Patriarchy is something I’ve always understood because I live in its consequences. When I learned the word patriarchy, I understood it as a social system and was aware of its components, but it’s was not something I could concisely define for other people, especially males. Largely, social systems are difficult to concisely define because they are so complex, even Allan Johnson’s definition in “Patriarchy, The System” spans across 3 pages. However, he does list some key elements stating, “patriarchy’s defining elements are its male-dominated, male-identified, male-centered, and control-obsessed character …patriarchy is based on a set of symbols and ideas that make up a culture…”. When we define the system by these key words, we can start to identify its manifestation in society. It’s important that people understand that patriarchy as a social system because it is larger than the individual or even a group; it’s so entrenched in the fabrics of our society that people don’t recognize our loyalty to this system. For many patriarchal views like the gender binary or gender roles are facts, science, ordinance by God, or simply the nature of the universe. Providing people with the vocabulary, illustrating patriarchal consistencies in social life and institutions, and detailing the power hierarchy and oppression is how we truly educate people on what the patriarchy is.
On the topic of patriarchal values and thinking, I’d like to talk about Cara Delevingne’s Met Gala “Peg the Patriarchy” outfit that my classmate Caitlyn. H posted as a Snapshot. I know a lot of people found it empowering and revolutionary, and no shade at all, but personally I feel it’s the opposite. I think the phrase “peg the patriarchy” is patriarchal in nature. For those who don’t know, pegging refers to a woman anally penetrating a man with a strap on. It is obviously sexual in nature and is typically done as an act of dominance. While pegging doesn’t have to be domineering, it is commonly known and practiced as an act of domination and in the context of destroying the patriarchy it denotes power over men. The face of women empowerment and dismantling the patriarchy shouldn’t be the image of women dominating men by bending them over an penetrating them. Feminism isn’t about domination over men, it’s about ending patriarchy, and you don’t end patriarchy by thinking in the scopes of the system. The fact that a strap on, which is a phallic or penis shaped object is being presented as a tool of dominance and destruction is also VERY patriarchal in nature. In the system of patriarchy, the penis is a symbol of dominance, that is mirrored here; in the system of patriarchy dominance and power are the ultimate goal, that is mirrored here. It’s essentially “using the master’s tools to dismantle the master’s house” as Audre Lorde would put it. I understand what Cara was going for, but she missed the mark. Women need to assess whether the things we view as empowerment is true empowerment or just patriarchal views of empowerment.
Since I’ve mentioned Audre Lorde, I’d like to talk about her piece “There is no Hierarchy of Oppression” because it gives us a revolutionary model of activism. Lorde states, “Any attack against Black people is a lesbian and gay issue, because I and thousands of other Black women are part of the lesbian community. Any attack against lesbians and gays is a Black issue, because thousands of lesbians and gay men are Black. There is no hierarchy of oppression”. Too often activism utilizes the individualism or binary/unnuanced thinking that upholds oppressive systems. All systems of oppression are intertwined because all social systems intersect. there are people who belong to various oppressed groups, you cannot separate oppression. You cannot be feminist and not also fight for racial justice because women of color are victims of racial oppression. If you erase race, class, sexuality, or disability from your fight against misogyny, you make rich white cis-het able-bodied women the default of women. One fight does not come before the other, all must be fought for at once, we need intersectionality in all movements and solidarity from all parties.
