This is what a feminist looks like

[halfeatenmoon]

I started reading The Great Feminist Denial yesterday. It's intriguing. Some of it I agree with, some of it I don't, some I'm just filing away for use in my Honours thesis if I ever get around to it. One thing that I found sort of amusing, though, is that in contemporary discussions about feminism, everyone seems to fear the 'hairy-legged lesbian' feminist, even people who call themselves feminist. It's a stereotype that's been used to put down the women's movement for two centuries, and it still scares people. The thing is, though, even I think of the HLL stereotype as someone other than me, some other feminist that scares people or that they think of as deranged.

And I wondered how many people I know think of feminists as a bunch of scary, hairy-legged lesbians.

Because you know what? I am a hairy-legged, non-makeup-wearing, sometimes man-hating (though I see it as masculinity-hating or macho-hating) feminist lesbian.

I don't know what meaning to take out of that, but it's something to chew on.