Caitlin

Originally posted by Caitlin Grant at Paradigm Shift NYC, a spectacular feminist blog.

An open letter to The Atlantic in response to Elizabeth Wurtzel’s recent piece:“Sarah Palin, Riot Grrrl”

Dear Atlantic,

R U SRS?

At first I was able to brush off conservative appropriation of feminism as laughable attempts at garnering legitimacy in terms of sex equality. Most conservative attempts at hijacking feminism, like Sarah Palin’s mama grizzly campaign, appeared to me as nothing more than asinine, self-congratulating publicity stunts. Politically conservative women have often thought of themselves as America’s unsung superheroes, silently restoring Amurikah to its Puritanical roots.

But riot grrrl? Sarah Palin? I just… I can’t even. Too far, Atlantic, way too far. The author of this Palin-celebrating article, Elizabeth Wurtzel, describes herself as a “liberal feminist” who “like[s] Palin,” but doesn’t “agree with a word [she] says.” WTFs were indeed had by all.

Wurtzel states that Sarah Palin represents feminist ideals because she is a “visible working mother and female politician” who “puts up with less crap” than other women. Um, OK that’s all well and good, but LISTEN: a woman in power does not a feminist make. Just because Palin had political power does not mean that she did right by all the women she governed.

Sarah Palin is not a feminist. For the love of Gloria Steinem, please stop stating otherwise. Palin is anti-choice; she opposes abortion even in ...