UNT's Feminist Photo Shoot

If you're familiar with our campaign, chances are you've seen our Bring Back The F Word video. If not, feel free to enlighten yourself now.

Now that we're all on the same page, I think it's important to discuss what we experienced while talking about feminism with the students on this campus. Obviously, time did not allow for us to include every response we received during filming. This is exactly why this blog post is important.

While our video featured many people who did not identify with the feminist movement, we were pleasantly surprised to meet several people who not only called themselves feminists, but were proud to do so. It is these types of individuals who give the modern feminist movement momentum. These people give our campaign to Bring Back the F Word strength. The people who agree with the ideals behind our campaign are just as important as those who disagree with it. The very idea behind our campaign would become invalid if all people proudly identified with the feminist movement. If there were no negative connotations involved with the very word feminist our work would be done.

The Support

From our team, we'd like to thank those who participated in our first photo shoot. Your stories about why you support feminism gave us hope that we are not alone. It's comforting to understand that others recognize issues with the feminist movement and want to work with us toward solutions. Because obviously, no movement is perfect.

One student shared that he was a feminist because he witnessed the strength of his mom who raised him by herself. It was inspiring to hear how he could recall on personal experiences that solidified his stance on gender equality. He even found it unbelievable that people choose not to identify with the feminist movement in general.

The Opposition

One man who spoke with us, who we chose not to feature in the video, was the one person to tell us that day the he did not, in fact, support gender equality. His reasoning was that "women and men have different jobs (in society.) That's just the way it is." Naturally, our team was shocked by his answer. I could feel myself having to hold myself back from beginning an unwinnable argument with this obviously misinformed guy. I felt angry. (Which I have been told is a perfectly acceptable emotion to feel in this instance.)

As a group we had agreed that we would not try to sway people's opinions on the matter during our first photo shoot. After all, we were simply there to gauge students' opinions. It was hard. I knew that we all felt so strongly on the matter and just so desperately wanted to educate others. But it wasn't the time. So we smiled, nodded, and thanked each person for their time. They walked away still misinformed and ignorant.

Each time someone would say, "I think everyone is equal," or "Oh yeah, I definitely support gender equality!" and then would follow up with, "...but I'm not a feminist." I felt myself wanting to shout,

"THAT'S WHAT IT IS!!! YOU ARE A FEMINIST!!!!!"

But of course, I refrained and let them rush to class. (Even the Ozarka delivery guy we spoke with seemed to be in a hurry that day.)

Maybe during future photo shoots we can simply show them this video.

Surely, it will enlighten them in a less confrontational manner than I ever could.

Why They're Both Important

The support is wonderful, and we greatly appreciate those who get behind our cause. However, the opposition is what fuels us. The anger we feel is justified when someone says, "I'm not a feminist," as if feminist was the bad F word. People who oppose our cause are the reason we are working together in the first place. There will always be people who oppose gender equality or just people who are confused about a simple term. I've come to the terms that this is okay. Each day that we teach people what being a feminist means is a step in the right direction--a step closer to equality for all.

We appreciate the students we talked to at UNT, whether they agree with us or not. We hope you all find yourselves browsing our site very soon. And maybe one day, you'll all proudly call yourselves feminists, too.

We still have a long way to go. And Bringing Back The F Word is helping us get there.