Hmm. *Lots* to think about here, Tamara! So much so that I need to sit with it for awhile. Not least b/c I'm fairly disconnected from certain parts of our culture (especially everything per TikTok), so... "bimbo feminism" is a new term to me, but it sounds a *lot* like a reiteration of some things that went down in the 90s, with "sex-positive" feminism, among women slightly younger than I was then. (I was in my 30s at the time, and very much the kind of "church girl" Beyonce sang about on the album prior to Cowboy Carter - save that i was a white church girl.)
I don't want to go off on tangents, but... although I had a Barbie doll, I knew I'd never seen anyone IRL that looked like her, and even though having her meant that i picked up too much of the narrative she was meant to convey, I also thought she was ridiculous in some ways. What most interested me were the original Barbie house + car. I had both. Really, the house was more of a studio apartment, but... she lived independently *and* (what really caught my eye) she had a stereo and some pretty sophisticated LPs - jazz, for the most part. (Like my own mother's collection, in fact.) And of course, there was the car, which was a very sleek-looking 2-seater convertible that was actually salmon-colored, as opposed to pink. What appealed to me was imagining that i could be as "grown up" (as I saw it) and... cool. B/c i already had been successfully "indoctrinated" by my mom's jazz records, you see... (of course, i was a kid and liked many other, not-so-great pop/rock performers as well, but my imagination was caught and held by this very non-mainstream music that Barbie also liked. Which proved more important to me in the long and short term.)
One thing i know about second-wave feminism is that it had little-no place for Black women and other WOC. Gloria Steinem and Ms. magazine paid lip service to sisterhood for everyone, but it never really did anything more than occasionally publish an essay or short story by a Black writer - and none, as far as I can recall, by any Native American writers, let alone people from South or East Asian backgrounds, back in the 70s. Now, as I've grown older, a lot has been published + aired on TV about the yawning chasm that separated the white, middle-class feminists from WOC who wanted to try and at least establish a dialogue. One topic that caused that chasm to widen was that Black and Native women were still being subjected to forced sterilization. Although this was raised at a number of different points, the white leaders of the movement refused to accept its validity, instead being insistent on abortion rights. Even though implicit in reproductive rights is the choice to have children, one that was forcibly taken from far too many women then. (And for all i know, might still be occurring.)
I have further thoughts, but will hold off for now.
Thank you for sharing! I am not surprised that 'bimbo' feminism is an offshoot of a something from the past. After all most things old become new again if you live long enough to see it, I certainly have for some things :)
I agree that in the fight for abortion rights, the acknowledgement of the wider subject of reproductive rights must be addressed. You are right in that CHOICE in this fight is paramount and taking that choice (whatever it is) away from women is the problem! This is why Intersectionality is so important. You can't claim to want the best for everyone when you fail to recognise that not everyone's story is the same.
As for the forced sterilisation, last I heard about it was during Trump's previous tenure as President, and it was being performed on detained immigrants in Georgia... That scares the shit outta me!
It is why I can't read or watch The Handmaid's Tale, we are too close to that reality that so many think is fictional.
What you said about not everyone's story being the same: yes. Acknowledging that every woman's story is *valid* is crucial. And that's where things broke down, per what happened back in the 70s. Though really, I think any poor white women who tried to engage in dialogue with the leaders of the movement would have been brushed aside, too.
Yes. All from middle class and upper middle class backgrounds, and highly educated. Some of the Black women were from very similar backgrounds, within the Black community as a whole - but were marginalized by white women and left. As i was in my late teens when all of this was going on, i tended to idolize Gloria Steinem and some others. Now I know better.
My God - what are your sources for forced sterilization of immigrants? That's absolutely terrifying and an incredibly awful violation on so.many.levels. I either can't recall reading about it anywhere, or I've blocked memories from surfacing.
I did watch the 1st two seasons of The Handmaid's Tale, against my better judgment, and wish i hadn't. It got to a point where it became too real, too much like what could *really* happen to people in this country. So I quit - one less source of trauma. I envied the characters who fled to Canada, and tbh, i still do. B/c it's unattainable for about 99% of us, and people are going to need to flee.
I read about it quite a few years ago and was so horrified and angered that I failed to take note of the articles. Of course, they never made it to mainstream media outlets and those that did were quickly suppressed for obvious reasons.
I made it through half hour of the first episode before I lost it so kudos to you for making it past two seasons. I did find it trauma inducing and triggering on too many levels to participate...
I do fear for a time when escape may be the only way for women to protect themselves and their daughters which is why it is so troubling and sad to me that so many women choose to support the patriarchy after getting drunk on the Kool Aid!
Now that i think of it, escape for daughters is one of the big things driving the plot of THT. Elisabeth Moss's character is trying to find the daughter that was taken from her, and escape with her to Canada. Then she has a 2nd child (by a lover) and that child is a daughter, and... well, there's a bit more, but another plot line made me stop watching.
About not taking note, and why: I understand. Am pretty sure I'd have done the same, as my reaction would have been the same as yours.
As for why I kept watching THT, I'm honestly not sure how or why I did it. B/c getting through each episode was an ordeal. But it was very interesting to me that most of the characters who were refugees were played by Black actors and actresses - a kind of parallel to and evocation of the many enslaved men and women who fled to Canada. I think my admiration for Samira Wiley, whose character became a refugee, was a big part of it. And Elisabeth Moss's performance was really compelling. But things just kept getting worse - and then there was a scene that stopped me cold. I can absolutely imagiine it happening. (Along with many other things in that show.)
Hmm. *Lots* to think about here, Tamara! So much so that I need to sit with it for awhile. Not least b/c I'm fairly disconnected from certain parts of our culture (especially everything per TikTok), so... "bimbo feminism" is a new term to me, but it sounds a *lot* like a reiteration of some things that went down in the 90s, with "sex-positive" feminism, among women slightly younger than I was then. (I was in my 30s at the time, and very much the kind of "church girl" Beyonce sang about on the album prior to Cowboy Carter - save that i was a white church girl.)
I don't want to go off on tangents, but... although I had a Barbie doll, I knew I'd never seen anyone IRL that looked like her, and even though having her meant that i picked up too much of the narrative she was meant to convey, I also thought she was ridiculous in some ways. What most interested me were the original Barbie house + car. I had both. Really, the house was more of a studio apartment, but... she lived independently *and* (what really caught my eye) she had a stereo and some pretty sophisticated LPs - jazz, for the most part. (Like my own mother's collection, in fact.) And of course, there was the car, which was a very sleek-looking 2-seater convertible that was actually salmon-colored, as opposed to pink. What appealed to me was imagining that i could be as "grown up" (as I saw it) and... cool. B/c i already had been successfully "indoctrinated" by my mom's jazz records, you see... (of course, i was a kid and liked many other, not-so-great pop/rock performers as well, but my imagination was caught and held by this very non-mainstream music that Barbie also liked. Which proved more important to me in the long and short term.)
One thing i know about second-wave feminism is that it had little-no place for Black women and other WOC. Gloria Steinem and Ms. magazine paid lip service to sisterhood for everyone, but it never really did anything more than occasionally publish an essay or short story by a Black writer - and none, as far as I can recall, by any Native American writers, let alone people from South or East Asian backgrounds, back in the 70s. Now, as I've grown older, a lot has been published + aired on TV about the yawning chasm that separated the white, middle-class feminists from WOC who wanted to try and at least establish a dialogue. One topic that caused that chasm to widen was that Black and Native women were still being subjected to forced sterilization. Although this was raised at a number of different points, the white leaders of the movement refused to accept its validity, instead being insistent on abortion rights. Even though implicit in reproductive rights is the choice to have children, one that was forcibly taken from far too many women then. (And for all i know, might still be occurring.)
I have further thoughts, but will hold off for now.
Thank you for sharing! I am not surprised that 'bimbo' feminism is an offshoot of a something from the past. After all most things old become new again if you live long enough to see it, I certainly have for some things :)
I agree that in the fight for abortion rights, the acknowledgement of the wider subject of reproductive rights must be addressed. You are right in that CHOICE in this fight is paramount and taking that choice (whatever it is) away from women is the problem! This is why Intersectionality is so important. You can't claim to want the best for everyone when you fail to recognise that not everyone's story is the same.
As for the forced sterilisation, last I heard about it was during Trump's previous tenure as President, and it was being performed on detained immigrants in Georgia... That scares the shit outta me!
It is why I can't read or watch The Handmaid's Tale, we are too close to that reality that so many think is fictional.
Thank you again for sharing.
What you said about not everyone's story being the same: yes. Acknowledging that every woman's story is *valid* is crucial. And that's where things broke down, per what happened back in the 70s. Though really, I think any poor white women who tried to engage in dialogue with the leaders of the movement would have been brushed aside, too.
Which speaks to the level of unacknowledged privilege of the movement’s leaders
Yes. All from middle class and upper middle class backgrounds, and highly educated. Some of the Black women were from very similar backgrounds, within the Black community as a whole - but were marginalized by white women and left. As i was in my late teens when all of this was going on, i tended to idolize Gloria Steinem and some others. Now I know better.
My God - what are your sources for forced sterilization of immigrants? That's absolutely terrifying and an incredibly awful violation on so.many.levels. I either can't recall reading about it anywhere, or I've blocked memories from surfacing.
I did watch the 1st two seasons of The Handmaid's Tale, against my better judgment, and wish i hadn't. It got to a point where it became too real, too much like what could *really* happen to people in this country. So I quit - one less source of trauma. I envied the characters who fled to Canada, and tbh, i still do. B/c it's unattainable for about 99% of us, and people are going to need to flee.
I read about it quite a few years ago and was so horrified and angered that I failed to take note of the articles. Of course, they never made it to mainstream media outlets and those that did were quickly suppressed for obvious reasons.
I made it through half hour of the first episode before I lost it so kudos to you for making it past two seasons. I did find it trauma inducing and triggering on too many levels to participate...
I do fear for a time when escape may be the only way for women to protect themselves and their daughters which is why it is so troubling and sad to me that so many women choose to support the patriarchy after getting drunk on the Kool Aid!
Now that i think of it, escape for daughters is one of the big things driving the plot of THT. Elisabeth Moss's character is trying to find the daughter that was taken from her, and escape with her to Canada. Then she has a 2nd child (by a lover) and that child is a daughter, and... well, there's a bit more, but another plot line made me stop watching.
About not taking note, and why: I understand. Am pretty sure I'd have done the same, as my reaction would have been the same as yours.
As for why I kept watching THT, I'm honestly not sure how or why I did it. B/c getting through each episode was an ordeal. But it was very interesting to me that most of the characters who were refugees were played by Black actors and actresses - a kind of parallel to and evocation of the many enslaved men and women who fled to Canada. I think my admiration for Samira Wiley, whose character became a refugee, was a big part of it. And Elisabeth Moss's performance was really compelling. But things just kept getting worse - and then there was a scene that stopped me cold. I can absolutely imagiine it happening. (Along with many other things in that show.)