Why are the "ifeminists" so critical of feminism?

Question

...especially when they were former mainstream feminists.

Here is their basic set of beliefs:

http://www.ifeminists.com/introduction/editorials/2002/0625b.html

Do they make any valid points?

Does anyone else think the "ifeminists" sound a lot more "humanist" and fair-minded than the NOW (National Organization of Women) crowd?

Answer 1

Like almost everyone else, they're critical of what feminism has become and consider themselves to be the true feminists. That they are, I suppose, but they seem to go out of their way to blame modern feminism for everything, and they don't pay much attention to women's problems in their manifestos.

Answer 2

Why, does it challenge your beliefs that they criticise feminism yet still call themselves feminists?  :-)

Answer 3

Anyone can be critical of anything. My guess is, this Wendy Mcwhatsit is critical because she wants to be.

I don't think she sounds particularly fair minded or humanist (humanism already exists, it's a political philosophy a lot older than ifeminism or masculationism or whatever, and you are NOT using it correctly when you reference this article to it).

But ~ she DOES sound sort of evangelistic and hand-clappy, like one of those tent preachers you read about. I'm sure everyone in the audience had a great time (not a dry seat in the house).

I'm NOT sure why she thinks she gets to define what other people 'should' think or do, but whatever.

Cheers :-)

Answer 4

ifeminist.org has no anti male bias and hypocrisy like mainstream feminists do.  The other so called feminists should follow their lead.

Answer 5

They make valid points, as does Carrie Lukas in this great speech:

http://www.iwf.org/news/show/19778.html

They're like Neil Lyndon and Warren Farrell, both people who became disillusioned with feminism after they saw it becoming a radical movement that actually spent more time putting men down and getting benefits for women simply because they were women than thinking about when to stop.

Both of them suffered for criticizing feminism. But it is good to see women, like the ifeminists and the Independent Women's Forum criticize feminism. In fact, everybody who ever criticized feminism would end up like Neil Lyndon had anonymous internet not become so big:

http://www.ukmm.org.uk/issues/suppressio...

Both the IWF and the ifeminists definitely make very good points that should be heard.

Answer 6

Very heartening to read a woman expressing these views, let alone a feminist.

I can't help wondering why she calls herself a feminist though. Why not a humanist? The term has been dragged through the mud for so long it makes you wonder what she can salvage from it. Given 40 years of feminists undermining the rights of men, I for one would not feel comfortable having my rights promoted by someone calling themselves a feminist. I really don't understand the need for someone egalitarian to label oneself a feminist. Its like a German politician wanting to racial harmony but insisting on calling themselves a n**i.

Answer 7

As a feminist, I hesitate to use this term, but Wendy McElroy sounds like a b****.

Answer 8

I have no idea what NOW does and I don't care.  I don't even live in the same country as NOW.

Feminism is a do-it-yourself social and political movement.  There is no feminist  "Pope", there is no International Feminist Conspiracy.  Feminism is as individual as is each feminist.