I posted an article on my personal blog recently that received feedback in the comments section. It questioned my definition of feminism as "simplistic." I had cribbed mine from Merriam-Webster and Google:
Feminism (n): advocacy of women's rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality to men.
"Of course I used a simple definition," I wanted to argue. "No one will understand me if it's complicated. You have to crawl before you can walk."
I thought for awhile about how best to respond. I thought for awhile about why I believe in the power of simple definitions. I thought for awhile about how the word "feminism" has a really bad reputation, and about how a major source of negative stereotypes seems to stem from a lack of understanding about the meaning of the word.
And then, I drew some pictures.
... OK, I drew some admittedly terrible pictures. Using that old standby of artists' mediums, the paintbrush tool on Microsoft Paint. (Hey, I only said I was a blogger. I never claimed to be an artist).
I don't know that much. Frankly, I'm not sure if I even got it right. I'm not a feminist scholar. I'm just a blogger who cares.
But it is a start. A definition is a very good place to start.
I hope it will help.
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