Feminist Movement

I read an article yesterday that claimed that the feminist movement was the worst thing to happen to women. I have to agree.

I can remember the days of ERA and women shouting for their right to be the same as men. I remember worrying that I'd never be able to use a public restroom because I certainly didn't want to share a restroom with a strange man. I can remember the chanting, the bra burning, and the demands. I never quite understood it because I loved being a girl. I loved wearing the girly things (though I could do without the bra most of the time) and have never wanted to be the same as a man.

I think women who truly feel slighted by men haven't fully grasped the glorious role we have as women. We are all equal, but equal doesn't mean the same. I don't want to be the same as a man and I don't think our roles are interchangeable.

Women are, by nature and design, more nurturing. That's not to say there aren't men who are nurturing, but by and large women are the nurturers and that's why we are entrusted with bearing and rearing the children. Women are more emotional than men (though I did see quite an emotional young man on American Idol the other night) and, sometimes, that makes it harder to make an objective decision. We tend to make decisions based on how we feel. I've made that mistake many times in dealing with my kids. If I'm very emotional about an issue it's always better to let my husband handle it because he can be more objective than I can.

And so here we are, trying to make women into men. Why? Why is it such a bad thing to want to be a woman, to want to bear and rear children, to want to embrace our womanness? Why is it bad to want to be different than men? Why is it that being a mom is somehow less important than being an executive? Isn't that backwards?

What has the feminist movement earned us except that men don't treat women with respect as they once did. Of course, there are men like my honey who respect women, but there's been a change in men's attitudes toward women. Families have disintegrated as women have felt compelled to compete with men in the workplace. More women choose to be independent and not marry or have children. More women see raising their children as a chore instead of a privilege or see marriage as disposable. We've lost sight of our divine roles in our attempt to become the same as men.

For those who want to compete with men, have at it. I surely won't stand in your way, but don't assume that I want to do the same.

I'm perfectly happy having my husband open the pickle jar, pull out my chair, and protect me from all the dragons of the world. He is my knight in shining armor and I'm completely happy being his damsel in distress (well, hopefully I'm not always in distress). I love being a woman, a wife, a mother, and embracing my femininity which has absolutely nothing to do with the feminist movement.