Top products from r/feminisms

I'm sure others will have perhaps better suggestions but when I was in elementary school in the mid 90s I really enjoyed:

• The Ameican Girls Series. It's a series of books detailing the lives of a girl from different historical periods. My favorite character was Molly from the WWII period. I ended up reading the entire series, which was only 5 charecters (so 20ish books as each character has like 4 books of their own) and it has since grown, but I was so proud of myself at the time for doing that. I haven't read the books again as an adult so it's hard to say if they are healthy from a feminist perspective. The most harmful thing could be too much mindless patriotism but that didn't leave a lasting effect on me though. I think they did give me some mind expanding historical perspective and enriched my ability to see others point of view.
  
  
• Matilda. I highly recommend this one. It's undoubtedly a good book for a growing girl and especially from an empowering feminist perspective. It was the first book I read where I remember really getting into and identifying with a charecter. I gave a copy to my 8 year old cousin and she enjoyed it too. Cannot say enough good things about this book. Recommend.
  
  ...wow I feel like I wrote a lot for children's book recommendation! It was nice to reminisce I guess. Good luck on finding a good book for your daughter! :)

That would be Girls to the Front.

I also read this awesome history of women's music festivals several years ago-- it's definitely fun reading. It's called Eden Built by Eves . Since women's music festivals were a product of the '70s, it's got a lot more "earth mother" kind of tone to it, and I can't remember how effectively it addresses the controversies of women-only spaces (and the controversies of women-born-women only spaces, in some cases...) But it was a good read.

That's a lot of monolithing you're doing. Dworkin wrote Pornography in the midst of the 1970s-1980s feminist sex wars, which generated radical thought from all angles, including what you consider "sex-positive".

I also find it interesting that your main factor in determining whether someone is a radical feminist is their view on sex/porn. There are a lot of definitions of "radical feminist", but Kathie Sarachild puts it this way:

>Before we go any further, let's examine the word "radical." It is a word that is often used to suggest extremist, but actually it doesn't mean that. The dictionary says radical means root, coming from the Latin word for root. And that is what we meant by calling ourselves radicals. We were interested in getting to the roots of problems in society. You might say we wanted to pull up weeds in the garden by their roots, not just pick off the leaves at the top to make things look good momentarily. Women's Liberation was started by women who considered themsleves radicals in this sense.

You're essentialising a lot of conflicting thought through history. Like Sarachilde mentions, you're grouping in Susan B. Anthony (and Alice Paul). As well as Angela Davis and Shirley Chisholm. May I suggest reading some bell hooks?

I also find it humorous that you bring up Malcolm X. Martin Luther King, Jr. was quite the radical, and Malcolm X was quite reasonable. Question the narratives you have been fed.

I'm not trying to derail at all, because I like your post - just trying to spread some knowledge - but I thought you'd be curious to know that there actually are several gender egalitarian societies in existence! It's not really mentioned in their Wikipedia article (weird) but this book is a great resource on one of those cultures, the Lahu.

Two that I think are great without going back too far are Naomi Wolf's The Beauty Myth, and Female Chauvinist Pigs.

I'm looking at amazon.com and thinking of ordering a new one from bell hooks, who I've always liked. As an African-American woman, hooks has always had a broader perspective.

I'd also recommend Susan Faludi's Backlash.

Amanda Marcotte's recent It's a Jungle Out There was a quick read and good.

I'm currently looking at Valenti's Full Frontal Feminism and by Siegel and Baumgardner's Sisterhood, Interrupted: From Radical Women to Grrls Gone Wild, but they're about 4th and 5th on my current reading list and I can't yet say how I'd rate them.

Also on my reading list is Does Feminism Discriminate Against Men?: A Debate (Point/Counterpoint) by Warren Farrell, Steven Svoboda, and James P. Sterba on my list. Looking forward to that one. Warren Farrell is a former feminist and the father of the men's liberation movement. The movement had progressive roots, but I think Farrell's moved more center, and certainly the men's movement has some very conservative branches. I think it will be interesting splitting apart any anti-feminism from the pro-men's liberation stuff.

I personally don't think there's any conflict between men and women's liberation, but I want to be more informed as to the current arguments.

>And then there is this thread of comments where one person asks why an article about bisexual males is included in /r/feminisms.

You'll notice that that person got pretty heavily downvoted and that a whole bunch of heavily upvoted people in that thread politely took apart the idea that feminism shouldn't involve itself in the issues of LGBT men, including one of the moderators. I would not take that as a sign of being unwelcome.

>The closest that anybody came was when somebody pointed out how feminism is concerned with the expecations placed on men and how they effect women's inequality.

I think that's an important issue to consider because it works both ways. The perpetuation of women's inequality also hurts men. There is a reciprocal effect in oppressive systems that necessarily create difficult situations for those who are supposed to be privileged within it; thus the genesis of many male gendered social issues and traps.

Sometimes one has to consider issues discretely, other times you can only consider them as part of an interconnected system of social relations. What happens to women impacts men and vice versa to varying degrees for different issues.

>Am I wrong about this? Is feminism concerned with men's experiences as well?

These days there as many feminisms as there are feminists. A welter of different responses could easily accompany your question. My answer is yes. It absolutely is. Partially for the reasons I outlined above- the interconnected nature of humanity- and partially because the business of undoing the various straitjackets of hegemonic gender require everyone's participation.

Men's Lives is one of the leading gender studies texts on masculinity; it's an anthology.

Masculinities is also a critical text. What I meant by 'hegemonic gender' is elucidated on in its pages, and as the title implies, Professor Connell's thesis is that there are multiple ways of 'doing' masculinity in our world that vary by culture, race, class, age, and so on. Her contention is that each plays a critical role in maintaining the established norms of gender, while some are more subversive.

Manhood in America analyses the relatively recent history of how modern ideas of what it means to be a man (the ideas of your father that you rebelled against, likely) came into being.

On Amazon's "Related Books" pane you can find several others on this subject by men and women alike and it'll give you some insight into the multiplicity of progressive and feminist perspectives on manhood in Western culture.

I think part of the issue that so many of us, men and women, still suffer from is that we do tend to see everything oppositionally. Even I'm still getting out of that Manichean mindset. However, as you read and research you'll eventually come to see the at times delicate but synchronous waltz of men and women's relations within feminism. You should understand that women discussing their issues vis a vis men they've dealt with or been hurt by is not an attack against you as a man, but attempting to guilt them for speaking up will be problematic.

Rather, try to understand where they're coming from and why. The vast majority of feminist women do not hate, automatically mistrust, automatically dismiss, or automatically marginalise men. But discussing feminist issues requires frank discussion of people's (men and women's) experiences with gender, which often includes conflicts with masculinity and/or men, as that's just how power is often distributed and flowing.

The trick is to learn not to be threatened by it and go "but not all men are like that!" and you'll be fine. Because we all know that. :P

Conflict is omnipresent in feminisms. Conflict is what gave rise to feminisms rather than just a continued unitary feminism. Disagreements are common, writers and bloggers go back and forth with each other, academic conferences can be acrimonious, battles of inclusion are still being waged in various sectors... It wouldn't be feminism without the arguing, I'll tell you that!

You learn to embrace it, after a while.

What feminism en toto consists of is thousands of groups, great and small, millions upon millions of men, women, and those otherwise identified, disassociated women's and gender studies departments in universities worldwide, tonnes of academics, writers, intellectuals, slam poets, street activists, clinic escorts, journalists, editors, web mavens, bloggers, artists, musicians, and more who inform feminism with their work, research, reporting, passion, art, and every day experiences.

They're never all going to agree with one another. :)

Feminism isn't one thing controlled from a central location wherein we all have nice matching hot pink uniforms- awesome as those would be. It's very widespread and diffuse. There's room for quite a lot within it.

If you look, you'll find your place. ::smiles::

Anything by Karen Cushman--I think I started reading her books around age 9, and I loved them. They're historical fiction about strong-willed, clever young girls doing cool stuff and rejecting traditional gender roles. The Ballad of Lucy Whipple is a good one to start with; I think I read Catherine, Called Birdy about six hundred times before the book fell apart.

>But all of them still have to bow to the king.

The way Amazons bow to their Queen. Yes, by definition, any monarchy is not fully equal. Hence, why I said before that neither fictional society is a perfect example of feminism, or any other "real world" issue.

BTW, the topic of whether Wakanda should remain a monarchy was the driving force of Ta-Nehisi Coates' first story arc in the comics. You should check it out, you might like it.

I love The Paper Bag Princess by Robert Munsch. The princess saves the prince, not the other way around, and there is a surprise ending.

>I'm going to need some citations.

Hah, tried and true tactic. Here you go. The book is completely sourced. Enjoy the read.

My recs for someone who is just getting into Feminism:

• Feminism Is for Everybody: Passionate Politics
  
• Listen Up: Voices from the Next Feminist Generation
  
• Reality Bites Back: The Troubling Truth About Guilty Pleasure TV
  
• Women's Voices, Feminist Visions: Classic and Contemporary Readings

I would say you are trolling, but there's no way a 5-year redditor would troll this hard. Please, I'm asking sincerely, that you pull your head out of your ass.

I think that this book will help you to understand abortion in a new light. The first chapter is dedicated to the subject of abortion.

These are the three bios I've found: Lucy Stone: Speaking Out for Equality (Andrea Moore Kerr), Woman's Voice, Woman's Place: Lucy Stone and the Birth of the Woman's Rights Movement (Joelle Million), and Lucy Stone: Pioneer of Woman's Rights (Alice Stone Blackwell). Can anyone recommend one of these or others?

More of a "I got really high in Gender Studies" novel than explicitly feminist, but since it has gone unmentioned so far: The Cleft, by Doris Lessing.

You're just going to get turned around in circles looking for answers here.

Start with bell hooks, specifically this.

they forgot the classic Paper Bag Princess
http://www.amazon.com/Paper-Bag-Princess-Classic-Munsch/dp/0920236162

That is a very generalizing statement you made in your topic sentence.

Kat Stacks is a known and notorious hip hop groupie and money chaser, as well as other things that I will not mention here. While I am not excusing what was done to her in this video (I am not and in fact, I was rather disturbed by what I saw), this is the environment in which she chooses to live and thrive. As a white female, she has the entire world to choose from and she chose to immerse herself in one of the most misogynistic cultures available in America. However, most white women in hip hop are not treated the way she was or is treated. In fact that video was taken in direct response to a slanderous video which she posted on the internet regarding her sexual activities with several rappers who were married or otherwise involved in exclusive relationships.

In fact, white women are generally placed on a higher pedestal above African American women by the African American men in hip hop. This of course, infuriates the African American women to no end, but that is a topic for another conversation. If you look at the other videos on that page dealing with Kat Stacks, you will see that she has a reputation for stirring up controversy.

This particular example you cited is not about misogyny in general or misogyny toward white women in hip hop culture (I am not saying that misogyny does not exist in Hip Hop culture). That video was about a woman with a reputation for controversy and trouble getting into an unfortunate situation that she helped create.

Again, nobody deserves to be abused or beaten. Nobody deserves to have their hand chopped off either, but if you stick your hand into the receiver of a lawn mower without putting in the safeties, then guess what will happen? There are many other white women who live and thrive in the hip hop world and they are not being abused or beaten.

Are there issues in Hip Hop culture that can and should be addressed within feminist doctrine; yes, without a doubt. But this is an example of a particular battle that feminism cannot win at this point in our society. Until the African American community can find a way to heal itself as a whole, you can talk until your face is blue but nothing will change. The reason that nothing can be done is simply because nothing that feminism has to offer can serve these men and women.

Your choice of Kat Stacks as a postergirl for misogyny in hip hop is ill played. You would have been better off discussing Karrine Steffans' "Confession of a Video Vixen", if you wanted to prove your point.

~It is not that it is 'socially accepted' that women become housewives - it is more that things are biologically geared that way.

There is a lot of truth to that as well, but what I meant more, was that you never see men jumping up to become house husbands, and stay at home after a child is born. I have a friend that is married to a man who makes a lot mess then she does (we are talking the difference between 42K and over 90K) They have talked about children many times, and his assumption is that she is going to be the one to dump her job. He expects it actually. He is a great guy, but I believe even the best guys kind of expect that they are going to take the traditional roles in the family no matter what.

-Yes, but when women take time out to have children, that negatively impacts their careers, which slows career progress and increases the gap.
I doubt that nine months is going to make a pay gap this large (scanned from a college textbook)
http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v702/MadHatterTheLilly/?action=view&current=Scan2.jpg
Again, while I doubt doubt what you say has something to do with it, I am skeptical. I would have to be, seeing numbers this large.


~I never said it was womenkinds fault, but it is a problem men face in greater numbers than women, so we should get some sort of extra help (research,assistance programs etc).

I don't think that exactly merits men needing help. How exactly does one go about fixing that problem? Should we shoot out a memo telling murders and thugs to go beat up more women to curb the problem?


~Not in this country. I'm assuming you are American?

I am. It's becoming a huge issue in America.
http://www.amazon.com/Trouble-Boys-Surprising-Problems-Educators/dp/0307381285
This is the book that just recently came out. I'v actually been meaning to pick it up. I don't know where you live, but you should get around to ordering it. I heard it's great.

~ Men no longer know their role in society, and are committing suicide in ever greater numbers. Surely this is an indicator of increased stress?

Women are more likely to attempt suicide.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/1998/11/981112075159.htm
I think we are all pretty equally stressd

~Because being proud of being white or male in an academic environment automatically has you labelled as 'racist' and 'sexist', and I have better things to do than argue with the looney anti-everything crowds which seem to have too much of a voice at most Universities.

There are many ways to go about this. People could make something issue specific (prostate cancer, father's rights, etc) or in a scholarship situation, you could make a scholarship for white boy's who's parents are making under X$ a year. It might come off as negative; but hey. The NAACP first started in a time when it was an unpopular thing to advocate for. I RAGE at affirmative action, and am seriously waiting for somebody to change this status quo >_>

~I have seen it tried. The story that was mentioned in the news was that feminist groups were concerned that increased focus on prostate cancer would take away funding from breast cancer. I was shocked by the fact that lady being interviewed didn't seem to give a shit about men dying of a deadly disease. People like that give the feminist cause a bad name, and have made me extremely cynical about the entire feminist movement.

No kidding. Who cares what a radical feminist group thinks? The fact that someone is clearly a flaming asshole shouldn't effect people's drive to help raise awareness for the sick. A prostate cancer group would attract people heavily. The reason other groups do well is because of their marketing strategies are so good. The breast cancer campaigns are very peacocky and trendy. Given the number of families that have been effected by prostate cancer, a group that could market themselves well would do amazing.