Feminism has been an assortment of ideologies, social as well as political movements sharing a common objective. It aims to establish, identify and attain social, personal, economic, and political equality or fairness among the genders (Nicholson, 2013). Feminism includes and encourages to seek establishment in the professional as well as educational field, like by providing opportunities to the women, which are equivalent to that of men.
The history of Third wave feminism started as a reaction to the apparent incompetency of the early 1960’s second wave feminism and as reaction in opposition to the movements and initiatives formed by the second wave feminists. The third wave feminism differed from the second wave feminists in many ways, such as in the areas of sexuality issues; challenging the heterosexuality of the females and celebration of sexuality as a way of attaining women empowerment. The move from the second wave feminism resulted in the extension of various institutional as well as legal rights to the women (Harris, 2012).
Feminism in the U.S can be termed as an assortment of ideologies, social as well as political movements sharing a common objective. It aims to establish, identify and attain social, personal, economic, and political equality or fairness among the genders in the United States of America. There was a substantial influence of Feminism on the politics of America.
Thirty-eight presidents out of forty-five presidents in the United States, was self-proclaimed to be feminists. Feminism in America has been frequently divided in a chronological manner into first, second and third wave feminism (Anglin et al., 2013). In the United States of America, Third wave feminism started in the earlier part of 1990.
During the past, mostly the white women belonging to the middle-class from the West of Europe and Northern America headed most of the movements of feminism and their theories. The concept of Liberation of Women had been used for first time in the United States around the year of 1964. It had appeared in the printed form, for the first time in the year 1966. By the year 1968, in spite of the appearance of the expression of Women’s Liberation Front in the magazine covering, it was beginning to refer to the entire movement of the women (Evans, 2012).
The practice of ‘Bra-burning’ was also related to this movement of women empowerment, where the women were engaged in burning their bras which was assumed to be a statement or taking a stand for the establishment of the rights of women (Catterall, Maclaran & Stevens, 2013). Another probable reason for burning the bras was that the practice was often regarded as a symbol of independence of men at the same time. However, the predominance of this practice was debatable.
One of the outspoken critics of the liberation movement of women has been the Afro-American intellectual and feminist, Gloria Jean Watkins who put forward an argument that the movement polished and emphasized over class structure and race. In consequence, it failed to concentrate on the problems that caused division of women. She had pointed out the deficiency of voices of minority in the movement of women in her book named, ‘Feminist theory from margin to center’ in the year 1984.
A post structuralist understanding of sexuality and gender revolves around the ideology of third wave feminism. The focus of the third wave feminism has often been on micro politics and opposing to the paradigms followed by the second wave feminists regarding the matters that are considered to be good as well as the matters that are considered to be bad for women. The third wave feminists originated in the middle of 1980. Some of the leaders of Feminism, who came up during the second wave includes Bell hooks, Gloria Anzaldua, Cherrie Moraga, Maxine Hong Kingston, Chela Sandoval, and others that included many black feminists, who sought for the settlement of a space within feminists view for the deliberation of subjective that are related to race (Gill & Scharff, 2013).
Third-wave feminists were also engaged in internal debates held between different feminists like Carol Gilligan, a psychologist who believed in the idea that there are significant differences among the genders; and there were people who believed that there were no inbuilt differences among the genders and contended that roles of gender were caused by social conditioning (Herr, 2014).
The use of the metaphor, waves has often been used for describing and explaining the history or past records of feminism that took place in the United States of America. The first wave feminism that occurred in the U.S has generally been marked by the convention of rights of women that was held in the year of 1848 at the Seneca Falls in New York.
The second wave of feminism searched for equality with regard to the rights of women in the public sphere by opening the doors to several professions that were previously dominated by men. A few rights had been achieved with regard to equality in the access of jobs and education as well as a right of abortion by the feminists in the middle of 1970 and earlier part of 1980. The chief legislative goals were lacking, with reference to the amendment of equality of rights in the Constitution.
A third wave of feminism has been presumed to commence in the year 1990 and it continues till date. From the first wave feminism to the third wave feminism, women have been successful in making progress and development in the economic, political and legal field and the process continues even today.
The theory of feminism is a prime branch of theories within Sociology that is distinct for the method by which its creators modify their topical focus, analytic lens and assumptions away from the male point of view and experiences. In doing that, the theory of feminist focuses on social problems, issues and trends, which have been otherwise misidentified or overlooked by the traditionally dominant perspective of male within the social theory.
In the Sociological context, Third wave feminism is a concept that has been recognized with various diversification of feminist study and activities, whose precise boundaries in the history of feminism has been a debatable subject. However, third wave feminism has often been referred to as commencing in the year, 1980 and continues even today (Lindsey, 2015).
The movement emerged as a reaction to the apparent incompetence of the second wave feminists and as a reaction to the movements and initiatives of the Second Wave feminism that took place around the year 1960 to 1980. It was based on the cognizance that women belonged to various ethnicities, colors, cultural backgrounds, religions and nationalities (Ritzer & Stepnisky, 2017).
Feminist Sociology focuses on analysis of the rationale of the restrictions that were faced by the females when the right to equality with the males that had been claimed (Stanley, 2013). The discrimination that existed among the sexes has been a phenomenon, which goes back to around four thousand years (Lerner 1986). The ways and forms by which feminism had been practiced vary between the different cultures, subsequently, it changed considerably through the past, and the persistence of it has resulted to the formulation of the notion of patriarchy.
The concept of Patriarchy establishes a group of institutional structures, such as, rights to property, accessing position of power, relationship with the income sources, which had been based on the conception that women and men were unequal and dichotomous categories. The concept of patriarchy may be explained as the philosophy of the dominant gender towards sexual differences, on the hypothesis that physiological gender differences between the females and males are connected with the dissimilarities in their behavior, character, and abilities (Coppock, Haydon & Richter, 2014).
The differences have been used for the justification of a gendered distribution of social roles and inequalities in accessing of rewards, privileges and position of power. The query that has frequently been asked by the feminists is regarding the process of distinction between females and males, as well as the attribution of diverse qualities, that serve for the organization of our various institutions like, the occupational structure, family, religious institutions, law, the division between private and public; and the perpetuation of inequality among the genders. (Ramazanoglu, 2012)
Third wave feminism has been a distinctive type of critical Sociology. The feminist perspectives often criticized the exclusive understanding of sexuality, as in the case of heterosexism. Heterosexism can be explained as a coordination of attitude, biases, as well as discrimination that favors female-male relationship and sexuality. There was a time when heterosexual marriages was the only legitimate union that took place between two people, which was accepted, allowing full benefits and recognized in the United States (Szymanski & Henrichs-Beck, 2014).
Though the perspectives of the feminists focused on liberation and diversity, it has often been criticized of not being compatible with the multiculturalist policy. Multiculturalism intends to allow diverse cultures to reside and dwell together. One probable outcome of multiculturalism is that certain traditional or religious practices, which might lead to the oppression of women, might be accepted on the justification of cultural sensitivity. From the perspective of the feminists, those practices were considered objectionable and offensive to the rights of humans and its criminalization on those grounds were mandatory (Evans, 2015).
Third wave feminism began to concentrate more on the social issues. It was perceived that merely having legal provisions on the book might not be adequate for ensuring equality in the society when there are various social norms which are in contradiction to the impartial and equal treatments of women.
The third wave feminists were progressive, ambiguous and determined. The goals of Third wave feminists focused on concepts such as queer theory, thereby abolishing the stereotypes and expectations of gender roles, unlike the resolute opposition of the second wave feminist to women in prostitution, sex work and pornography. Hence, it can be perceived as a response or continuance of the second wave feminism.
It also identifies the right of a woman to choose as liberally as a man. It intends to expand the scope of feminism for the inclusion of women with diversified identities recognizing that women are of numerous nationalities, religions, colors, cultural backgrounds and ethnicities.
Feminism has not posed men as a competition to men. Women stand with men and not in opposition to them. The conception of feminism originated for the introduction of proper livelihood, education, jobs, and others for both the genders. However, often it has a negative view of society, as the new wave of feminist or third wave feminists aim at crushing men at times, not being concerned about removing inequality. They want the society to be biased towards the women (Dicker & Piepmeier, 2016).
There are other factors which lead the why third-wave feminists to have a negative look on the society, not focusing on equality of both men and women. Such as uploading or spreading pictures with sanitary napkins, in order to create awareness about period shaming, and other issues. At times, such expressive exhibition becomes unacceptable to the society.
Other instances include posing in the underwear by the women to showcase empowerment has often not been approved by the society. It has often been regarded as a fight for nudity rather than equality. The right to lodge First Information Reports has often been misused by women. Consumption of toxic substances or alcohol has often been practiced by women in recent times to show that they are equal to men.
Often the third wave feminists have had a bad look on society, not focusing on the equality of both men and women. Crushing and hating men has been the objective of some third wave feminists. Many feminists or feminazis of the recent times has stereotyped the men stating that all men have the similar mentalities. However, all men are not rapists, acid attackers or criminals for that matter. There are men with a positive approach and working for the equality of rights for women (Fraser, 2012).
The third wave feminists, to an extent more or less inconceivable to the associates of the first and second waves feminism, was multifaceted and plural, that comprised people of various ethnic groups, class identities, with different interests and genders. As such, its biggest strength, was multivocality, which was criticized by some as its biggest weakness. The focus was more on the individualistic identities rather than political changes.
References
Anglin, M. K., Bridges, K. M., Chin, E., Cox, A., Harrison, F. V., López, I., … & Uzwiak, B. A. (2013). Feminist activist ethnography: counterpoints to neoliberalism in North America. Lexington Books.
Catterall, M., Maclaran, P., & Stevens, L. (Eds.). (2013). Marketing and feminism: Current issues and research. Routledge.
Coppock, V., Haydon, D., & Richter, I. (2014). The illusions of post-feminism: New women, old myths. Routledge.
Dicker, R., & Piepmeier, A. (Eds.). (2016). Catching a wave: Reclaiming feminism for the 21st century. Northeastern University Press.
Evans, E. (2015). The politics of third wave feminisms: Neoliberalism, intersectionality, and the state in Britain and the US. Springer.
Evans, R. J. (2012). The feminists: women’s emancipation movements in Europe, America and Australasia 1840-1920. Routledge.
Fraser, N. (2012). Feminism, capitalism, and the cunning of history.
Gill, R., & Scharff, C. (Eds.). (2013). New femininities: Postfeminism, neoliberalism and subjectivity. Springer.
Harris, A. (Ed.). (2012). Next wave cultures: Feminism, subcultures, activism. Routledge.
Herr, R. S. (2014). Reclaiming third world feminism: Or why transnational feminism needs third world feminism. Meridians: feminism, race, transnationalism, 12(1), 1-30.
Lindsey, L. L. (2015). Gender roles: A sociological perspective. Routledge.
Nicholson, L. (Ed.). (2013). Feminism/postmodernism. Routledge.
Ramazanoglu, C. (2012). Feminism and the Contradictions of Oppression. Routledge.
Ritzer, G., & Stepnisky, J. (2017). Modern sociological theory. SAGE Publications.
Stanley, L. (Ed.). (2013). Feminist praxis (RLE feminist theory): Research, theory and epistemology in feminist sociology. Routledge.
Szymanski, D. M., & Henrichs-Beck, C. (2014). Exploring sexual minority women’s experiences of external and internalized heterosexism and sexism and their links to coping and distress. Sex Roles, 70(1-2), 28-42.
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