Lisa's Perspective as a Feminist

I have known my friend Lisa, forty-eight years old, for many years. She is a white, college-educated, married woman with no children. It was interesting and insightful to hear her talk about herself as a feminist.

Talking to Lisa it was clear that her feminism was intrinsic to her. When I asked her how she defined feminism the first word she used was equality: equality for women at home, at work, and in society.  She said that she was raised believing these were rights all women should have.  In her home growing up with two brothers there were not separate expectations for her as a female; all three would work and all three would go to college. There was not a particular event that moved her towards feminism but was rather raised in a family that encouraged equality at home. It never occurred to her that there were not options open to her due to her gender. She did not consciously choose to be a feminist; it was more like it became embedded into her consciousness growing up.

The issues Lisa is most passionate about are reproductive rights and equal pay for women. She has worked at the same company since she was 16 and has experienced discrimination regarding pay.  At the time when she was hired men were paid more because they had families to support and women were not as likely to stay at the job. It is similar to when Hu-Dehart described women workers as being “temporary”, “secondary”, or not “career-minded.” (Hu-Dehart, p. 473) The difference now for someone in Lisa’s position is her employer now falls guidelines where all employees’ start pay is structured equally when hired.

 Lisa signifies her feminist beliefs in how she votes.  She made it clear though that she votes according issues and not according to gender.  She is also a member of the League of Women Voters.   

Analyzing the above I think the way she defines feminism is indicative of two things. First, it says a lot about her upbringing: when you do not have significant events or are reacting against a family setting that is oppressive due to your gender you may have a more “simple” definition of feminism, one that is not as articulated.

Secondly, I think that her approach to feminism suggests a life lived with the benefits that comes with white privilege, or what McIntosh talks about as “a base of unacknowledged privilege.” (McIntosh, p.76) McIntosh talks about how this privilege puts some people at a disadvantage while at the same time puts white people at an advantage “with a knapsack of special provisions.” (McIntosh, p.75) Being a white woman and married buffers her from some of the inequalities that other women face in the feminist movement.  McIntosh says people with white privilege get to choose the risks they want to take and at the same time do not have a lot at stake. (McIntosh, p. 80)  Lisa has the luxury to choose whether or not to get involved in causes that may be uncomfortable to her because ultimately at the end of the day she still gets to have the life she has now. On the other hand, women of color or of different sexual orientations cannot go home to their life and not be affected by the oppression they are facing whether in the work place or in society at large.

I think the above also puts her in the category of a liberal feminist.  She prefers to affect change through legal methods and political reform. Regarding the discrimination of pay she experienced she would not pursue a remedy for that nor would she make waves about it. She is in a position to afford to deal with the time it takes to make changes through legal channels.

At the end of the interview I asked Lisa if she is “out” to the world as a feminist and she said it has not been something she has ever “declared.”  She says she has “just lived my life that way” and that it is different for her than her mother’s generation.  She feels the major battles have been fought in terms of education and general equality for women.  In her marriage she says that her and her husband have mutually come to what their roles were not through major discussions about gender but how things have worked best for both of them.

Overall, I think bell hooks would not be that impressed with the feminism of Lisa.  hooks would lament the lack of a more articulated belief. The feminism of hooks is much more complicated.  She talks about the feminist movement as a way to transform women’s lives while “providing new paradigms for change” in how gender is thought of. (hooks, p.27)  hooks’ definition involves a lot of hard, messy, uncomfortable work.  Lisa’s definition is simple: equality without considering very deeply where inequality comes from in the first place, which to hooks comes as a result of a patriarchal society. And to hooks this patriarchal society is “perpetuated and maintained by everyone in our culture.” (hooks, p. 29)  Lisa’s personality is very laid back and she is good at letting things not get to her.  Maybe having these kinds of skills also contributes to her easy going attitude about feminism. 

I was surprised by the reactions when I talked to people about the paper I was working on when I mentioned I was to interview a feminist.  People had a negative response to the word feminist and I think it is because the word has been “demonized” by the other side.  I think the interview with Lisa shows that not only men need an education about feminism but women do as well.  

Works Cited

hooks, b. (1992). Men in the Feminist Struggle: The Necessary Movement. Reading Women's Lives. (J. Schoen, Ed.) (pp. 27-33).

Hu-Dehart. (2007). Surviving Globalization-Immigrant Women Workers in Late Capitalist America. In Women's Work Inside and Outside the Home (pp. 470-480).

McIntosh, P. (1988). White Privilege and Male Privilege. Women's Voices Feminist Visions(5th). (S. M. Shaw, & Lee, Janet, Eds.) New York, NY, USA: McGraw Hill.