Earlier
this week, the internet went slightly mad over a speech by Emma Watson
to the UN General Assembly in New York. A Goodwill Ambassador for UN
Women, Watson was there to launch HeForShe, a campaign which calls on
men to become advocates for women and "agents of change" in the fight to
end gender inequality.
In her speech, which has been repeatedly
labelled "game-changing", Watson highlighted the impact of gender
inequality on boys and men. After providing some very accessible,
positive and necessary thoughts on feminism in general, she offered this
observation: "We don't often talk about men being imprisoned by gender
stereotypes but I can see that they are, and that when they are free,
things will change for women as a natural consequence."
I'm sorry to
be the Grinch who stole Popular Feminism, but this is utter rubbish.
Gender inequality comes as a direct result of the enforcement of
patriarchal structures. Although men are impacted negatively by it, they
are not impacted in the same ways or to the same drastically violent
extent as women.
Additionally, men are overwhelmingly the
beneficiaries of these patriarchal structures, seeing themselves
reflected broadly across society as change-makers and power brokers.
Whatever benefits Watson's speech may have in regard to inspiring a new
generation of young feminists (and that is unquestionably an
achievement), it is offensive and farcical to suggest that equality and
change will come for women "as a natural consequence" of men being
supported to get their feelings in order.
Unfortunately, ideas like
this have begun to bubble up in a feminist discourse which seems to have
not only adopted a "gently, gently" approach to social and structural
change but repositioned the perpetrators of inequality and violence as
some kind of vague shadowy cloud and not identifiable groups of people.
It's no longer enough to demonstrate to men the reality of gender
oppression through activism and adult dialogue - now we must "engage"
them as one would a child, encouraging them to see how behavioural
change will also benefit them.
In her address, Watson wondered why a
1997 speech on gender inequality delivered by Hillary Clinton boasted
only 30 per cent of men in its audience. "How can we effect change in
the world when only half of it is invited or feel welcome to participate
in the conversation?" she asked, before going on to officially extend a
formal invite to men to make gender equality their issue too.
It's a
nice gesture but this, too, is rubbish. Men have always been welcome to
"participate in the conversation", most notably when that participation
involves action, change and acknowledgement of their own privilege and
power.
It's telling that a second speech delivered by the UN Women
director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka has received little to no traction, and
not just because she lacks the star power of a well intentioned
celebrity. Mlambo-Ngcuka's speech made no secret of what violence and
gender oppression looked like for women, nor which group - men - was
overwhelmingly responsible for causing it. Yet none of the facts or
chilling statistics referenced by Mlambo-Ngcuka have even been
incorporated in the HeForShe website, which is a confusing mess of
meaningless platitudes and simplistic quotes.
It's true that a
person like Watson is very well placed to inspire people who may still
be labouring under the weight of stereotypes regarding feminism, and
that is undoubtedly cause for celebration. I applaud her for being brave
enough to speak out when so many others haven't.
But feminists have
been battling these stereotypes for decades and we will almost
certainly be battling them for years to come because the unfortunate
truth is that gender inequality is about power - who has it, and who
wants to retain it. No amount of window dressing (for that is surely
what the HeForShe campaign amounts to, given its entire breadth seems to
be asking men to click a button and download a twibbon) is going to
change the systemic global oppression that results in women's
degradation, subjugation and death in persistently high numbers. And it
isn't, as some have suggested, "tearing another woman down" to want to
discuss that reality.
While busy launching flashy guff like
HeForShe, the UN has also acknowledged it will fail to meet its
Millenium Development Goals (MDG) on gender equality by the target date
of 2015, especially its goal on maternal health care and mortality. In
the UN Women's paper on the MDGs, they admit that limited funding has
been devoted to programs which address women's economic, sexual and
social equality.
When UN Women was established in 2011, it was
granted less than 1 per cent of all UN funding. That same year, Germany,
the US and the UK provided a paltry $1 million, $6 million and $10
million apiece towards its goal. That lack of political will is at odds
with these truths.
In 2013, an estimated 140 million women worldwide
were unable to access family planning services that would enable them
to delay or stop childbearing, a liberty which the UN and health bodies
admits plays a significant role in the empowerment of women and their
families.
Across 63 countries around the world, girls are still more
likely than boys to be denied access to primary education because of
perceptions about girls' worth. Women do not feature heavily in
political leadership, despite evidence suggesting that female-led
governance improves policy-making and community benefit. In Australia,
one woman is still killed every week by her partner or ex-partner while
women's refuges are being closed down around the country.
These are
not facts that exist because men have thus far been "denied" entry into
feminist debate and activism. They won't disappear "naturally" when men
are empowered to be sensitive. They exist because patriarchal power
hinges on the subjugation of women, and anything that distracts from
that is a liability to the cause.
I love that Emma Watson has
bravely put herself on the line as a proud feminist. It's wonderful that
she may be instrumental in inspiring millions more to consider these
issues. Bravo to her. But to be truly game-changing, you have to
actually change the game. And while it is important for men to choose to
be allies, addressing actual systemic inequality through the funding of
programs which empower and defend women's sexual, economic and
political rights is the only way to ensure women have a chance at
winning. (
source)
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