Feminism, as a political movement, has been present in the
world for many generations. But the idea of equal rights for women has been
around for much longer. The first recorded convention for women’s rights was
held in 19th July 1848 in a little chapel in Seneca Falls, New York,
with the Declaration of Sentiments also being drawn up around the same time[1]. This
declaration stated that men and women were born as equals, something which is
the central ideological point for many active feminist groups today. When the
women who organised the Seneca Falls Conference all those years ago chaired it,
they could not have pictured the traction it would slowly get throughout the
world and how their initial ideas would stem into many different versions of
the same desire. They could not possibly have realised that their new liberal
thinking would start a worldwide movement that would branch out into many
different ideologies and influence many different parts of the world in the
coming centuries. For example, the suffrage movements right across the world
that fought and protested for the right of women to vote. Of course, we now
know that women would get the vote but at the time it was a big step for the
feminine thinkers of the day. To the point where one of them, Emily Wilding
Davison, would (arguably) die for the cause by throwing herself under the
king’s horse during the 1913 derby. Showing the lengths that women would go to
at the time to achieve what is one of the most basic of rights[2].
As we come into the modern era though, into the age of
Globalization, we see feminism as a very topical issue. Not just in the
political sphere but in the cultural sphere. Many people are still unsure as to
what feminism is or does, or at the very least, many people have a certain idea
about what it is. However, in the modern world, there are certain views of
feminism coming out that have been seemingly caused partially by feminists
themselves. The amount of infighting that has occurred over the past couple of
years on social media have made people wonder what the real goal is. Many
feminists took to the social networking Twitter in order to try and place the
cause further into the public consciousness but it soon turned into a large
influx of comments that turned the social media idea “toxic”[3].
The whole debacle made some feminists appear to be like young children who were
just fighting for the sake of fighting. Or, as Hadley Freeman for the Guardian
described it, the incidents made some “sound like the bitchy babies that
sexists have always suggested we are, incapable of being given any position of
authority without throwing tampons at one another[4]”.
Obviously, that is not what feminism is about in the slightest, but this is the
image of feminism that some seem to accept. People like this, who are often
Marxists critiquing the liberals, often become categorized with the aged
thought that women are irrational as all they appear to do is take issue with
the logic of other feminists and, thanks to the spread and proliferation of
social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter, this is become much
easier to do. But in the process, many other feminists believe that this
behaviour is damaging the view of modern feminism. Again, Hadley Freeman sums
it up by suggesting “Critiquing and educating is one thing, publicly slamming
leftwing feminist writers as "low-level media whores", as one
prominent blogger did this weekend, is, I think we can all agree, another[5]”.
However, in the broader context of today’s Globalising world,
feminism is starting to percolate further across different cultures and, in
some respects, it has started to become implemented in global politics. For
example, the idea of a certain number of women that should be in elected
positions such as corporate boards and positions of politics has been in many
country’s policies since the first UN Conference on Women in 1975 and continue
to used today[6].
With this in mind, it is difficult not to suggest that this current form of
Globalization has enhanced the spread of feminism due to the fact this version
of Globalization, itself, has been partially characterized by the spreading of
many different ideas across different nation states[7].
Thanks to this, and to the united implications of the global community, the
impact of feminism on world politics has slowly become more recognised. But
this doesn’t mean things are by any means fairer.
As a UN Report in 1980 illustrated, “Women make up half the
world’s population, perform two-thirds of its work hours, receive one-tenth of
the world’s income and less than one-hundredth of its property[8]”.
There is still a glass ceiling for women in many different professions because
of what’s expected or viewed of them as well as stiff competition that still
remains in the job markets. Even in today’s rapidly changing world; men are
still more likely to get the promotions to the top jobs than women because many
female managers are seen as “deceitful, pushy, selfish, and abrasive” compared
to many male managers[9]. Despite
this thinking among some, there are still feminist writers who still believe
this will change and that the Globalizing world is still a positive thing for
many women despite that many institutions around the world are still heavily
male dominated. As Myra Marx Ferree says: “Globalization can work to a woman’s
advantage-as especially seen in the UN-but also unleash the forces of
inequality that will further disadvantage women[10]”.
But as far as to whether the feminist agenda brings anything
new to the study of global politics, it depends on the view which you take of
feminism itself. There are people who would argue that the feminist agenda does
bring something new to the study of global politics due to the influence of
many women that are now becoming more prominent in the global political sphere.
But there are also those that would suggest that because the global political
landscape is still very male dominated that the feminist agenda is being
generally over-looked. These people would argue that the current Globalised
system has disadvantaged women further because many CEOs are still men. I also
refer back to the UN report of 1980 where it also suggests that women own “less
than one-hundredth of its property[11]”
as another argument as to how Globalization is actually diminishing women’s
power in the world. But one argument against THIS notion suggests that
Globalization is actually a tool that feminists can use for the better.
As one feminist website explains: “The immediate challenge
for the international Women's Movement is to mobilize and take the lead in
building a new political order better suited to a world already being reshaped
by globalization[12]”,
suggesting that the current system is not as disadvantageous to women as many
others perhaps make it out to be. But it’s this kind of discourse that does
make the study of feminism in global politics interesting. Because the idea of
gender equality in the global, political and cultural sphere is constantly
being talked about and is ever present on social networking sites such as Facebook
or Twitter. But it also brings out more discourses with those who demand on having
a “politics of equality[13]”
based on gender difference, and those who believe that this is a more radical
approach to an equal standing of men and women right across the political and
industrial world. But, in the long run, you need to study feminism and all of
its different elements in order to understand its continuing relevance in the
Globalized world that we have today and how the policies they put forward
actually can influence many political decisions across the board because, like
the study of Global Politics itself, it’s constantly changing and evolving.
[1]
Watkins, Susan Alice et al, ‘Introducing
Feminism’, (New York, Totem Books, 1994), p43
[2]
Nancarrow, Sally, ‘Emily Davison: Votes
for women's Derby Day 'martyr'’, BBC News Website, 04/03/2014, http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-22725094
[3]
Goldberg, Michelle, ‘Feminism’s Toxic
Twitter Wars’, The Nation Website, 04/03/2014, http://www.thenation.com/article/178140/feminisms-toxic-twitter-wars
[4]
Freeman, Hadley, ‘Feminist infighting only takes our eyes off the real struggle’,
The Guardian Website, 04/03/2014, http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/feb/25/feminist-infighting-eyes-off-real-struggle
[5] Freeman,
Hadley, ‘Feminist infighting only takes
our eyes off the real struggle’, The Guardian Website, 04/03/2014,
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/feb/25/feminist-infighting-eyes-off-real-struggle
[6] M
Marx Ferree, ‘Globalisation and Feminism’, Globalization and Feminism:
Opportunities and Obstacles for Activism in the Global Arena, 1, (2006), 11
[7] M
Marx Ferree, ‘Globalisation and Feminism’, Globalization and Feminism:
Opportunities and Obstacles for Activism in the Global Arena, 1, (2006), 11
[8]
Watkins, Susan Alice et al, ‘Introducing
Feminism’, (New York, Totem Books, 1994), p163
[9]
Quast, Lisa, ‘Is There Really A Glass Ceiling For Women?’, Forbes Website,
04/03/2014, http://www.forbes.com/sites/lisaquast/2011/11/14/is-there-really-a-glass-ceiling-for-women/
[10] M
Marx Ferree, ‘Globalisation and Feminism’, Globalization and Feminism:
Opportunities and Obstacles for Activism in the Global Arena, 1, (2006), 23
[11]
Watkins, Susan Alice et al, ‘Introducing
Feminism’, (New York, Totem Books, 1994), p163
[12]
Neuwirth, Jessica, ‘Globalization: A Secret Weapon for Feminists’,
Feminist.com, 04/03/2014, http://www.feminist.com/resources/artspeech/inter/globaliz.html
[13]
Di Stefano, Christine et al, ‘Feminism/Postmodernism’, (New York, Routledge,
Chapman & Hall Publishers, 1990)
