What is radical feminism? What is liberal feminism? What «black» feminism? What is postcolonial feminism? Answers to these questions you will find in the article.
Content
What is radical feminism
Radical feminism considers as a determining factor in oppression of women controlled by a man capitalist hierarchy, which is described as a sexist. Supporters of this flow believe that women will be able to free themselves only when they get rid of the patriarchal system, which they consider initially oppressing and dominant. Radical feminists believe that in society there is a structure based on the male beginning of power and subordination, and this structure is the cause of oppression and inequality, and so far the whole system and its values continue to exist, no significant reforms of society are impossible. Some radical feminists do not see another alternative, except for complete breakdown and reconstruction of society to achieve their goals.
Over time, various directions in radical feminism began to occur, such as cultural feminism, separatist feminism and antiprographic feminism. Cultural feminism is ideology «Women's nature» or «Female essence», trying to return the value of those distinguishing features of a woman who seem underestimated. He emphasizes the distinction between men and women, but believes that this difference is psychological and culturally designed, and not biologically congenital. Critics of this direction argue that since his concept is based on the taking into account the essential differences between men and women and stands for the cultural and institutional independence of women, cultural feminism leads feminists from politics to some «Style of Life». One of these critics, the historian of feminism and the cultural theorist Alice Eholls attributes a member «Redstocking» Brooke Williams Introduction «Cultural feminism» In 1975, to describe the depoliticization of radical feminism.
Separatist feminism is a form of radical feminism that does not support heterosexual relations. Supporters of this flow argue that sexual differences between men and women are insoluble. Separatist feminists tend to believe that men cannot make a positive contribution to the feminist movement, and that even those who led by good intentions of men reproduce patriarchal dynamics. Author Marilyn Fry describes separatist feminism as «Different types of separation from men and from institutions, relations, roles and actions determined by men, as well as working in the interests of men and in order to preserve male privileges, and this department is inherently initiated or supported by women».
What is liberal feminism
Liberal feminism proclaims the equality of men and women through political and legal reforms. This is an individualistic direction in feminism, which focuses on women's ability to achieve equal rights with men on the basis of their own actions and solutions. Liberal feminism uses personal interaction between men and women, as the starting point from which society is being transformed. According to liberal feminists, all women can independently approve their right to be equal to men.
In many ways, such a position comes from the classical concept of enlightenment on the construction of society on the principles of the mind and equality of opportunity. The use of these principles for women put the basis of liberal feminism, which developed in the XIX century such theorists as John Stewart Mill, Elizabeth Cadida Stanton and others. Therefore, especially important for them was the question of ownership for a woman as one of the fundamental rights, guaranteeing independence of women from a man.
Based on this, changes in the position of women can be carried out without a radical change in public structures, as suggested by other directions of feminism. For liberal feminists, issues are important as the right to abortion, the question of sexual harassment, the possibility of equal vote, equality in education, «equal payment for equal labor» (slogan «Equal Pay for Equal Work!»), accessibility of child care, availability of medical care, attracting attention to the problem of sexual and domestic violence against women.
What «black» feminism
«Black» Feminism argues that sexism, class depression and racism are inextricably linked [28]. Forms of feminism, which seek to overcome sexism and class oppression, but ignore racism, can be discriminatory in relation to many people, including women, through racial prejudices. In a statement «black» Feminists designed «Black» Feminist Lesbian Organization «Combi River Collective» (The Combahee River Collective) in 1974, it says that the liberation of black women entails freedom for all people, as it implies the end of racism, sexism and class oppression.
One of the theories originated in this movement was Vumanism Alice Walker. He arose as criticism of the feminist movement, in which white middle-class women dominate and which, in general, ignores oppression on racial and class signs. Alice Walker and supporters of Vumanism noted that black women experience oppression in other and more intense forms than white women.
Angela Davis, author of the book «Women, Race and Class» (Women, Race, And Class), became one of the first feminists who built his argument around the intersection point of race, gender and class. Kimberly Kranschow, a famous feminist theoretical right, in his essay «Distributing borders: Intesticity, Identity Policy and Violence against Women Uncooked Skin Color» (Mapping The Margins: InterSectionality, Identity Politics and Violence Against Women Of Color) called this idea in intersecting.
What is postcolonial feminism
Postcolonial feminists argue that the oppression associated with colonial experience, in particular, racial, class and ethnic oppression, had a marginalizing effect on women in post-colonic societies. They question the hypothesis that gender oppression is the main driving force of the Patriarchate. Proponents of postcolonial feminism oppose the images of women of non-vocabulary societies as passive and lackless victims, and women of Western countries as modern, educated and civil rights.
Postwolonial feminism arose from the gender theory of colonialism: the colonial powers often impose the Western regions colummined regions. According to Chilla Balbec, currently post-colonic feminism is fighting for the destruction of gender oppression within the framework of its own cultural models of society, and not through those models that were imposed by Western colonizers. Postcolonial feminism refers to critically to Western forms of feminism, in particular, to radical and liberal feminism and their universalization of women's experience.
This direction as a whole can be characterized as a response to universalistic trends in Western feminist thoughts and the lack of attention to gender issues in the main flow of postcolonial thought.
Feminism «Third World» - Conditional name for a group of theories developed by feminists who have formed their views and participating in feminist activities in the so-called countries «Third World». Feminists from countries «Third World», Such as Chandra Talpade Mohanty (Chandra Talpade Mohanty) and Sahoo Sahoo (Sarojini Sahoo) criticize the western feminism on the grounds that he is ethnocentric and does not take into account the unique experience of women from countries «Third World». According to Chandra Talpad Mohanti, women in countries «Third World» believe that western feminism bases his understanding of a woman on «internal racism, classism and homophobia».
