combination, hearing about the pain and confusion in the world, and then reading messages of hope and possibility.
The question is, where do we get the power to get these messages heard? A movement for peace and understanding is more than necessary.
See you in class, Hanna.
Posted by: Maggie Nelson | January 29, 2007 10:41 AM