Feminism Nouveau
FEMINISM
NOUVEAU T HE NEW FRONTIER
RENÉE LALONDE
Feminism-like any movement- is subject to frequent reinvention. So what can we expect from the women’s movement in ten years? Spoiler alert: intersectionality. Women were always portrayed as highly efficient multi-taskers, a stereotype that translates into the feminism movement. The movement has evolved to champion the struggles of different oppressed groups, and incorporates more voices than ever before, but lacks a focused to-do list. Feminism has seen a rise in heated debate regarding Middle-Eastern women and religious headwear. Fringe groups such as the Europe-based Femen have taken the stance of freeing women from the headwear, which they deem oppressive. “They oftentimes target Muslim communities. They talk about how they’re here to emancipate Muslim women,” says Farrah Khan, a coordinator at the Barbra Schlifer Commemorative Clinic. “We no longer have one way of liberation looking. There’s multiple ways to be liberated.”
“People are saying, ‘but what if she wants to wear it?’“ says Alex Curley, a civil rights activist, and a graduate of Sheridan’s journalism program. “The argument then becomes, ‘well is it because she’s been programmed that way and she’s living within the oppression and she, herself is an oppressor oppressing herself?’ Or, ‘is she choosing to wear it as a symbol of the faith and therefore she is actually empowering herself by taking on the symbol?’ “ The debate is complex, with a lot of Western voices weighing on Middle-Eastern problems. Another large difference has been the medium. The first crusaders of the women’s movement gathered in living rooms and took to the streets in protest, whereas young feminists are swapping podiums for computer desks and paintbrushes.
“Young women are creating lots of different ways to speak their narrative,” says Khan, citing Tumblr initiatives such as the I Need Feminism project and Project Unbreakable as examples. The story of feminism in Canada began with the suffragettes battling to obtain the right to vote. The Royal Commission on the Status of Women’s 167 recommendations were collected into a monster of a document (488 pages, to be exact,) and presently serves as a good benchmark for what victories have been won, and what issues still need addressing. There are a few recommendations that still need to be checked off this lengthy to-do list, one of them being equal earnings for women and men. So what’s in store? Access to daycare was included in the 167 recommendations and although daycare in the private sector is available now, it’s pricey. In the documentary Status Quo? The Unfinished Business of Feminism in Canada, a government-funded daycare system, much like our health care system, is strongly suggested. The fight for legal rights has been successful but there are still traces of sexism in modern life. “We’ve gotten a lot of the legal out of the way,” says Curley. “But now we’re in the area of trying to change peoples’ minds. And peoples’ minds are all over the place.” Quebec’s effort to pass the “Charter of Values,” which would implement a ban on religious headwear in publicly funded institutions could be seeing some backlash in the future. “We’re seeing the after effects of bans and restrictions on Muslim women who wear hijabs or head covers,” says Khan. “We’re seeing it in Quebec and in Paris and increased violence against Muslim women as a result of these bans.” Khan expects we will see feminists mobilizing around women who are struggling with the Canadian immigration system, due to recent changes in policy. She also predicts changes for aboriginal rights, the after-effects of de-
stroying the gun control registry, and some rallying around employment rights. In 2012, an anti-discriminatory bill was passed to end harassment of transgendered people, which suggests more acceptance of trans people in the future. The intersection of feminism to other forms of oppression has been a hot topic, as conversations revolve around how complex feminist issues can be. “It’s trying to deconstruct what feminism is built into so it can now evaluate itself and criticize it. There’s a lot of work towards racial rights, sexual rights, and gender rights now that weren’t originally thought to be part of feminism,” says Curley. “It’s become more of an equalist movement.” Last year conversations revolved around sexual assaults and rape culture, with strong initiatives to educate about consent on college campuses, two high-profile cases of suicide caused by sexually motivated online harassment, and the pro-rape chants at St. Mary’s University in Halifax. Feminism or any progressive cause can coincide with the unknown future, as Khan learned at a workshop called Black and Brown Girls Write a New World. “They talked about this idea of ‘what would new worlds look like?’ Khan says. “Science fiction is the opportunity to imagine a world that you’ve only dreamed of could be real.” Khan is the coordinator at a group called Outburst, which works with young Muslim women to address violence in their lives and saw parallels between the futuristic concepts in the workshop, and the works created by the women in the group. “They are the reality that another world is possible,” she says. “Science fiction in feminism is actually really important because we actually are dreaming of other worlds possible, and that’s why it’s important in our work; to continue that dreaming and striving together, be it with our elders or be it with young people.”
05
04 FUTURUS
Feminism Nouveau: The New Frontier
NOUVEAU T HE NEW FRONTIER
RENÉE LALONDE
Feminism-like any movement- is subject to frequent reinvention. So what can we expect from the women’s movement in ten years? Spoiler alert: intersectionality. Women were always portrayed as highly efficient multi-taskers, a stereotype that translates into the feminism movement. The movement has evolved to champion the struggles of different oppressed groups, and incorporates more voices than ever before, but lacks a focused to-do list. Feminism has seen a rise in heated debate regarding Middle-Eastern women and religious headwear. Fringe groups such as the Europe-based Femen have taken the stance of freeing women from the headwear, which they deem oppressive. “They oftentimes target Muslim communities. They talk about how they’re here to emancipate Muslim women,” says Farrah Khan, a coordinator at the Barbra Schlifer Commemorative Clinic. “We no longer have one way of liberation looking. There’s multiple ways to be liberated.”
“People are saying, ‘but what if she wants to wear it?’“ says Alex Curley, a civil rights activist, and a graduate of Sheridan’s journalism program. “The argument then becomes, ‘well is it because she’s been programmed that way and she’s living within the oppression and she, herself is an oppressor oppressing herself?’ Or, ‘is she choosing to wear it as a symbol of the faith and therefore she is actually empowering herself by taking on the symbol?’ “ The debate is complex, with a lot of Western voices weighing on Middle-Eastern problems. Another large difference has been the medium. The first crusaders of the women’s movement gathered in living rooms and took to the streets in protest, whereas young feminists are swapping podiums for computer desks and paintbrushes.
“Young women are creating lots of different ways to speak their narrative,” says Khan, citing Tumblr initiatives such as the I Need Feminism project and Project Unbreakable as examples. The story of feminism in Canada began with the suffragettes battling to obtain the right to vote. The Royal Commission on the Status of Women’s 167 recommendations were collected into a monster of a document (488 pages, to be exact,) and presently serves as a good benchmark for what victories have been won, and what issues still need addressing. There are a few recommendations that still need to be checked off this lengthy to-do list, one of them being equal earnings for women and men. So what’s in store? Access to daycare was included in the 167 recommendations and although daycare in the private sector is available now, it’s pricey. In the documentary Status Quo? The Unfinished Business of Feminism in Canada, a government-funded daycare system, much like our health care system, is strongly suggested. The fight for legal rights has been successful but there are still traces of sexism in modern life. “We’ve gotten a lot of the legal out of the way,” says Curley. “But now we’re in the area of trying to change peoples’ minds. And peoples’ minds are all over the place.” Quebec’s effort to pass the “Charter of Values,” which would implement a ban on religious headwear in publicly funded institutions could be seeing some backlash in the future. “We’re seeing the after effects of bans and restrictions on Muslim women who wear hijabs or head covers,” says Khan. “We’re seeing it in Quebec and in Paris and increased violence against Muslim women as a result of these bans.” Khan expects we will see feminists mobilizing around women who are struggling with the Canadian immigration system, due to recent changes in policy. She also predicts changes for aboriginal rights, the after-effects of de-
stroying the gun control registry, and some rallying around employment rights. In 2012, an anti-discriminatory bill was passed to end harassment of transgendered people, which suggests more acceptance of trans people in the future. The intersection of feminism to other forms of oppression has been a hot topic, as conversations revolve around how complex feminist issues can be. “It’s trying to deconstruct what feminism is built into so it can now evaluate itself and criticize it. There’s a lot of work towards racial rights, sexual rights, and gender rights now that weren’t originally thought to be part of feminism,” says Curley. “It’s become more of an equalist movement.” Last year conversations revolved around sexual assaults and rape culture, with strong initiatives to educate about consent on college campuses, two high-profile cases of suicide caused by sexually motivated online harassment, and the pro-rape chants at St. Mary’s University in Halifax. Feminism or any progressive cause can coincide with the unknown future, as Khan learned at a workshop called Black and Brown Girls Write a New World. “They talked about this idea of ‘what would new worlds look like?’ Khan says. “Science fiction is the opportunity to imagine a world that you’ve only dreamed of could be real.” Khan is the coordinator at a group called Outburst, which works with young Muslim women to address violence in their lives and saw parallels between the futuristic concepts in the workshop, and the works created by the women in the group. “They are the reality that another world is possible,” she says. “Science fiction in feminism is actually really important because we actually are dreaming of other worlds possible, and that’s why it’s important in our work; to continue that dreaming and striving together, be it with our elders or be it with young people.”
05
04 FUTURUS
Feminism Nouveau: The New Frontier
