"If you are afraid of the ascendancy of fascism in this country--and you would be very foolish not to be right now--then you had better understand that the root issue here has to do with male supremacy and the control of women; sexual access to women; women as reproductive slaves; private ownership of women. That is the program of the Right. That is the morality they talk about. That is what they mean. That is what they want. And the only opposition to them that matters is an opposition to men owning women."
--Andrea Dworkin (from "I Want a Twenty-Four-Hour Truce During Which There Is No Rape"--a talk given in 1983)
I'm expecting a comment from each of you ladies here as well.
My thoughts--First of all, why isn't the Left framing issues in terms of human and civil rights in America? Second, I really think there's something to the idea that if people's "sense of entitlement to humanity has to do with being superior to other people", we will never have a truly democratic, peaceful and productive society.
For me, radical feminism is very much connected to LDS doctrine about Zion--How can there be a people of one heart and one mind while there are still hierarchies of power that exist to divide those people? And, on the other hand, how can we not get closer and closer to fascism as a society if we allow these hierarchies to exist and the divide to grow.
These aren't very developed thoughts. I've also lost the ability to write out well developed anything. But I want to hear how you ladies feel about this quote. And about Zion/feminism.
I would also like to hear how you feel about the baked mac'n I made the other day--I caramelized some onions with a dash of nutmeg, and then I used the onion juices along with some garlic and a little bit of extra butter to make a roux for the sauce. That part, needless to say, was divine. But then I skimped a little bit on cheese for the topping, and tried to overcompensate with bread crumbs. That part was not divine. I just don't understand how one gets that crispy, crumby, buttery topping that you get at soul food restaurants and stuff. Do you mix the crumbs with butter? Do you put the cheese ON TOP of the butter? I don't know.
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Yeah! For me, the idea of Zion can only be expressed when we deal with how we approach the idea of 'ownership.' The reason the Law of Consecration was instituted, and ultimately, the reason it failed, is because we are not ready to accept the idea that owning something does not make us valid (women, cars, money, status, whatnot). I think that's also where the rape impulse comes from - not feeling enough in control or like you possess something fully, which leads to the impulse to take it.
ReplyDeleteEh?
I'm printing out that speech and hanging it on the Walden bulletin board. probably not anyone will read it... but it makes me feel good to think I did something, I guess.
ReplyDeleteI just wrote this really long comment but it got deleted cuz I wasn't logged in.
ReplyDeleteOkay, I'll recreate.
Back when I was a grad student at BYU, there was a rash of attacks on women on and around campus. The school came up with a policy that women should not walk on or around campus after dark without a male escort (not the sexy kind). There were signs around campus and special phones you could use to call for an escort.
Voice, the women's activism group (does it still exist?) decided to post alternative posters that said something like this: "Due to a recent increase in violence against women on campus, male students will not be permitted to walk alone or in groups after dark, and will be required to have an escort at all times. Call this number if you need an escort." It was terrific and courageous and you can't BELIEVE the controversy it caused.
So often if you just shift the terms of a situation--substitute male for female, you see so clearly the social and cultural practices that keep us from reaching our potential as a society.
Eva, I'm no expert on baked mac'n. You should sidle up to a cook at a restaurant, turn on the charm, and ask for the secret. Although I think the secret to most fabulous food is lots and lots and lots of butter.
buttered crumbs are the answer.
ReplyDeletei recently wrote a paper about this woman, berthe von suttner, who was the first woman to win the nobel peace prize (1907) and only the second woman to win any kind of nobel prize (marie curie). fascinating woman, in the best sense. she was a central figure in the pacifist movement in the run-up to the first world war.
what i was actually writing about was emile zola and his response to suttner when she tried to recruit him to her cause. he brushed her off and said that peace was impracticable and war inevitable. then, about five years later, he wrote a book called "labor" for which he got a little bit into fourier, a french utopian crazy guy who was a pacifist and proto-socialist. suddenly, zola is on board with all the ideas that he had brushed off when presented to him by suttner. i suspect there was some sexism involved.
anyway, my point is a pretty obvious one: men like and make war, women like and want to make peace.
i have another thing to say, and it's about belonging. the gospel teaches us how to belong to one another without owning or being owned by one another. the idea of bearing one another's burdens is really interesting in the context of owning and belonging. master/slave dialectic, stuff like that.
one more thing: sexual access to women is an issue i feel very strongly about. our sexualized culture makes women feel on some level vulnerable all the time, and it's all so some guys can get really, really rich. i'm more afraid of oligarchy or corporatism than fascism, to be honest, esp. with this recent supreme court ruling. ruh-roh.
woah, long!
i just read that whole talk--wow.
ReplyDeleteOkay, now I hate Zola even more.
ReplyDelete