I'm investigating conservative feminism because this is the label associated with Sarah Palin. Initially, when someone said something like, "What do you think of McCain's pick? A conservative feminist, should be interesting." My initial reaction was, "Conservative feminist? WTF is that?" Days passed and I started to do my global learner skimming of what is said about Sarah Palin. I'm getting an image in my mind now of what I think a conservative feminst must be, based on the description of the Alaskan maverick vice-presidential candidate with five children, the youngest of whom has Down's Syndrome. The conservative feminist, I have gathered, is one of these wild west-type women with a big gun. I have to say that I like this idea.
I read a Louis L'amour short story about a woman who had lost her husband and was living alone in "Indian territory" with her five children. The male protagonist sort of happens upon her and narrowly avoids being shot. Another woman like this is the love interest of Dustfinger in the book Inkspell. I know, from my Halloween costume fiasco, that this reference will be lost on everyone but the idea is the same. Woman living alone because of the death of her husband, left to care for her children the best she can. Makes a living by the sweat of her brow and defends her children tooth and nail. All the men in the village call her derogatory things like, "firecracker" and "a real pistol" but it doesn't matter. She is what she is. I'm loving this new idea and so I started to look up "conservative feminism." Here's the sort of thing I found:
Conservative feminism criticizes the feminism which "adopts a male model of careerism and public achievement as female goals, thereby denying women's need for intimacy, family, and children." They fear that "equality means death to the family." They often reject the popular feminist epigram, "the personal is political."
What!?! This woman has been nominated as a candidate for vice president of the United States. Talk about the "male model of careerism and public achievement," that can't be right. So, then I found Margaret Hoover's description:
I am a Conservative Feminist. This is a woman who will allow a man to take her to dinner, but will also at times, pick up the check. She knows she can open the door for herself, pay the dinner bill, put on her coat, order for herself, but remains unoffended by acts of chivalry on behalf of men. In fact, she encourages them as signs of respect– and who knows, someday she might actually need help with the door. Fortunately, she wont have been hardened by a lifetime of being too proud to accept the assistance.
Pfft! Are we seriously defining ourselves by how we behave on dates? I don't care how Ms. Hoover behaves on dates. How did she make it big in television and political talk culture? This may be what defines her feminism more than her preference for soup or salad. I guess that what we're talking about here is feminism that embraces femininity. And I guess that this is what Sarah Palin has done, in my brief experience. She was a beauty queen but then she became mayor of a tiny town and then governor of, square-foot-wise, the largest state in the country. I guess I'm having trouble seeing how that needs to be different from regular feminism...until it comes down to politics. Clearly these women are pro-life, but what else? Here's something from a website called "Rightgrrl!"
...spunky, calloused, informed, bold, and principled. A quick study of Palin news clips shows that she’s your typical conservative - more green than the Left would have you believe, pro-life even when tested, able to fire a gun, eager to drill domestically (especially in ANWR), tax shy, and pro military.
So, I think that these women are against the victimization mentality that some people associate with traditional feminism. (And, my experience with many Georgia Tech women is consistent with this particular theory.) I'm down with that. I'm totally into the tough debutant image. Love it, in fact. It's not me but it's fantastic. So, I guess that, in this case, the idea is that this woman is a feminist because she is. And that she's a conservative because she's free to think whatever way she wants. More power to her. We disagree and that's fine. I won't vote for her (or McCain) because I think there is too much at stake in association with our disagreements. But, at the same time, I'm going to argue with those who say that "conservative feminist" is an oxymoron, even though it was my initial knee-jerk reaction. What are we fighting for if it's not the right to move freely through life without the restrictions of our gender? If this woman wants to be wrong about politics, more power to her. I actually really like her, at this point. I'm not voting for her, but I like her. Bravo, John McCain. Way to make this an election that will be historic one way or the other. Also, maverick you and maverick Sarah Palin absolutely will shake up the right, even as you are forced to cow tow to your party. And that will be terrific. Hopefully you won't win, but, even if you do, let's kick the old tired politics in the ass. The media is against us but we can do it. We can talk about issues and brave ahead. Let them call you pretty. You are pretty. Also, you'll kick their sorry shriveled pasty asses if they cross you. Love it. Totally into it. Let the games begin!
