COMMENTARY
     
    
   
   
    
     
      Who
      are
      the
      Radical
      Feminists?
     
     
      by
      MISTER
      Peter
      Hanus
     
    
   
   
    
     
      The
      heart
      of
      lesbian
      feminist
      politics,
      let
      me
      repeat,
     
     
      is
      a
      recognition
      that
      heterosexuality
      as
      an
      institution
     
     
      and
      an
      ideology
      is
      a
      cornerstone
      of
      male
      supremacy.
     
     
      Therefore,
      women
      interested
      in
      destroying
      male
     
     
      supremacy,
      patriarchy,
      and
      capitalism
      must,
      equally
     
     
      with
      lesbians,
      fight
      heterosexual
      domination--or
      we
     
     
      shall
      never
      end
      female
      oppression.
      -Charlotte
      Bunch,
     
     
      ‘“‘Not
      for
      Lesbians
      Only’’
     
    
   
   
    
     
      This
      is
      not
      an
      article
      bashing
      feminism.
      This
      is,
     
     
      however,
      an
      article
      coming
      in
      response
      to
      the
      feminist
     
     
      critiques
      provided
      by
      Dawn
      Ambler,
      Tracy
      Smith,
     
     
      Tracy
      Arsenault,
      Heather
      J.
      Morrison,
      and
      Libby
     
     
      Whelon.
      These
      critiques
      being
      directed
      at
      the
      edito-
     
     
      rialin
      the
      November
      14
      edition
      of
      the
      X-Press,
      where
     
     
      Mr.
      Editor
      attacked
      “‘extreme
      feminists’’
      who
      are
     
     
      destroying
      credibility
      for
      the
      feminist
      movement.
      It
     
     
      will
      be
      assumed,
      as
      it
      was
      by
      Ambler
      and
      Smith,
      that
     
     
      he
      was
      referring
      to
      ‘radical
      feminists.’”
      Ambler
     
     
      attacks
      his
      editorial
      based
      ona
      definition
      of
      ‘‘radi-
     
     
      cal’’
      from
      the
      Oxford
      Dictionary,
      and
      then
      stating
     
     
      what
      some
      of
      the
      goals
      are
      of
      radical
      feminism.
      None
     
     
      of
      the
      others
      attempted
      a
      definition
      of
      ‘
      ‘radical
      femi-
     
     
      nism’’
      or
      ‘‘radical
      feminists’
      ’--in
      fact,
      Arsenault,
     
     
      Morrison
      and
      Whelon
      just
      took
      Mr.
      Large’s
      editorial
     
     
      as
      a
      blanket
      attack
      on
      the
      whole
      feminist
      movement.
     
     
      Ambler’s
      definition
      is
      not
      completely
      accurate
      (it
      is
     
     
      more
      the
      definition
      of
      ‘‘feminism’’).
      This
      article
     
     
      intends
      on
      giving
      an
      accurate
      definition
      of
      radical
     
     
      feminism
      as
      defined
      by
      radical
      feminists--with
     
    
   
   
    
     
      sources.
     
    
   
   
    
     
      Marlene
      Mackie,
      anoted
      Canadian
      academic
      feminist,
     
     
      describes
      radical
      feminism
      and
      radical
      feminists
      as
     
    
   
   
    
     
      follows:
     
    
   
   
    
     
      Radical
      Feminism
      directs
      attention
      to
      the
      role
      played
     
    
   
   
    
     
      by
      sexuality
      and
      reproduction
      in
      keeping
      women
     
     
      down.
      ...
      Since
      Radical
      Feminists
      regard
      women's
     
    
   
   
    
     
      child-bearing
      function
      and
      subsequent
      dependence
      on
     
     
      men
      as
      the
      root
      of
      female
      oppression,
      in
      their
      opin-
     
     
      ion,
      only
      a
      biological
      revolution
      will
      free
      women.
     
     
      Possibilities
      are
      extra-uterine
      reproduction
      or
      lesbi-
     
     
      anism.
      In
      general,
      Radical
      Feminists
      recommend,
      as
     
     
      a
      strategy
      of
      social
      change,
      separation
      from
      men
      in
     
     
      both
      domestic
      and
      economic
      spheres.
     
    
   
   
    
     
      UPEI
      X-P
      RESS
     
    
   
   
    
     
      November
      28,
      1991
     
    
   
   
    
     
       
     
    
   
   
    
     
      Susan
      Hawthorne
      describes
      ‘‘separatism’’
      as:
     
    
   
   
    
     
      Living
      in
      an
      all-women
      environment
      and
      having
      no
     
     
      contacts
      with
      any
      men.
      This
      is
      usually
      understood
      to
     
     
      be
      the
      standard
      separatist
      position.
     
    
   
   
    
     
      Hawthorne
      then
      notes
      that
      this
      may
      not
      be
      practical
     
     
      for
      all
      women,
      given
      the
      number
      of
      men
      in
      society.
     
     
      But,
      as
      she
      notes,
      ‘‘The
      crucial
      factor
      ina
      separatist
     
     
      philosophy
      is
      that
      women
      do
      not
      need
      men.’’
      Thank
     
     
      God
      most
      women,
      or
      even
      feminists,
      don’t
      think
      this
     
     
      way.
     
    
   
   
    
     
      To
      further
      the
      radical
      feminist
      argument,
      separation
     
     
      from
      men
      is
      needed
      in
      order
      to
      usurp
      ‘‘Patriarchy,”’
      a-
     
     
      system
      which
      supposedly
      dominates
      and
      oppresses
     
     
      women/womypn
      in
      all
      spheres
      of
      social
      life.
      Bernice
     
     
      Lott
      notes
      one
      possible
      historical
      source:
      ‘‘ancient
     
     
      goddess-worshipping
      matriarchal
      societies
      were
     
     
      disrupted
      by
      male
      revolts
      and
      men
      sought
      revenge
      for
     
     
      their
      earlier
      inferior
      status.’’
      This
      revenge
      has
      taken
     
     
      the
      form
      of
      socialising
      women/womyn
      into
      becoming
     
     
      dependent
      and
      compliant
      to
      males
      by
      instilling
      in
     
     
      females
      a
      form
      of
      ‘‘false-consciousness.”’
     
    
   
   
    
     
      As
      noted
      above,
      this
      domination
      of
      women/womyn
     
     
      under
      patriarchy
      is
      in
      all
      spheres
      of
      social
      life.
      One
     
     
      way
      of
      changing
      this
      is
      to
      invert
      the
      traditional
      attrac-
      |
     
     
      tiveness
      code:
     
    
   
   
    
     
      These
      women
      [radical
      feminists]
      generally
      wear
     
     
      jeans,
      or
      workmen’s
      denim
      overalls,
      the
      baggy
      kind
     
     
      that
      hides
      the
      shape
      of
      the
      wearer.
      The
      pants
      may
      be
     
     
      topped
      by
      a
      man’s
      t-shirt
      or
      workshirt.
      It
      is
      gener-
     
     
      ally
      clear
      that
      they
      are
      not
      wearing
      bras.
      Their
      hair
     
     
      is
      notso
      much
      styled
      as
      there;
      they
      wear
      no
      makeup,
     
     
      steel-rimmed
      reading
      glasses
      or
      sunglasses
      are
     
     
      frequent;
      footgear
      is
      comfortable,
      with
      a
      predomi-
      !
     
     
      nance
      of
      men's
      workboots
      or
      sneakers;
      and
      jewelry
      is
      —
     
    
   
   
    
     
      POT
      Cer:
     
    
   
   
    
     
      PD
      RCE
      GS
      is
     
    
   
   
    
     
      Radical
      feminists
      further
      argue
      that
      ‘*fatis
      a
      feminist
      q
     
     
      issue,’’
      awoman/womyn
      is
      notto
      become
      anorexic.
      7
     
     
      Women/womyn
      are
      encouraged
      to
      respect
      their
      fat
      that”
      |
     
    
   
   
    
     
      says:
     
    
   
   
    
     
       
     
    
   
   
    
     
      _
      ‘screw
      you’
      to
      all
      who
      want
      her
      to
      be
      the
      perfect)
     
     
      mom,
      sweetheart,
      maid,
      and
      whore.
      Take
      me
      for
      who
      |
      |
     
     
      Tam,
      not
      for
      who
      I'm
      supposed
      to
      ve.
      If
      you
      are
      3
     
     
      really
      interested
      in
      me,
      you
      can
      wade
      through
      the
     
    
   
   
    
     
      layers
      and
      find
      out
      who
      Lam.
     
    
   
   
    
     
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