Author: Elba Leon

Share your reflections about the texts from this week. What themes do you see across the different texts for this week? Based on these readings, what do you see as the primary issues that concern feminists in the late 1960s and early 1970s? Where in the texts do you see different priorities or concerns come up — and, what do you notice about these differences?

Throughout all the readings there is a main focus on the way women should prioritize themselves. This world has been dominated by men for such a long time and the standards for women have been implemented by men. In the first reading “Redstockings Manifesto”(1969) it is expressed very clearly that women are tired of being objects and prized possessions, “Our oppression is total, affecting every facet of our lives.  We are exploited as sex objects, breeders, domestic servants, and cheap labor.  We are considered inferior beings, whose only purpose is to enhance men’s lives.”

The following reading by Mainardi, “The Politics of Housework”(1970) men have underestimated he tedious amount of work that women have to do in order to keep the men happy. When they are asked to share the tasks the men are irritated and annoyed that they have to do such things “I hate it more than you. You don’t mind it so much, meaning: Housework is shitwork. It’s the worst crap I’ve ever done   For someone of my intelligence to do it. But for someone of your intelligence…” By men having all this control throughout these long period of times women have been “set” to doubt themselves. Their goals and wishes have been limited for a very long time and that is what is being portrayed  in this reading “I can only explain it by stating that we women have been brainwashed more than even we imagine.”

In the reading “women’s liberation aims to free men too” men are usually put in really tough situations. They were to be drafted and if they did not participate they would be thrown in jail. There are many emotional injustices that were displayed to men as well, in the section “inhumanity to man” just goes to show that men are deprived of their feelings. Men can finally be free in the way that a social pressure is lifted off of their shoulders. Just like the reading mentioned, in other parts of the world a man is allowed by society to stay at home and take care of the children as well.

In the interview for Sylvia Rivera, “I’m Glad I was in the Stonewall Riot” just because many individuals would do drag they would be harassed because society would view that as incorrect. But it is the need for men to dominate that actually makes  my stomach. The fact that many police officers would choose to rape, just to show how dominant they are. “ when I ended up going to jail, to do 90 days, they tried to rape me. I very nicely bit the shit out of a man.” When in fact the police are meant to protect and serve and they would do the complete opposite by harming a community.

Most men up to modern day still have these beliefs, that women have to take care of the house. Women may not be typically as strong as men but majority of the time they out smart the opposite sex. The women in the 60s and 70 had started to rise and pay attention to the consistency of power that men held. It needs to mentioned that the men still in a way “run” the world because they still implement the beauty standards, marketing is to promote sex and domination over women. 

There are differences between communities, race, age, it all matters. White women were fighting constantly in order to put men in their place and start involving themselves in the house and help out with the workload. While minorities would fight for their rights with the people that were to be those who should have represented safety and peace. 

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3. Pick a quote or two from one of the texts that spoke to you or that confused you. Describe and explain the quote(s) as best as you can and/or identify your questions about them.

Angelina Grimké’s reading “Appeal to Christian Women of the South, 1836” a quote that stood out to me was not because it used text that was not her writing. But in the way she interpreted he Declaration of Independence. Grimké tried her best to depict the reality of what it means to be an American “We must come back to the good old doctrine of our fore fathers who declared to the world,

“this self evident truth that all men are created equal, and that they have certain inalienable rights among which are,life,liberty,and the pursuit of happiness”. It is even a greater absurdity to suppose a man can be legally born a slave under our free Republican Government,than under the petty despotisms of barbarian Africa. If then, we have no right to enslave an African, surely we can have none to enslave an American.”

Surely not in the United States is allowing slavery to occur when it is highlighted that all men that are born on this land is able to have all that rights of others.She also claimed that the children of slaves are technically American because they were born on American soil. In the other reading by Ida B. Wells in 1895 it shocked me to read specifically that the white “masters” of the slaves would decide that corporal punishment was a good way to punish and devalue them in order for them to do more dirty work.

“But emancipation came and the vested interests of the white man in the Negros body were lost. The white man had no right to scourge the emancipated Negro, still less has a right to kill him… In slave time the Negro was kept subservient and submissive by the frequency and severity of the scourging, but with freedom, a new system of intimidation came into Vogue; the Negro was not only whipped and scourged; he was killed”.

When I re read what their tactic was in order to get away with abusing another human being, it infuriated me even more. Whites would manipulate the situation and would not kill slaves before the emancipation because it meant it would be a financial loss.

Overall slavery was not accepted by everyone. Many people fought to see justice occur in this messed up system. This is deeply rooted and racism is still severe as back then. There are laws that are set up now to stop the discrimination in school and in the work place. In my opinion I think it’s so pathetic that we need to have laws in order not to discriminate others because it should be in everyone to treat each other correctly. Sadly it is not that way and there are all these laws in order to protect the minorities.

#1. What does Frye mean by “oppression” and how is it different than being miserable or frustrated? What does Lorde’s essay tell us about oppression? How do you relate to these pieces, if at all? Can you think of examples or experiences that connect to Frye and/or Lorde’s arguments.

What Frye means by “oppression” and how it is different than being miserable or frustrated is that oppression leads to toxic outcomes will be that if the individual tries to escape or detach themselves from the situation.  Frye states  that it in a way oppression is a chain of hatred the behavior continues to occur if it is not stopped “We hear that oppressing is oppressive to those who oppress as well as to those they oppress.” That the individuals are in these certain situations in which they will be exposing themselves to harmful outcomes. Frye says “The mundane experience of the oppressed people is the double bind-situations in which options are reduced to a very few, and all of them exposed one to penalty, censure, or deprivation.” Being oppressed is like wearing a smiling mask to hide the fact of these individuals are being oppressed since if one might find out that they are oppressed it could lead to death or rape. 

Oppression is much different to being miserable or frustrated because the individual can choose to change their mindset into something much more positive and there will be no backlash if they show how they truly feel. Out of the whole reading by Frye is oppression is like a cage in a way Frye was able to describe such a multifaceted word in a poetic and simple manner. It hinders these individuals and it’s like their wings are clipped, they are alive however they not living freely.

I might be wrong but I am not so sure so I will just mention how I related to Frye’s reading. In the part where she mentions how a man is opening the door in order to receive the women’s package even though she is fully able to open the door herself and receive the package herself, that is one way of oppression. Im 19 years old and I still live with my parents, my mother gives me my privacy because she has enough trust in me that if a problem arose I would alert her. On the other hand I feel like my father is in a way “machista”. My parents are both from Oaxaca, Mexico born and raised so the culture of machismo has been a topic for the longest and continuous to be. My mother is infuriated by machismo and my father is somewhat “machista”. My father would open any type of mail I received, even though it was my mail. I felt overlooked and kind of disrespected because just like my mom raised me, being strict but also giving me space. By him doing that it threw me off. I confronted him and told him that if it had my name on the correspondence, then it wasn’t his to touch. I have a younger teen brother so he is just paying attention to our every move and facial expressions, he will obviously pick everything that he senses. Teaching the young that it does not matter if someone is a little or a lot older than they are, they should not be allowing any type of toxic situations, but sometimes it is inevitable.

Lordes reading “There Is No Hierarchy of Oppression” demonstrates that she too has an interpretation of oppression. It would signify since she is black and a member of the LGBTQ community if she is attacked for being either then that means it is an attack on being both Black and lesbian. She also mentions that certain problems in society connect to racism as well, “I have learned that sexism and heterosexism both arise from the same source as racism.”

I think both Frye and Lorde advocate for a stronger unity of those who are and aren’t oppressed, to form an ally because at the end of the day, the more people are educated on social and humane topics the better the community will be because of how much more of an understanding place it will be.

Violence against women in Colombia fueled by machismo culture and ‘institutional weakness’

In the article I have just linked it is just one out of many reports of one type of oppressor.

“What do this week’s readings have you thinking about? Select a quote from each reading that caught your attention. Discuss the author’s meaning and why these lines stood out to you.”

This weeks readings have me thinking about the word feminism. Modern day I would think many women are with the movement. That is still not the case though, many women still choose or unconsciously follow mens orders, if it is not because of culture it is because people still blindly keep on being a subordinate to men. I really enjoyed reading Feminists politics: Where we stand by bell Hooks. It was so clear and really explained feminism.

A quote that stood out to me in the reading Feminists politics: Where we stand by bell Hooks. would have to be “A woman can insist she would never choose to have an abortion while affirming her support of the right of women to choose and still be an advocate of feminist politics. She cannot be anti-abortion and an advocate of feminism.” The author ties this point to sexism, we live in a world that christian point of views are heavily weighing many individuals down. This lines stood out to me because I am pro choice and believe if a woman does not wan to have a child she should not have to go through and have an unwanted child. Psychologically that affects both the mother and the child in the future. The said child could grow up with an unhealthy view of attachment because the mother didn’t want it. I link mothers with Mary Ainsworth attachment theory, I believe it is true. The way the child is treated will affect the way the child develops themselves and socially. I also think that Hooks mentions abortion because if a women is not willing to have an abortion even if there are circumstances that are not okay such as rape or incest and even illnesses deep down she does not want others to have one as well and that traces back to sexism.

A quote from the reading Age, Race, Class and Sex: Women Redefining Difference by Audre Lorde that caught my attention was “Some problems we share as women, some we do not. You fear your children will grow up to join the patriarchy and testify against you, we fear our children will be dragged from a car and shot down in the street, and you will turn your backs upon the reasons they are dying.” There is an inequality gap that is so big white women to white men and the gap is bigger with white women and black women. I think that until people stop saying “I don’t see color” we will see a greater change than what we have right now. There are different struggles women of color endure and people need to be actively listening, which is a problem on its own. We don’t do much of active listening we are always waiting to speak and what is trying to be said is not fully comprehended. Which the quote “Certainly there are very real differences between us of race, age, and sex. But it is not those differences between us that are separating us. It is rather our refusal to recognize those differences.”

  A quote from  A Look Back At Women’s Studies Since The 1970s that stood out would be “I would say the first thing is that academic disciplines departments were remiss in their lack of attention to issues having to do with, not just women, but issues having to do with race and gender and so forth. So women’s studies, is not just about looking at women. It is also about looking at ways in which societies imagine or treat women and gender issues.” I think its also one of the reasons why I decided that I if I want to understand individuals I have to take this course. I know it will be eye opening and I already loved chicano studies. The author/ interview is focused on educating people on what and why people should take GWS it will be the gateway to understanding the struggles of minorities and women.