MIGRAIN: Introduction to feminism

 Everyday Sexism

Watch the Everyday Sexism TED talk from Laura Bates (linked above) and answer the following questions:
1) Why did Laura Bates start the Everyday Sexism project?

In one week Laura experienced three incidents of cat calling and men inappropriately touching her without consent and just making her fell very uncomfortable. She spoke to people about it and they said shes just making a fuss. She had spoken to some woman about it and they said how they have experienced the same things and it become normalised. other people said that that she shouldn't complain cayuse there is equality now and she couldn't handle a joke and just made a bunch excuses that would put her in blame. then she looked at job statics and in the statics shown woman arent as likely to get the jobs shown in the statics. then she looked at rape,sexual assault and domestic violence statics and it showed the dangers that woman face as the statics are quite high. Due to all of this she started an website. 50000 woman shared there story in 18 months

2) How does the Everyday Sexism project link to the concept of post-feminism? Is feminism still required in western societies?
I believe that the project links to feminism as there has been an increase in the speak of feminism. However, the catcalling and the uncomfortable situations have still not improved, but I do believe that women are more comfortable and confident speaking out as it’s been encouraged by the feminism movements

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3) Why was new technology essential to the success of the Everyday Sexism project?
Technology is essential for the success of the project as the project helped women around the world with what they’ve struggled with and it gives them an opportunity to speak on the Internet where they are comfortable as they don’t know anybody that’s reading the story and that might comfort them. Also about hearing other peoples stories, dismay comfort them. They know that they are not the only ones that are going through this, especially in a situation like Laura when she expressed her feelings towards the people around her. They disregarded her motions, and said that she couldn’t handle a joke and she was being dramatic which obviously made her feel like she couldn’t speak up. However, around the world when it’s happening to other people and they feel the same way it gives them an opportunity to speak up, knowing that it’s a safe place for them to speak about it and knowing that they won’t be judged, and they would be helped instead of their feelings getting dismissed like lauras did.

4) Will there be a point in the future when the Everyday Sexism project is not required? What is YOUR view on the future of feminism?
this depends on weather there is an improvement within the future when it comes to women being sexualised and getting cat called and being in a situation where they feel uncomfortable. Personally, I believe that right now I think there is a future for the project because I haven’t seen much improvement and I’ve seen things get worse and there is an increase in situations where women are uncomfortable happening each day. However, this could be because now that I’m older than I did when I was younger so it could’ve been happening more when I was younger, but I didn’t realise it until now. But I still do believe that there is quite a lot of catcalling and situations where women are quite uncomfortable so I do think the project will be in the future as it will always help other women feel better and know that they can speak up about it.

Media Magazine: The fourth wave?

Read the article: The Fourth Wave? Feminism in the Digital Age in MM55 (p64). You'll find the article in our Media Magazine archive here.

1) Summarise the questions in the first two sub-headings: What is networked feminism? Why is it a problem?

Feminism is often divided into ‘waves’ to explain the cultural context in which they began. The ‘first wave of feminism’

began in the late 19th to early 20th centuries, with a main focus on suffrage. The ‘second wave’ began in the 1960s, campaigning for the growth of equal rights and leading to the Equal Pay Act of 1970, amongst other equality laws. Since the late 1990s, we are believed to have entered the ‘third wave’ (often identified as post-feminism). The new fourth wave of feminism is also known as ‘networked feminism’. it aims to tackle social equality issues found both on, and using,

modern technology.Since the 60s feminism has fought to recognise the social struggle of women on a number of different levels. Feminists in 2015 still deal every day with misconceptions and prejudice: the idea that rape or coercive sex may be justified if a woman is wearing provocative clothing, the huge gender pay gap despite equality legislation, the ubiquitous representations of women as weak and

dis-empowered, to name but a few.

2) What are the four waves of feminism? Do you agree that we are in a fourth wave of ‘networked feminism’? 

The ‘first wave of feminism’ began in the late 19th to early 20th centuries, with a main focus on suffrage. 

The ‘second wave’ began in the 1960s,campaigning for the growth of equalrights and leading to the Equal Pay Act of 1970, amongst other equalitylaws. 

Since the late 1990s, we are believed to have entered the ‘third wave’(often identified as post-feminism).

The new fourth wave of feminism is also known as ‘networked feminism’. it aims to tackle social equality issues found

both on, and using, modern technology.

3) Focus on the examples in the article. Write a short summary of EACH of the following: Everyday Sexism, HeForShe, FCKH8 campaign, This Girl Can.

everyday sexism;A perfect starting point is the Everyday

Sexism campaign. The project was started by Laura Bates back in 2012 as a website which posted examples of sexism that users faced every day. Laura set it up after finding feminism hard to talk about, saying: ‘Again and again, people told me sexism is no longer a problem – that women are equal now’.The response she received proved differently, with 50,000 entries of sexist experiences made by December 2013. Three years later, Everyday Sexism is one of the most high-visibility feminist

digital campaigns, arguably due to its user-generated content and its well- used #EverydaySexism Twitter feed.

 

FCKH8; The movement focuses on the modern representation of girls and the huge social inequalities they face, whilst featuring young girls ‘F-Bombing’ to highlight society’s imbalance when it comes to offences.The girls confidently shout: "I’m not some pretty fucking helpless princess in distress... What is more offensive? A little girl saying fuck or the fucking unequal and sexist way society treats girls and women?"

this girl can;This Girl Can campaign, which has been described as the first fitness campaign for women which doesn’t shame or exclude them, by sharing photos, videos and quotes of women without the usual sexual exploitation of a women’s fitness advert and without body shaming.

HeForShe;Watson’s campaign focuses on male support for gender equality, highlighting the fact that feminism is not about promoting matriarchy, but solidarity. Her digital commitment means that you can pledge to help the women’s issue online, and has generated a huge response.This explicitly non-man-hating version of feminism, in which a woman can (shockingly!) be successful in more than one aspect of their life, seems to remove the element of misandry that has blighted traditional feminism for so long. However, many people have criticised the He For She campaign, saying that it makes feminism too reliant on males, undermining the ‘strong woman’ element and relying on the old stereotype that women need men to get things done.

4) What is your opinion with regards to feminism and new/digital media? Do you agree with the concept of a 'fourth wave' of feminism post-2010 or are recent developments like the Everyday Sexism project merely an extension of the third wave of feminism from the 1990s? 

I think that the new digital media helps with people speak in an hour and also helping other women in a where they can give advice on how to deal with these kinds of where they’re in a situation where they too uncomfortable. I think that also give them a safe space to speak about what’s happened in the past and get advice and help and to let out how they’re feeling. I also do believe that sometimes speaking, and they’re not, your feelings about this to strangers can help somebody feel better as it’s a way of the chest, and they know that it’s not going to be held against get about this to strangers can help somebody feel better as it’s a way of the chest, and they know that it’s not going to be held against them or, they’re not gonna get rejected by people as the people around them could have a negative opinion and limit on them, instead of blaming it on the actual person who is making them uncomfortable. I believe that it’s rate awareness and I do believe that this has helped as maybe men feel that they can’t do this anymore as it’s been seen on the Internet is wrong and they know that now, but that is inappropriate which they may have not and you before, and how it makes a woman feel they may have not new. And I do think the movement is quite positive.