The TERF argument is so loaded as well. I support feminists. I am even happy to say I am a feminist- I believe a true feminist can want equality and does accept society has biases towards a lot of women. Some women overcome that but many can’t or find trouble doing so. My wife is a hard working paramedic who was looked over for a promotion and was told after “don’t worry you just got married, you’ll be popping out some babies soon anyway” despite us not planning on kids for years after that. So yes, woman do have discrimination in this society.
which is exactly why it just baffles me that men can come right in and demand they are treated the same! I accept trans rights. I accept trans people. I even don’t mind accepting people who aren’t going through hormone or trying to “pass” as women- but don’t pretend that if you grew up a man, that you have the exact same experience as a person who grew up a woman.
it’s also the perfect “woke” trap because it just proves how much the trans/ era community is just like everyone else- sexist, racist and bigoted. Era has such an issue with women and racial minorities but it ignores this in favour of trans rights at every step.
The problem really is that feminism itself gives rise to this kind of blowback.
If your fundamental starting point is that Group A and Group B are treated differently by society, even if this is true to some extent, then it's only a matter of time before "what about Group C" is floated and then it's "what about someone who is a combination of Group D & Group E".
Yes. Equality is a good thing.
Yes. People should have equal rights. Of course.
Yes. The situation you described with your wife is wrong and unacceptable.
However, for so long "Feminist Theory" has been widely pushed and as a consequence the bias in society that you have identified was countered by bias going in the other direction. When this bias is based on identity alone then it's only a matter of time until people are trying to find identities that put them at the front of the queue.
If we are having a serious conversation then I'd try to avoid phrases like "oppression olympics" but what is happening is something in that spirit.
I would guess that A LOT of young dudes have been really fucked up by continuing negative attitudes against their gender. Surely as a consequence of that some of them will find being "male" to be so insufferable that they are looking for a way out.
So it follows that they turned the tables on radical feminists.
I always thought that women's spaces would always be targeted by trolls. Some people just like to push the boundaries.
I used to help organise a women's only 10k race and every single year you would have hairy lads showing up in a tutu and a wig expecting to run.
They were trolls and while we didn't actively stop them from running we would not give them a medal at the finish line and would delete their finishing times after the race.
These days? No way. The people running it now have to just let it happen.
I would have ever thought that instead of trolling lads all of this would be undone by people who sincerely believe that they are entitled to access women's spaces because they "self-identify" as a woman.
Something like a "women only" screening of Wonder Woman.
You might get the odd clown showing up and claiming "this is discrimination" and I think the appropriate response is fucksakes just let them have their movie night and leave them alone.
Now though any guy can show up and say "I identify as a woman" and people are so terrified that they just bend the knee.
Feminists and people pushing inter-sectional ideas did this to themselves.
When your movement is built entirely on identity and you find more and more and more new ways to "think" about identity then you inevitably come down to the idea that one can self-identify and then claim some of that victim hood for themselves.
"I am Identity B and I am not as privileged as Identity A. Society needs to do more for me."
"Well I am Identity B and Identity C and do I am even less privileged than that so you need to get in line."
"OK but I used to be Identity A but now I self identify as Identities W, X, Y and Z so y'all better step back and bow down".
It beautiful. An entire set of beliefs and ideals set up to shame and berate sad beardy white "privileged" males ended up being subverted by the very people it set out to beat down as they just stepped up and claimed the best identities and jumped right to the front of the queue.
