A Question of “Good” Feminism

I feel that I should start this by saying that I absolutely consider myself a feminist, and have a strong drive to educate and inform people about many different types of feminist issues that face our society. That said, I also feel strongly about protecting the rights of all members of society, not just women. While I fully understand the idea of male privilege and can clearly see the terrible ways in which many women are treated, I also see that there is a certain degree of sexism towards men, and that many issues which I have a strong opinion on as a feminist may not be completely black and white.

I definitely know that feminism does not exclude the protection of men (of any race, religion, age or sexuality) who are being treated unfairly or with bias. I appreciate the fact that I have not seen much of an "anti-male" attitude in this community.

However, I have many times been faced with statements from self-identified feminists which seem to me to be unfairly biased against men, and are (in my opinion) just as damaging as if a man was making a similarly derogatory comment about women.  Not only that, but I strongly feel that these sorts of generalized or hateful comments reflect negatively on the feminist movement, and makes me feel almost ashamed to be associated with them.

My question is: how do other feminists who share my egalitarian perspective address this issue when they are confronted with it? What can we do to remove the "man-hating feminazi" stereotype from the public perception of feminism?

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.

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