School Project: Help Me Out?

[MermaidBrittany]

Hey Mers!
Lately I have been more of a lurker, and havent posted anything becuase I have been super busy with college!
I am doing a project for my Womens Studies class, and I need to ask groups of people some questions, so I thought that the mer comunity would be a great group to ask!
Its ok if you dont want to answer! Or even if you opppose some peoples responses.
One thing I will ask though, is not to attack someone argue their opinion is wrong. Im just here to get straight answers!
Thank you to all those who participate!

1) How do you define feminism?
2) Would you consider yourself a feminist?
3) Do you think gender equality has been reached in the US? Why or why not?
4) Have you experienced discrimination because of your gender?
5) What is a patriarchal society? Do you believe we live in one?

Again, thank you for your participation!

[Mermaid Wesley]

Ill do!
1. Feminism is the belief that all genders are equal and should be treated equally.
2. Yep
3. No. Women have less respect, opportunity, are paid less, and are more likely to be the victims of crime.
4. Yes. Every time I leave the house.
5. A patriarchal society is a society in which masculinity is valued above femininity. Males above females, and men are predominately in control. We do live in a patriarchal society (in the U.S. at least).

yay!

[MerEmma]

I can help out :)

1) How do you define feminism? Belief that everyone--regardless of gender identity, sex, race, sexual orientation, etc. deserve to be treated equally socially, politically, culturally and economically. Feminism has a primary focus on women (including transwomen) but aims to earn equal and unbiased rights for everyone.
2) Would you consider yourself a feminist? Absolutely. I try my hardest to treat everyone I encounter equally.
3) Do you think gender equality has been reached in the US? Why or why not? No, definitely not. Women still do not receive equal pay, they are still blamed for their sexual assault, women are bitches while men are assertive, etc.
4) Have you experienced discrimination because of your gender? Not outside of the internet. I'm very lucky that I can't recall a time I was discriminated against because of my gender.
5) What is a patriarchal society? Do you believe we live in one? A patriarchy is a society which values masculinity over all else, where women are held to higher, more unreasonable standards and the expectations of both sexes are arbitrary.

[Kishiko]

1) How do you define feminism?
feminism is the belief that women can do everything a man can; whether by allowance of a greater power or ones own self actions, physically, mentally, or emotionally
2) Would you consider yourself a feminist?
absolutely
3) Do you think gender equality has been reached in the US? Why or why not?
No, it definitely hasn't been. Men are believed to be more capable, are paid more, and are respected more.
4) Have you experienced discrimination because of your gender?
yes, all the time
5) What is a patriarchal society? Do you believe we live in one?
a patriarchal society is a society where men are valued more than women, and men hold much more power than and over women. In the US, I think we definitely live in this type of society.

[Nicoseamus]

1) How do you define feminism? I would define feminism means that women and men should be equal, in every part of life.
2) Would you consider yourself a feminist? ​I guess I would, because I believe that Men and Women can achieve the same goals, if there is an opportunity to do so. And a lot of the time women don't have as man opportunities as men. I think that needs to change.
3) Do you think gender equality has been reached in the US? Why or why not? Yes and No. I believe that we have come leaps and bounds from where we were 5, 10, 15, 20 years ago... but I believe we have a lot to improve on. Some people of different genders aren't allowed validation for who they are. That's not equality.
4) Have you experienced discrimination because of your gender? Not because of my gender, no. However, for my race and sexuality, yes.
5) What is a patriarchal society? Do you believe we live in one? I think that a patriarchal society is a society run by men. I do believe that in a total, many of the actions of our society is influenced by men over women, but I don't think it's 100% a patriarchal society.

Hope I can help.

[BayouMermaid]

1) How do you define feminism?
I would define feminism as the push for women to have equal rights and equal opportunities as men do.
2) Would you consider yourself a feminist?
No, I do not. While I agree with the goals of feminism, I believe that the term itself alienates men and is sexist. I prefer not to use the term feminist when pushing for equal rights. I prefer to think of myself as a decent human being instead.
3) Do you think gender equality has been reached in the US? Why or why not?
No, I do not think that gender equality has been reached simply because I see my male peers advancing while my female peers are left behind.
4) Have you experienced discrimination because of your gender?
I have experienced sexual harassment at work because of my gender. I'm supposed to laugh it off as a joke, but it's not funny. I've been called a bitch, a whore, a slut, and a skank by a guy at work (who just got promoted to manager), but no one cares because this guy does it to all the women who work there.
5) What is a patriarchal society? Do you believe we live in one?
A patriarchal society is one in which a man heads the household and major institutions. I believe that our society leans to the patriarchal side of the spectrum, but I don't think that it is a true patriarchy.

[Rivertee]

1) How do you define feminism?
The empowered movement for women's rights and inner power to stay strong.
2) Would you consider yourself a feminist?
No
3) Do you think gender equality has been reached in the US? Why or why not?
No, a woman will still be hired over a man in terms of service and positions of social interaction, on the flip side a man will still be preferred over a woman in terms of labor work. There even companies that will not hire women for labor other than desk jobs or filing stating that it is 'inhumane' to ask a woman to do the 'hard work' men are required.
4) Have you experienced discrimination because of your gender?
Yes, I've been over looked for positions as work because I am a female and therefor more emotional and not suited for the stressful tasks of leadership.
5) What is a patriarchal society? Do you believe we live in one?
A society in which men are believed to be the head sex and therefore the leader of movements. I believe in part we favor the patriarchal but I would not say it is a strict social standard.

[SweeteSiren]

1) How do you define feminism? According to a bumper sticker I saw recently: "the radical idea that women are people". Personally though, that gender should not make a difference in how people treat you, or in what you are allowed - or encouraged - to do with your life.
2) Would you consider yourself a feminist? I consider myself a feminist, but I doubt that feminists would consider me one. I believe that I shouldn't have to conform to traditional feminine roles, but I also believe I shouldn't have to conform to the roles that the feminist movement assigns either. 100 years ago, if you argued that your husband shouldn't be allowed to beat you, you were a feminist; now that would be illegal. 50 years ago, anyone who used birth control was a feminist; now that's considered the standard. This is a moving target, because "feminist" implies actively striving to change the status quo.
3) Do you think gender equality has been reached in the US? Why or why not? My all-time favorite comment on this topic was Tolstoy: in Anna Karenina, he said that true equality will never be achieved because women are always looking for more rights and responsibilities, and men are always looking for less. I don't know if he was correct, but I've seen a lot of evidence in his favor. I suspect the truth is that people who don't have rights and responsibilities want them, and people who have them want to be relieved of them.
It's also only fair to point out that women have more social freedom than men in some scenarios. For example, a female comedian who makes fun of men is funny; a male comedian who makes fun of women is a misogynist.
4) Have you experienced discrimination because of your gender? I have not experienced discrimination due to gender. I have experienced discrimination due to pregnancy - which, since men can't be pregnant, could be considered discrimination by extension.
5) What is a patriarchal society? Do you believe we live in one? A patriarchal society is a society in which decisions are based on male perspective. For example, in a patriarchal society, property passes from father to son, as opposed to a matriarchal society in which property is passed from mother to daughter. The US, like most countries, is patriarchal, but that is not necessarily a bad thing. When we begin to take sides against one another, that’s when equality becomes impossible.

[AniaR]

1) How do you define feminism?
The fight for equality for everyone, recognizing that equality wont be achieved without the lifting up women to the same level as men.
2) Would you consider yourself a feminist?
Yes
3) Do you think gender equality has been reached in the US? Why or why not?
No, the very fact that most people don't know what feminism actually is or thinks it means hating men is a perfect example of why not. And not to make anyone here mad because I was typing this before I read anyone's opinions, but if you disagree with the word feminism I think that's an example of ignorance too. There are some fantastic articles out there that explain it.
4) Have you experienced discrimination because of your gender?
yes, weekly if not daily
5) What is a patriarchal society? Do you believe we live in one?
Yes. As much as women have come so far, men are still the majority of leadership roles and decision making.

[Thalassa]

1) The term that began being most prominently used in the 1960-1970s by the "women's liberation" front. Formally, it describes a belief that women and men should be equals in all opportunities and attitudes. Informally, there are many brands of feminist, ranging from "Just treat me like a human being," to "Don't you dare open that door for me, you $*!€" (and yes, I've actually heard a few people do that).

2) I think if I used the term to describe myself, many feminists would correct me, so I don't lay claim to it. I believe that man and woman are equal, but are and should be different. I love to be treated and helped as a lady, and don't feel that someone doing something for me takes away my ability to do it. I am happy to nurture and help others and don't feel the need to act outside my traditional gender role make a statement.

3) I think we may have a bit to go pay-wise and there are some pockets where male chauvinism is self-propagating, but for the most part I feel we're doing fine. In many ways women receive more freedom than men today, and many self-proclaimed feminists are pushing too hard for the SAME instead of EQUAL.

4) Honestly, I've thought long and hard trying to identify instances of this. For the most part, discrimination I have received has been overwhelmingly positive, protective of and useful to me. The only instance I can think of that wasn't was when I suddenly replaced a beloved male teacher and a few parents were upset that their boys didn't get the teacher they were expecting (but then in many cases men teachers are looked upon as unable to nurture the kids adequately, so it balances out).

5...is there a 5? Others are answering a 5, but I don't see a 5.

[MermaidBrittany]

5...is there a 5? Others are answering a 5, but I don't see a 5.

Yep there is a 5! :)
5) What is a patriarchal society? Do you believe we live in one?

[MermaidBrittany]

Thanks so much to those who have helped me out!
Any other takers?