4th Wave Feminism, call it what you like – but nothing can stop the tide.

There has been a lot of talk in feminist circles of
whether indeed we are in the fourth wave of feminism, and whether
defining the moment as such is helpful.

My good friend, Co-Host and Co-Editor – Victoria
Skyrise made an interesting comment to me in our conversation one
night, that feminists should be inclusive of all waves. Indeed we
should be!

“I am not 4th wave! Nothing I can or want to do about it. I’m waveless anyway, but…. What about All Waves of Feminism!!!
Leave no turn unstoned.”

She helped my find some clarity, all this talk about
waves can put people off what really matters.

The struggle itself is the same as it has always been. From fighting for our reproductive rights, closing the equal pay gap, encouraging and enabling women and girls to break the glass ceiling in all walks of life, to ending misogyny – all these struggles are important as they ever were no matter what your views are. For all the progress we have made, there is still a long way to go.

Naming the wave does not define the task in front of
us.

As if it was not difficult enough, somewhere along the
way the "post feminist" world was defined for us, and there
are many in western society who genuinely believe that feminism has
achieved its goals. Never mind the rape statistics, or the woman hate
crimes, the misogyny in the media, both subtle and openly hostile.
Never mind the pornification of our culture, the saturation of
patriarchal film iconry though Hollywood’s male lens. Never mind the
gaping chasm that is still the equal pay gap. Before we even get
outside of the western culture and look at the rest of the world, and
yes it needs to be looked at, but even at home, feminism’s work is
far from done.

No we are not in a "post feminist" world, and those who created that phrase were either indulging in wishful
thinking or downright dishonesty.

But there is also confusion about the word itself. What
is Feminism? It is not a one size fits all philosophy. Among the many
varieties are radical, liberal, socialist, lesbian, first wave,
second wave, third wave; it can be confusing for any of us, and
potentially off-putting for younger women and girls. It has always
been so. Each generation disagrees about what the priorities should
be.

How many times do you hear women and girls declare "I am not a feminist"? Frustrating and sickening, isn’t it?

I was actually thinking about that when I stumbled across the dictionary definition, in this post at the Tomato Nation, providing the answer. Yes you are!

feminism n (1895) 1 : the theory of the political,
economic, and social equality of the sexes 2 : organized activity on
behalf of women’s rights and interests — feminist n or adj — feministic adj

"Above,
the dictionary definition of feminism — the entire dictionary
definition of feminism. It is quite straightforward and concise. If
you believe in, support, look fondly on, hope for, and/or work
towards equality of the sexes, you are a feminist."

Yes, you are.

So we have to get over the diverse strands and confusion of theory, get back to our roots and work together on common goals. Stand together, or fail together.

Kathryn Cann
View all posts by Kathryn Cann
s website
If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!