The New Feminism

THE RIGHT ANGLE: The New Feminism - Opinions

Being the poster child for conservatism on a college campus isn't easy. I'm routinely accused of being a "traitor" to the Women's Movement, when in reality, nothing could be further from the truth. For years, I've considered myself a feminist. I complain about sexist traditions (from wives taking their husbands' names to men having to pay for their dates), I'm upset by the lack of women's history in regular history classes, and I absolutely despise it when men who don't know me call me "sweetheart."

I thought that would be enough, but according to my fellow feminists, it's not. However, I've started to realize that the problem isn't me, but the ever-changing definition of feminism. Apparently, in order to be a feminist these days, one must believe that a woman's rights exceed those of a man.

Affirmative action is only one example of this. As a self-proclaimed feminist, I find it personally offensive that the government thinks I need their help in getting a job. A true feminist would take the term "a man's world" as a challenge and fight tooth and nail to make it to the top. She would not enlist government help, nor would she cry (as an article in Cosmopolitan once suggested). The fact that both the government and Cosmopolitan think I need their help is quite insulting.

Another reason I am apparently not allowed to be a feminist is because I am pro-life. People frequently accuse me of wanting to deny women the right to choose what happens to their own bodies. On the contrary, I think women should have the right to choose, and they make that choice once they decide to have sex. I also believe that if they make that decision, they should have to deal with the consequences. When did feminism become little more than fighting for the ability to kill an innocent human being?

I also firmly believe that this same modern form of feminism that has cursed us with affirmative action and abortion is responsible for the recent demise of morality. The idea that a woman should be able to do anything she wants with her own body, while basically true, has been taken to a new level. Abstinence didn't used to be such a crazy notion. Now, women are EXPECTED to have sex with men before marriage, with several different partners.

By itself, this may not sound that bad. However, by making promiscuous sex mainstream, we have developed several new STD's and made abortion much more acceptable. One night stands and multiple partners are shown on network television without a second thought. But before you shrug your shoulders and say, "That's life," I urge you to visit your local middle school. Count the number of pregnant students. Ask around and find out how many of the students have had sex, had abortions, or even had children. You might be shocked. These children are 11 and 12, and they're having sex. Where do we draw the line?

The feminist in me believes in equality at school and at work, the ability to take responsibility for one's actions, and the right to abstain without being pressured by friends, boyfriends, and the media. You can tell me I'm not a "real" feminist, but if that means cheating to get ahead, murdering for the sake of "choice", and being a slut, then I don't want to live by your definition of feminism. I guess I have a little more decency than that.

This article received several response columns and letters to the editor in the following weeks, and a weekly columnist responded to it in January 2007; a response column from me was published the next week.