Week Twelve: Response 12.3
Zeisler concludes that she once wanted any woman who
believed in equality for women to call themselves “feminist.” Why is she now less interested in the
label and more interested in the actions?
Do you agree or disagree with her criticisms of marketplace feminism?
I believe that Zeisler wanted feminism to be heard and not bought. This is due “souvenirs” being sold with mantras such as “Ovaries Before Breviaries”, feminism isn't something to be bought. There are real issues woman face everyday this isn't something that can be bought and made okay. Just because one buys one of these “souvenirs” doesn't make them part of the feminist movement because actions speak louder than things being sold on Etsy. This is what marketplace feminism does it allows the movement to be consumed by mass culture, it allows for feminists to be cool in a way that makes it not equal. Equality does not come from purchasing feminist “souvenirs” one has to be part of the action. Celebrities have a fault in this as well, they sell the feminist movement as one of their paid ads, looking pretty, wearing t-shirts with the word “feminist” that doesn't help women out, nothing is being changed if form of legislations helping women out.
ReplyDeleteIt can be all fun and games for celebrities but for real people this movement matters. The movement becomes a trend when thats not its intent. Women in the movement want equal pay and good reproductive healthcare. Actions speak louder than a t-shirt with the words “feminist” print on it. Maybe celebrities should speak to the congress, actually fight for those who do not have a voice. Zeisler doesn't want to discourage the marketplace feminist but in order to move forward one has to make things happen. This celebrity movement wants feminism look attractive, sexy, and cool. This movement is more than that it is a call to action for all those who want to fight for women and anyone else who does not have a voice. I agree with Zeisler because feminism has become a fad and isn't benefitting anyone but celebrities and business owners. We want women to be part of the movement who are actually calling for action. Don't just buy things online from your house and think I'm a feminist because that doesn't make you one. -Marisela A.
With the entrance of marketplace feminism, the word "feminist" changed from what it once was to more of a brand people like to put on themselves. The word turned from something of a political statement, meaning political action to something that women use to police others or to judge their actions. Feminism over the last few years has turned into a contest of "this is what a feminist looks like" making people try to outdo each other with how "liberal" their views are. Instead of actually doing much to change legislation or make a difference, feminists these days seem more concerned with what people are wearing, saying or retweeting. It is difficult to claim to be a feminist without getting people who immediately bring up "unfeminist" behaviors you've had, people who roll their eyes and still see the word feminist as a bad thing or people who try to outdo you by saying why they are actually the "better feminist." Instead of getting caught up with language or branding, being a feminist should be about the actions you take. Why should someone need to say they are a feminist if their actions speak for them. Instead of having to pay attention to social media to make sure that we don't miss the latest things to retweet, people should be out there actually making a difference. Join a protest instead of retweeting about one, or donate money to a cause instead of spending that money on a shirt which labels you as an activist. People are much too concerned with how a feminist should look or how a feminist should come across that they are missing the part where they actually do something as feminists. It seems like the easier thing to do is to just be an active member for change and to worry about the labels later, they only end up distracting from the main goals anyway.
ReplyDelete- Sammi L.
Andi Zeisler has labeled this new wave of mainstream feminism “marketplace feminism”, emphasizing the commodification of feminism within the last few years. Zeisler critics those who align with marketplace feminism claiming that just because you wear a shirt that says feminism with a pair of heels doesn’t make you a full-fledged feminist. I believe she is so critical of this marketplace feminism for the following reasons; it is not the best representation of the feminist movement and it doesn’t put any emphasis on action. I believe that Zeisler is also slightly afraid that this marketplace feminism will become the new feminism, and all of our work will have been lost. Zeisler puts a focus on the lack of action within this new feminist rise because she does not want this co-optation of feminism to become the next generation’s feminism. Sure, women in the 21st century have benefitted majorly from the efforts of the 2nd wave feminists but with men still responding with “not ALL men” when discussing violence against women we obviously still have a long way to go. I do agree with Zeisler that marketplace feminism is not true feminism, but I have to bend a little. With this consumerist society we live in, which is not changing any time soon or potentially ever, the easiest way to feed the masses information is through commodities. Celebrities labeling themselves as feminists, H&M selling feminists t-shirts, and male porn-stars being awarded the label is the fastest way to catch peoples attentions. The only issue now is the information that they are being fed. Wearing high heels because you feel empowered is not feminism, but going to a Black Lives Matter movement because you say someone tweeting about it IS feminism. The focus needs to be shifted from the individual, what makes you feel special and empowered, but to what is good for the community as a whole, marches for science, women, and the end of police brutality. And the best part is, you can wear your feminist t-shirt while you’re fighting for true equality. I guess that’s what new wave of feminism should look like.
ReplyDelete-Maddie R.
Zeisler has developed a problem with her former sentiment of everyone who supports equality should label themselves as feminist. With the uprising of capitalism infiltrating the feminism movement through the means of business and advertising has begun to have adverse effects on the progress of the actual social movement. These products and ads do not have any substance behind them and are a gimmick which causes the feminist movement to lose its power and have less impact in politics. People have shifted from being active in politics and protesting to liking an ad or wearing a certain brand because that brand is supportive of feminism. This in itself its harmful because these big companies are often the culprits of perpetuating sexist treatment and inequality which in turn takes even more power away from the political activism of feminism. Putting a simple label or brand on feminism hurts as well because feminism is something that is constantly changing and developing and cannot be defined so simply as a brand. These limits in the end help the corporation continue their actions of inequality under a guise that tricks people into thinking they are a proactive organization thus creating even more profits in such a political era.
ReplyDeleteI agree that there is a problem with marketplace feminism because of the effect it has on the movement. These companies have mastered how to make profits and pretending to be supportive of a very important social movement is just the newest strategy. The consumers have effectively watered down feminism since everything anyone buys or does is now "feminist" because they support such a "proactive" company. Feminism needs to regain its power in politics instead of just being another fashion trend that will become outdated.
RJ G
DeletePrior to marketplace feminism and the idea that feminism was cool, identifying as a feminist once carried a very negative connotation. Feminists were thought to be undesirable. This, I believe, is why Zeisler once wanted anyone who believed in equality for women to call themselves feminist. At the time, it showed society how many people wished for change and equality for women, expunging the stereotype of what the hegemony had created of feminists. This was also in a time in which women were engaging in political activism for equality. The main reason Zeisler and other feminists changed their mind about the simplicity of calling oneself feminist was the rise of marketplace feminism. This idea that being a feminist was cool. That Beyoncé was a feminist and Taylor Swift even hopped on board after previously stating that she did not identify as one. Neoliberalism and capitalist took advantage of this change creating endless feminism paraphernalia. While the patriarchy cashed in on marketplace feminism, the battle and activism for equality was thought of to be over, simply due to the amount of people that called themselves feminists. While I agree completely in the shift Zeisler made to asking people “how they are feminist,” I do think that a marketplace feminism may have brought about one tiny positive impact. As discussed in class, while people should not rely on Beyoncé as their go-to feminist role model, if seeing Beyoncé stand in front of the word feminism during her tour is what pushed you to become more interested or involved in feminism it is seen as a positive. I think that if the popularity of the title feminist, with both women and men, has grown in the past few years, even if it was due to an inherently nonfeminist model, the barrier between the title and activism is more permeable. I am not the slightest fan of people who claim to be feminist but do not possess the drive and dedication for equality that is inherent to feminism. However, if the title feminist carries a more positive connotation than it has in the past, getting those title identifiers to take action will be more likely than before the positive connotation. Additionally, Americans are extremely prideful and asking the question, “how are you a feminist?,” may force individuals to start acting on the title that they claim to be.
ReplyDeleteAli P.
What Zeisler is saying, is that she wants people to do action for the cause instead of just labeling themselves something and doing nothing about it. What good is it for people to label themselves feminists if they do not do any action to prove that they are. Actions that support feminism are better than labeling yourself a feminist and doing nothing about it, is what Zeisler is hinting at.
ReplyDeleteThis ties to marketplace feminism and I agree with Zeisler’s criticisms of marketplace feminism. She states that marketplace feminism depoliticizes feminism and essentially just turns it into a brand.This means that the whole political movement of feminism gets ignored or boiled down to a word that people use in order to try to sell their brand. A majority of the purchasing power in a household belonged to women, and brands knew this, so that is who they targeted. Brands draw in women with the promise of feminism in their brand by having some sort of symbol or phrase on or within their brand dealing with it. However, action of the movement is never shown. The brands do not take action in the political side of feminism. Feminism cannot be simply turned into a brand, it is too vast, complex and is frequently changing. I also agree with this because feminism and capitalism clash, so brands trying to “sell” feminism is ridiculous. Feminism demands a collective action, and marketplace feminism thrives on individual choices that only benefit the marketplace. The two do not mix. Buying a product that “sells” feminism does not go any further than the buying of goods, the feminism aspect, the political action aspect is absent, and was never there to begin with.
-Lorena C.
Ziesler previously hoped that more people would declare that they were feminists in previous feminist movements. This was an important goal because declaring you were a feminist use to be a radical statement, so the fact that people are not afraid to use that language was a huge step in the feminist movement. Now, with the new trend of feminism in pop culture, people are quick to claim they are feminist, but do not take any action their claim to believe in equality.
ReplyDeleteNow that feminism has become common language, Zeisler is more interested in what actions people are taking to support feminism, instead of what feminists clothes you were or movies you watch. Because of musicians and actors like Beyoncé, Emma Watson and Aziz Ansari, young people are eager to align themselves with their values and stay on the trend. Though this is important progress, people that identify as someone who believes in equality often does not take action toward doing so, but just wants to fit in. Many clothing brands have noticed this trend and now have created clothing lines and market strategies around supporting this new pop culture feminist movement.
There is a misconception that the support of feminism in the media has made political change. We have seen that while there has been a positive step forward in discussion in the media, there has been no political progress. In fact, there has been steps backward in recent months with defunding of planned parenthood and the election of a president that has been accused on multiple accounts of sexual assault and has a history of misogyny.
I agree with Zeisler’s criticism, clothing brands use civil rights activists like Gloria Steinem to sell their products. This makes huge corporations, headed by men, more and more rich and does not move political activism. By asking people, “How are you a feminist?” This makes people question how they work toward making change in their community to create equality and forces people to take action on their words.
Amelia M.
I agree with Zeisler’s criticisms of marketplace feminism. I also think that it is reasonable of her to no longer believe that everyone supporting equality for women should be called “feminist” because in the new world of marketplace feminism, the new supporters are not really supporters. They are actually fake feminists who only know the surface level of issues and what the feminist movement is actually about. In my opinion, I think that people buy feminist mementos to take a false stand for the movement because they want to look politically active. In the tech savvy world we live in today, people care a lot more about impressing others and showing off. I feel as though the people who buy into marketplace feminism only want those items to showcase to everyone else that they are a part of something bigger than themselves. Zeisler probably realized that and became less interested in the label and more interested in what the newfound “feminists” are actually doing in support of feminism. She questions the new feminists on how they are feminists and what they are doing as feminists. She no longer asks if people are feminist because more than likely, the answer will be yes. Zeisler now asks about the actions being done as feminists because marketplace feminism is imbedded into today’s culture so deeply that people cannot distinguish the difference of supporting feminism versus actually advocating for feminism. In marketplace feminism, people are all talk. They will make something known from behind their screen on social media, but very few actually go outside to take action in the movement. Zeisler’s shift in opinion is basically a push for new “feminists” to prove her wrong by actually becoming a feminist. Maybe marketplace feminism is a baby step into actual full-blown feminism because it gives people a starting place. It’s just up to them if they choose to delve deeper or if they only want to dip a toe in.
ReplyDelete-Katelyn T.