Feminist Education

When I first came to college I signed up for a feminist theory class, and I thought I was going to hate everything about it. I did not think of myself as a feminist, I mean feminists are crazy women who burn their bras right? Quickly I realized just how wrong I was with all of the preconceived notions I had upon entering the classroom. The more I learned about feminism the more I began to realize that there were inequalities between men and women, and that women’s rights needed to be fought for. I quickly began to admire women such as Gloria Steinem that I had never even heard of prior to entering a Women, Gender and Sexuality classroom.

Educating people of all sexes on women, gender, and sexuality helps to root out many misconceptions when it comes to what feminism is. I have interacted with many people that talk about feminism negatively but when they talk about social issues that affect women, many of them actually agree with feminists. I recently took the intro course for my major, and many of the students thought that being a feminist meant they had to hate men when the class first started. By the end of the course those same students came to the realization I did when I took the feminist theory course, that they too are feminists.

I realize that I am in a position of privilege with my access to education, and that not everyone has the same opportunities as me. I personally believe that if women, gender, and sexuality courses were to be implemented more heavily in colleges, that it would slowly turn into a more acceptable field to study.  This would help to reduce the negative stigmas against feminism as a whole. Then from there the courses would be more likely to be offered to some extent within high schools, even if it is only a course focusing on women in history. As this information becomes more accessible to the public, a new era will begin as we strive towards the future.

Disclaimer: This post was written by a Feministing Community user and does not necessarily reflect the views of any Feministing columnist, editor, or executive director.

I am a History and WGS double major at the University of Virginia.

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