Antifeminism, also spelled anti-feminism, is opposition to some or all forms of
feminism
Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...
. In the late 19th century and early 20th century, antifeminists opposed particular policy proposals for women's rights, such as
the right to vote, educational opportunities, property rights, and access to
birth control
Birth control, also known as contraception, anticonception, and fertility control, is the use of methods or devices to prevent unwanted pregnancy. Birth control has been used since ancient times, but effective and safe methods of birth contr ...
.
In the mid and late 20th century, antifeminists often opposed the
abortion-rights movement
Abortion-rights movements, also referred to as Pro-choice (term), pro-choice movements, advocate for the right to have Abortion law, legal access to induced abortion services including elective abortion. They seek to represent and support wome ...
and, in the United States, the
Equal Rights Amendment
The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) is a proposed amendment to the United States Constitution designed to guarantee equal legal rights for all American citizens regardless of sex. Proponents assert it would end legal distinctions between men and ...
.
In the early 21st century, some antifeminists in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
see their ideology as a response to one rooted in
hostility towards men, holding feminism responsible for several social problems, including
lower college entrance rates of young men,
gender differences in suicide
Gender differences in suicide rates have been shown to be significant. There are different rates of suicides and suicidal behavior between males and females (among both adults and adolescents). While females more often have suicidal thoughts, ma ...
and a perceived decline in
manliness
Masculinity (also called manhood or manliness) is a set of attributes, behaviors, and roles associated with men and boys. Masculinity can be theoretically understood as socially constructed, and there is also evidence that some behaviors con ...
in American culture. 21st century antifeminism has sometimes been an element of violent,
far-right extremist acts.
Definition
Canadian sociologists Melissa Blais and Francis Dupuis-Déri write that antifeminist thought has primarily taken the form of
masculinism, in which "men are in crisis because of the
feminization
Feminization most commonly refers to:
* Feminization (biology), the hormonally induced development of female sexual characteristics
* Feminization (activity), a sexual or lifestyle practice where a person assumes a female role
* Feminization (soci ...
of society".
The term ''antifeminist'' is also used to describe public female figures, some of whom (such as
Naomi Wolf
Naomi Rebekah Wolf (born November 12, 1962) is an American feminist author, journalist and conspiracy theorist.
Following her first book ''The Beauty Myth'' (1991), she became a leading spokeswoman of what has been described as the third wave ...
,
Camille Paglia
Camille Anna Paglia (; born April 2, 1947) is an American feminist academic and social critic. Paglia has been a professor at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, since 1984. She is critical of many aspects of modern cultu ...
, and
Katie Roiphe
Katie Roiphe (born July 13, 1968) is an American author and journalist. She is best known as the author of the non-fiction book '' The Morning After: Fear, Sex and Feminism'' (1994). She is also the author of ''Last Night in Paradise: Sex and Mora ...
) define themselves as feminists, based on their opposition to some or all elements of feminist movements.
Other feminists label writers such as Roiphe,
Christina Hoff Sommers
Christina Marie Hoff Sommers (born 1950) is an American author and philosopher. Specializing in ethics, she is a resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute. ,
Jean Bethke Elshtain
Jean Paulette Bethke Elshtain (1941–2013) was an American ethicist, political philosopher, and public intellectual. She was the Laura Spelman Rockefeller Professor of Social and Political Ethics in the University of Chicago Divinity School with ...
, and
Elizabeth Fox-Genovese
Elizabeth Ann Fox-Genovese (May 28, 1941 – January 2, 2007) was an American historian best known for her works on women and society in the Antebellum South. A Marxist early on in her career, she later converted to Roman Catholicism and became ...
as antifeminist because of their positions regarding oppression and lines of thought within feminism.
The meaning of antifeminism has varied across time and cultures, and antifeminism attracts both men and women. Some women, like those in the
Women's National Anti-Suffrage League
The Women's National Anti-Suffrage League (1908–18) was established in London on 21 July 1908. Its aims were to oppose women being granted the vote in parliamentary elections, although it did support their having votes in local government ele ...
, campaigned against women's suffrage.
Men's studies scholar
Michael Kimmel
Michael Scott Kimmel (born February 26, 1951) is an American retired sociologist specializing in gender studies. He was Distinguished Professor of Sociology at Stony Brook University in New York and is the founder and editor of the academic jour ...
defines antifeminism as "the opposition to women's equality". He says that antifeminists oppose "women's entry into the public sphere, the re-organization of the private sphere, women's control of their bodies, and women's rights generally." Kimmel further writes that antifeminist argumentation relies on "religious and cultural norms" while proponents of antifeminism advance their cause as a means of "'saving' masculinity from pollution and invasion". He argues that antifeminists consider the "traditional gender division of labor as natural and inevitable, perhaps also divinely sanctioned."
Viewpoints
Antifeminist ideology rejects at least one of the following general principles of feminism:
#That
social arrangements among men and women are neither natural nor divinely determined.
#That social arrangements among men and women
favor men.
#That there are
collective action
Collective action refers to action taken together by a group of people whose goal is to enhance their condition and achieve a common objective. It is a term that has formulations and theories in many areas of the social sciences including psych ...
s that can and should be taken to transform these arrangements into more just and equitable arrangements
Some antifeminists argue that feminism, despite claiming to advocate for equality, ignores rights issues unique to men. They believe that the
feminist movement
The feminist movement (also known as the women's movement, or feminism) refers to a series of social movements and political campaigns for Radical politics, radical and Liberalism, liberal reforms on women's issues created by the inequality b ...
has achieved its aims and now seeks higher status for women than for men via special rights and exemptions, such as female-only scholarships, affirmative action, and gender quotas.
Antifeminism might be motivated by the belief that feminist theories of
patriarchy
Patriarchy is a social system in which positions of dominance and privilege are primarily held by men. It is used, both as a technical anthropological term for families or clans controlled by the father or eldest male or group of males a ...
and disadvantages suffered by women in society are incorrect or exaggerated;
that feminism as a movement encourages
misandry
Misandry () is the hatred of, contempt for, or prejudice against men.
Men's rights activists and other masculinist groups have criticized modern laws concerning divorce, domestic violence, the draft, circumcision (known as genital mutilation ...
and results in harm or oppression of men; or driven by general opposition towards
women's rights
Women's rights are the rights and entitlements claimed for women and girls worldwide. They formed the basis for the women's rights movement in the 19th century and the feminist movements during the 20th and 21st centuries. In some countries, ...
.
Furthermore, antifeminists view feminism as a denial of innate
psychological sex differences and an attempt to reprogram people against their biological tendencies. They have argued that feminism has resulted in changes to society's previous norms relating to sexuality, which they see as detrimental to traditional values or conservative religious beliefs. For example, the ubiquity of
casual sex
Casual sex is sexual activity that takes place outside a romantic relationship and implies an absence of commitment, emotional attachment, or familiarity between sexual partners. Examples are sexual activity while casually dating, one-night ...
and the decline of
marriage
Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between ...
are mentioned as negative consequences of feminism. In a report from anti-extremism charity
HOPE not Hate
Hope not Hate (stylized as HOPE not hate) is an advocacy group based in the United Kingdom which campaigns against racism and fascism. It has also mounted campaigns against Islamic extremism and antisemitism. It is self-described as a "non-par ...
, half of young men from
UK believe that
feminism
Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...
has "gone too far and makes it harder for men to succeed".
Moreover, other antifeminists oppose women's entry
into the workforce,
political office
The incumbent is the current holder of an official, office or position, usually in relation to an election. In an election for president, the incumbent is the person holding or acting in the office of president before the election, whether seek ...
, or the voting process, as well as the lessening of male authority in families. They argue that a change of women's roles is a destructive force that endangers the family, or is contrary to religious morals. For example,
Paul Gottfried
Paul Edward Gottfried (born November 21, 1941) is an American paleoconservative political philosopher, historian, and writer. He is a former Professor of Humanities at Elizabethtown College in Pennsylvania. He is editor-in-chief of the paleocons ...
maintains that the change of women's roles "has been a social disaster that continues to take its toll on the family" and contributed to a "descent by increasingly disconnected individuals into social chaos".
History
United States
19th century
The "women's movement" began in 1848, most famously articulated by
Elizabeth Cady Stanton
Elizabeth Cady Stanton (November 12, 1815 – October 26, 1902) was an American writer and activist who was a leader of the women's rights movement in the U.S. during the mid- to late-19th century. She was the main force behind the 1848 Seneca ...
demanding voting rights, joined by
Lucy Stone,
Susan B. Anthony
Susan B. Anthony (born Susan Anthony; February 15, 1820 – March 13, 1906) was an American social reformer and women's rights activist who played a pivotal role in the women's suffrage movement. Born into a Quaker family committed to s ...
and others who also pushed for other rights such as education, job freedom, marital and property rights, and the right to choose when or whether to become a mother. However, by the end of the century, a cultural counter movement had begun. Janet Chafetz identified in a study 32 first-wave antifeminist movements, including those in the 19th century and early 20th century movements.
These countermovements were in response to some women's growing demands, which were perceived as threatening to the standard way of life. Though men were not the only antifeminists, men experienced what some have called a "crisis of masculinity"
in response to traditional gender roles being challenged. Men's responses to increased feminism varied. Some men even subscribed to feminist ideology, but others went the other direction and became decidedly antifeminist. The men who believed in this model cited religious models and natural law to emphasize women's need to return to the private sphere, in order to preserve the current social order.
In the 19th century, one of the major focal points of antifeminism was opposition to
women's suffrage
Women's suffrage is the right of women to vote in elections. Beginning in the start of the 18th century, some people sought to change voting laws to allow women to vote. Liberal political parties would go on to grant women the right to vot ...
, which began as a grassroots movement in 1848 and spanned for 72 years.
Opponents of women's entry into institutions of higher learning argued that education was too great a physical burden on women. In ''Sex in Education: or, a Fair Chance for the Girls'' (1873), Harvard professor
Edward Clarke predicted that if women went to college, their brains would grow bigger and heavier, and their wombs would atrophy. Other antifeminists opposed women's entry into the labor force, their right to join unions, to sit on juries, or to obtain birth control and control of their sexuality.
The pro-family movement appeared in the late 19th century, by about 1870.
This movement was intended to halt the rising divorce rate and reinforce traditional family values. The National League for the Protection of the Family, formerly known as the Divorce Reform League, took over the movement in 1881.
Samuel Dike was one of the founders of the League, and was considered an early expert on divorce. Through his efforts, the League garnered attention from pro-family advocates. It underwent a shift from fighting against divorce to promoting marriage and traditional family.
Speaking on behalf of the League in an 1887 address to the Evangelical Alliance Conference, Samuel Dike described the ideal family as having "one man and one woman, united in wedlock, together with their children".
This movement built the foundation for many pro-family arguments in contemporary antifeminism.
Early 20th century
Women's suffrage was achieved in the US in 1920, and early 20th-century antifeminism was primarily focused on fighting this. Suffragists scoffed at antisuffragists.
Anna Howard Shaw
Anna Howard Shaw (February 14, 1847 – July 2, 1919) was a leader of the women's suffrage movement in the United States. She was also a physician and one of the first ordained female Methodist ministers in the United States.
Early life
Shaw ...
, president of the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA) from 1904 to 1915, presumed, perhaps unfairly, that the antisuffragists were merely working under the influence of male forces.
Later historians tended to dismiss antisuffragists as subscribing to the model of domestic idealism, that a woman's place is in the home. This undermines and belittles the true power and numbers behind the antisuffrage movement, which was primarily led by women themselves.
Arguments employed by antisuffragists at the turn of the century had less to do with a woman's place in the home as much as it had to do with a woman's proper place in the public realm. In fact, leaders of the movement often encouraged other women to leave the home and participate in society.
What they opposed was women participating in the political sphere.
There were two reasons antisuffragists opposed women participating in the political realm. Some argued that women were already overburdened. The majority of them, however, argued that a woman's participation in the political realm would hinder her participation in social and civic duties. If they won the right to vote, women would consequently have to align with a particular party, which would destroy their ability to be politically neutral. Antisuffragists feared this would, in fact, hinder their influence with legislative authorities.
Mid 20th century
In 1951, two journalists published ''Washington Confidential.'' The novel claimed that Communist leaders used their men and women to recruit a variety of minorities in the nation's capital, such as females, colored males, and homosexual males. The vast popularity of the book caused such a buzz that the
Civil Service Commission
A civil service commission is a government agency that is constituted by legislature to regulate the employment and working conditions of civil servants, oversee hiring and promotions, and promote the values of the public service. Its role is rou ...
had to create a "publicity campaign to improve the image of federal employees"
in hopes to save their federal employees from losing their jobs. This ploy failed once the journalists linked feminism to communism in their novel and ultimately reinforced antifeminism by implying that defending the "white, Christian, heterosexual, patriarchal family" was the only way to oppose communism.
Late 20th century
= Equal Rights Amendment
=
The
Equal Rights Amendment
The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) is a proposed amendment to the United States Constitution designed to guarantee equal legal rights for all American citizens regardless of sex. Proponents assert it would end legal distinctions between men and ...
(ERA) is a perennially proposed amendment to the
United States Constitution
The Constitution of the United States is the Supremacy Clause, supreme law of the United States, United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, in 1789. Originally comprising seven ar ...
that would grant equal rights and opportunities to every citizen of the United States, regardless of their sex. In 1950 and 1953, ERA was passed by the Senate with a provision known as "the Hayden rider", making it unacceptable to ERA supporters. The Hayden rider was included to keep special protections for women. A new section to the ERA was added, stating: "The provisions of this article shall not be construed to impair any rights, benefits, or exemptions now or hereafter conferred by law upon persons of the female sex." That is, women could keep their existing and future special protections that men did not have. By 1972, the amendment was supported by both major parties and was immensely popular. However, it was defeated in Congress when it failed to get the vote of 38 legislatures by 1982.
Supporters of an unaltered ERA rejected the Hayden rider, believing an ERA containing the rider did not provide for equality.
Jerome Himmelstein identified two main theories about the appeal of antifeminism and its role in opposition to the ERA. One theory is that it was a clash between upper-class liberal voters and the older, more conservative lower-class rural voters who often serve as the center for right-wing movements; in other words, this theory identifies particular social classes as more inherently friendly to antifeminism. Another theory holds that women who feel vulnerable and dependent on men are likely to oppose anything that threatens that tenuous stability; under this view, while educated, independent career women may support feminism, housewives who lack such resources are more drawn to antifeminism. Himmelstein, however, says both views are at least partially wrong, arguing that the primary dividing line between feminists and antifeminists is cultural rather than stemming from differences in economic and social status.
There are, in fact, similarities between income between activists on both sides of the ERA debate. As it turned out, the most indicative factors when predicting ERA position, especially among women, were race, marital status, age, and education.
ERA opposition was much higher among white, married, older, and less educated citizens.
Women who opposed the ERA tended to fit characteristics consistent with the Religious Right.
Val Burris, meanwhile, says that high-income men opposed the amendment because they would gain the least with it being passed; that those men had the most to lose, since the ratification of the ERA would mean more competition for their jobs and possibly a lowered self-esteem.
Because of the support of antifeminism from conservatives and the constant "conservative reactions to liberal social politics", such as the New Deal attacks, the attack on the ERA has been called a "right-wing
backlash
Backlash may refer to:
Literature
* '' Backlash: The Undeclared War Against American Women'', a 1991 book by Susan Faludi
* ''Backlash'' (Star Wars novel), a 2010 novel by Aaron Allston
* Backlash (Marc Slayton), comic book character
* ''Backla ...
".
Their methods include actions such as "insults proffered in emails or on the telephone, systematic denigration of feminism in the media, Internet disclosure of confidential information (e.g. addresses) on resources for battered women"
and more.
= Abortion
=
Abortion remains one of the most controversial topics in the United States. ''
Roe v. Wade
''Roe v. Wade'', 410 U.S. 113 (1973),. was a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in which the Court ruled that the Constitution of the United States conferred the right to have an abortion. The decision struck down many federal and s ...
'' was decided in 1973, and abortion was utilized by many antifeminists to rally supporters.
Antiabortion views helped further several right-wing movements, including explicit antifeminism, and helped right-wing politicians rise to power.
Antiabortion writings and conservative commentary in the late 20th century criticized the feminist movement's embrace of the right to abortion as selfish and self-centered.
21st century
![Feminazi STOP!](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/73/Feminazi_STOP%21.jpg)
Some current antifeminist practices can be traced back to the rise of the religious right in the late 1970s.
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
. These antifeminists contend that feminism demonizes men (
) and that women are not oppressed in 21st century Western countries.
have also reported on an increasing number of women and female celebrities rejecting feminism and instead subscribing to
.
, several women who identify as being humanist and antifeminist argued in an article for the ''Guardian'' that feminism is a discriminatory ideology and continues to portray women as victims.
In response to the social media trend, modern day feminists also began to upload similar pictures to websites such as Twitter and Tumblr. Most used the same hashtag, "womenagainstfeminism", but instead made satirical and bluntly parodic comments. In November 2014, ''Time'' magazine included "feminist" on its annual list of proposed banished words. After initially receiving the majority of votes (51%), a ''Time'' editor apologized for including the word in the poll and removed it from the results.
In March 2019, the German Language Association organized a petition proclaiming that billions of Euros are being wasted on women's studies, gender work equality and gender studies in Germany. This is money the organization believes can be better used to fund hospitals, natural science faculties and virus research institutes.
In April 2022, far-right political party Leviathan, with a significant public profile of almost 300,000 Facebook followers, missed out on a seat in parliament in Serbia's 2022 election. The Leviathan party portrays migrants as criminals, and themselves as the defenders of Serbian women. The group has been praised by some in Serbia for defending ‘traditional family values’ and hierarchical gender roles, while opposing the empowerment of women and feminist ideologies.
Social improvements by women have sparked an anti-feminist backlash, in which disgruntled young men have become vocal critics of feminism and feminist women who speak out in public.
. During his run for presidency, he called for the
to be abolished, and accused its officials of treating men like “potential sex criminals.” Yoon also said that he doesn't think systemic structural discrimination based on gender exists in South Korea, despite Korean women being near the bottom of the developed world according to several economic and social indicators.
Founded in the U.S. by
in the U.S.
It was also Schlafly who forged links between Stop ERA and other conservative organizations, as well as single-issue groups against abortion, pornography, gun control, and unions. By integrating Stop ERA with the thus-dubbed "
", she was able to leverage a wider range of technological, organizational and political resources, successfully targeting pro-feminist candidates for defeat.
is an antifeminist organization opposed to a number of laws that they claim to have been used against men.
The
are also an antifeminist organization. Like other conservative women's groups, they oppose
and make appeals for maternalism and biological differences between women and men.