Hmm... re. Gloria Steinem, no it's as you said. She definitely makes the power connection, and drag kings wouldn't be the same at all.
I haven't seen the site you mentioned, but I remember *big* battles over transexuality on the Ms. boards (I miss the Ms. boards!) I think I have a pretty good idea of the ugliness you're talking about.
Yet, I still believe that as much as I, as a feminist, need to be compassionate and supportive of women finding *their* way (and not my way) through their lives, I can still say that gender creativity, although it may be empowering to individual women, is not a feminist project.
But it's really different to say that ideally, people should find a way to feel comfortable feeling like a woman and being percieved and treated as a man (or vice versa), than to of a fellow human being struggling to be happy in our messed up world should sacrifice their own pursuit of happiness in accordance with my weighing up of abstract ideals and priorities.
I feel like I hear some voices saying that we should start ignoring gender now because it's scientifically insupportable and sociologically constructed (like Butler). To me, that isn't good because people's lives are still affected by their apparent gender, and denying the category of women isn't going to help all the people who are suffering *because* of being perceived as women.
I also can't belive, though, that gender should be preserved because there are people who really feel like women or who really feel like men, and who need the accoutrements of gender to express that.
Hmm, I think we're getting right to the heart of things. I'll just say that I think for me my goal is that there should be no such thing as being perceived or interacted with or treated a certain way because of being seen "as a woman."
Oh, sorry to be all out of order, but I see your point about performing a gender role, but I'm not sure it's not about the same thing and being 'normal,' especially if the only way to be normal in our culture is to incarnate a gender role.
re. Gloria Steinem, no it's as you said. She definitely makes the power connection, and drag kings wouldn't be the same at all.
I haven't seen the site you mentioned, but I remember *big* battles over transexuality on the Ms. boards (I miss the Ms. boards!) I think I have a pretty good idea of the ugliness you're talking about.
Yet, I still believe that as much as I, as a feminist, need to be compassionate and supportive of women finding *their* way (and not my way) through their lives, I can still say that gender creativity, although it may be empowering to individual women, is not a feminist project.
But it's really different to say that ideally, people should find a way to feel comfortable feeling like a woman and being percieved and treated as a man (or vice versa), than to of a fellow human being struggling to be happy in our messed up world should sacrifice their own pursuit of happiness in accordance with my weighing up of abstract ideals and priorities.
I feel like I hear some voices saying that we should start ignoring gender now because it's scientifically insupportable and sociologically constructed (like Butler). To me, that isn't good because people's lives are still affected by their apparent gender, and denying the category of women isn't going to help all the people who are suffering *because* of being perceived as women.
I also can't belive, though, that gender should be preserved because there are people who really feel like women or who really feel like men, and who need the accoutrements of gender to express that.
Hmm, I think we're getting right to the heart of things. I'll just say that I think for me my goal is that there should be no such thing as being perceived or interacted with or treated a certain way because of being seen "as a woman."
Oh, sorry to be all out of order, but I see your point about performing a gender role, but I'm not sure it's not about the same thing and being 'normal,' especially if the only way to be normal in our culture is to incarnate a gender role.
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