Yes
      to
      feminism,
      no
      to
      feminists
     
     
      ritten
      by
      Michelle
      Dumont
      exert
      from
      The
      Montreal
     
    
   
   
    
     
      dassacre
      edited
      by
      Louise
      Malette
      and
      Marie
     
     
      halouh.
     
    
   
   
    
     
      printed
      with
      the
      king
      permission
      of
      Gynergy
      Books
     
     
      'O
      Box
      2023
      Ch’town
      PEI
      CIA
      7N7
     
    

    
     
      ice
      the
      sixth
      of
      December,
      the
      word
      FEMINIST
      has
     
     
      hown
      up
      everywhere
      in
      the
      media,
      ranging
      in
      mean-
     
    

    
     
      ig
      from
      a
      condemnation
      (condemned
      to
      death,
      liter-
     
     
      lly)
      to
      a
      proclamation.
      Between
      these
      two
      poles,
      the
     
     
      eal
      nature
      of
      feminism
      has
      been
      overlooked-for
      it
      is
     
     
      tue
      that,
      most
      often,
      feminism
      is
      ignored.
      Be
      that
      as
     
     
      may,
      I
      wish
      to
      look
      at
      the
      ways
      in
      which
      History
     
    

    
     
      as
      tried
      to
      accommodate
      this
      important
      social
      move-
     
     
      ent.
     
    
   
   
    
     
       
     
     
        
     
     
       
     
     
         
     
     
         
     
     
       
     
     
         
     
     
       
     
     
       
     
     
       
     
     
       
     
     
       
     
     
       
     
     
        
     
     
         
     
     
        
     
     
       
     
     
        
     
     
         
     
     
          
     
     
        
     
     
       
     
     
       
     
     
        
     
     
         
     
     
       
     
     
       
     
     
       
     
     
       
     
    
   
   
    
     
      he
      word
      feminism
      is
      about
      a
      hundred
      years
      old.
      It
     
     
      sthought
      to
      have
      been
      used
      for
      the
      first
      time
      by
     
     
      fubertine
      Auclert
      in
      1882
      ina
      letter
      to
      a
      women’s
     
     
      ights
      activist.
      It
      is
      important
      to
      note
      that
      this
      word
     
     
      fas
      applied
      to
      a
      movement
      whose
      theoretical
      origins
     
     
      juld
      be
      traced
      back
      to
      the
      end
      of
      the
      eighteenth
     
    

    
     
      er
      tury,
      and
      whose
      first
      political
      organization
      formed
     
     
      ound
      1848.
      A
      women’srights
      movement
      has
      ex-
     
     
      ted
      fora
      century
      and
      a
      half,
      despite
      the
      fact
      that
     
     
      fost
      official
      accounts
      of
      history
      ignored
      this.
      The
     
     
      lovement
      spread
      throughout
      the
      majority
      of
     
     
      ecidental
      countries
      from
      the
      1890's
      onward,
      and
      it
     
     
      ave
      rise
      toa
      network
      of
      national
      and
      international
     
     
      fganizations,
      next
      to
      which
      present
      day
      feminism
     
    

    
     
      ies
      On
      comparison.
      The
      English
      suffragettes
      initi-
     
     
      ed
      at
      the
      beginning
      of
      the
      century-and
      this
      without
     
     
      Svernment
      subsidies
      acore
      group
      of
      eighty
      people
     
    

    
     
      ©
      were
      paid
      to
      work
      for
      the
      cause
      of
      women’s
     
     
      Wifrage,
      The
      French
      feminists
      published
      a
      daily
     
     
      vspaper,
      La
      Fronde,
      from
      1897
      to
      1903
      to
      publicize
     
     
      ir
      principal
      demands.
      Other
      examples
      abound.
     
     
      Note,
      this
      feminism,
      from
      the
      moment
      it
      first
     
     
      eared,
      provoked
      virulent
      reactions
      on
      the
      partof
     
     
      feral
      groups
      of
      men,
      which
      contributed
      to
      establish-
     
     
      a
      dichotomy
      between
      GOOD
      and
      BAD
      feminism.
     
    
   
   
    
     
       
     
    
   
   
    
     
       
     
    
   
   
    
     
      If
      contemporary
      detractors
      of
      feminism
      were
      to
      read
     
     
      the
      feminist
      texts
      of
      that
      era,
      they
      would
      no
      doubt
      be
     
     
      dumbfounded
      by
      the
      reasonableness
      and
      timidity
      if
     
     
      the
      demands
      found
      in
      what
      was
      called
      BAD
      feminism.
     
     
      As
      for
      the
      GOOD
      feminism,
      it
      had
      already
      been
      co-
     
     
      opted
      by
      the
      religious
      and
      political
      authorities
      in
     
     
      order
      to
      give
      it
      a
      definition
      that
      would
      keep
      women
     
     
      connected
      to
      the
      private
      sphere,
      and
      in
      the
      context
      of
     
     
      family
      responsibilities.
      Women
      themselves
      supported
     
     
      this
      definition
      of
      GOOD
      feminism.
      To
      establish
      a
     
     
      distinction
      between
      several
      types
      of
      feminism
      is
     
     
      therefore
      not
      particularly
      original:
      it’sa
      phenomenon
     
     
      that
      dates
      back
      a
      hundred
      years,
      and
      it
      is
      nothing
     
     
      more
      than
      arudimentary
      strategy
      to
      divide
      the
      forces
     
     
      of
      protest.
      But
      let
      us
      continue.
     
    
   
   
    
     
      Feminism,
      it
      appears,
      became
      lethargic
      not
      long
      after
     
     
      the
      First
      World
      War,
      after
      women
      were
      granted
      the
     
     
      right
      to
      vote.
      But
      this
      statement
      doesn’t
      stand
      up
      to
     
     
      careful
      examination.
      Indeed,
      the
      collective
      mobiliza-
     
     
      tion
      of
      French
      women
      was
      considerable
      between
      1920
     
     
      and
      1940,
      on
      the
      issues.of
      votes
      for
      women,
      contra-
     
     
      ception,
      legislation
      and
      education.
      American
      women,
     
     
      from
      1925
      on,
      began
      the
      long
      struggle
      for
      the
      Equal
     
     
      Rights
      Amendment,
      and
      they
      established
      powerful
     
     
      women’s
      associations.
      And
      the
      Quebecoises
      began,
     
     
      against
      all
      expectations,
      to
      demand
      the
      right
      to
      vote
      in
     
     
      provincial
      elections.
     
    
   
   
    
     
      After
      the
      disruption
      caused
      by
      the
      Second
      World
      War
     
     
      and
      the
      period
      of
      social
      conservation
      which
      followed,
     
     
      it
      took
      women
      some
      years
      to
      point
      out
      the
      profound
     
     
      inequalities
      of
      a
      social
      system
      which
      exploited
      their
     
     
      competence
      both
      in
      the
      home
      and
      at
      their
      paid
      job
     
     
      outside
      it.
      New
      circumstances,
      brought
      about
      by
      the
     
     
      gains
      of
      the
      earlier
      feminists,
      called
      fora
      new
      analy-
     
     
      sis.
      The
      word
      feminism,
      which
      had
      been
      set
      aside,
     
     
      came
      back
      into
      use
      to
      once
      again
      put
      aname
      to
      this
     
     
      complex
      concurrence
      of
      women’s
      demands.
      **Wom-
     
     
      en’s
      liberation,
      Year
      Zero!’
      wrote
      the
      French
      femi-
     
     
      nists
      in
      1970;
      they
      were
      apparently
      ignorant
      ofthe
     
     
      feminism
      which
      had
      gone
      before.
     
    
   
   
    
     
      Over
      the
      past
      nearly
      thirty
      years
      in
      Quebec,
      since
     
     
      1961,
      new
      demands
      have
      been
      drawn
      up.
     
    
   
   
    
     
      In
      1966,
      the
      Quebecoises
      endowed
      themselves
      with
     
     
      powerful
      organizations,
      such
      as
      the
      FFQ
      and
      the
     
    
   
   
    
     
       
     
    
   
   
    
     
      EI
      X-P
      RESS
     
    
   
   
    
     
       
     
    
   
   
    
     
      rebruary
      13,
      1992
     
    
   
   
    
     
      Page
      2|
     
    
   
   
    
     
      wn