Topsy-Turvy Words: The Politics of Language

One of my hobbies is cross-stitch.

Several years ago (around 2015, to be exact), a friend gave me a book of feminist cross-stitch patterns. I opened it with delight and started creating work for myself, my daughter, and my friends.

This one hangs in the bathroom, behind my mirror, so that I can see it every day. It reads "Angry, Liberal, Feminist, Woman." Let's break down these words and how they have shifted over recent years.

Angry Liberal Feminist Killjoy

Expressing Anger

Women have never been allowed to show anger. An angry woman terrifies men. We are supposed to be meek and mild, quiet, and never express frustration.

When we use other descriptors—for example, a Black angry woman or a transwoman—people on the right (and often the far left) will leap onto that as making us unfit for office or power. This administration seems to think that we are only good for incubating babies and motherhood. To this day,

Michelle Obama still gets attacked simply for existing, and any Black woman or any woman who is not white gets mocked if they express anger against the administration or the system. Trans women in office have to fight for respect and probably the right to even use a bathroom.

Of course, white women who are on the "right" side of politics can say and do anything they want, because they are often on the side of patriarchy.

The media portrays angry women with their mouths open, screaming at the world, or often references hormonal fluctuations as an excuse and a concern. Any woman who dares to run for a top political position runs the risk of being depicted as Medusa, an image that seems to terrify men in particular.

Medusa

This is not new. Throughout history, anger has been reserved as a right of men. However, now women can get angry as long as they are supporting injustice, immorality, and a twisted sense of Christianity. The world has gone topsy turvy indeed.

I, a cisgender white woman with Eastern European Jewish ancestry, have decided to claim Medusa as one of my role models. If that's a problem, then feel free to move along.

Being Liberal

Around 2015 (or at least that's when I noticed it), the concept of being liberal or feminist started to be seen as a negative. To be liberal somehow meant that I wasn't far enough left to be acceptable.

The dictionary definition of liberal is this:

adjective Favoring reform, open to new ideas, and tolerant of the ideas and behavior of others; not bound by traditional thinking; broad-minded. synonym: broad-minded. (American Heritage Dictionary 5th edition)

In American politics, a liberal is to the left of the political divide.

However, during the past 10 years, the term "liberal" has become completely twisted in some ways. Those on both the right and the extreme left have conflated the term "liberal" with either communism, socialism, or even fascism. Liberals can, indeed, be communist or socialist (there is no liberalism in fascism), but one does not have to be communist or socialist.

I am probably closest to a democratic socialist. But I dream of a creative economy where the thinkers, artists, creators, educators, and doers (of all types)—rather than owners or money-makers who do nothing but crave power and more money—are valued. I want people—regardless of biology, gender identity, race, language, cultural identity, or any other defining feature—to be able to live, have a home, eat, and enjoy life. I want a world that allows for true equality, fairness, kindness, and justice. I want society to break free of the patriarchal system that is killing us all.

That's not too much to ask, is it? (Note, sarcasm is my love language.)

I don't know what that political system would be called. I'm not an expert on political movements. But does that description not reflect a liberal attitude?

Not in today's society, at least in the United States. In terms of political division, I believe it is not a straight line between right and left. Instead, it looks more like this:

Purity Leftists and Maga Republicans meet at the bottom of a circle.

Shifting Feminism

I am in my late 50s (Gen X) and developed my feminist ideology in college in the 80s (if not earlier). But I am also an avid learner who strives to understand people, society, and how things change throughout time. But, as language becomes more politicized and manipulated, it's hard to label myself. Am I liberal? Am I a feminist?

To be feminist seems to mean one of two things these days. Either

1. I hate men (tell that to my husband) and all women who want traditional roles (I don't, I just want you to have that choice).

   OR

2. That I (because I am Gen X) only understand mainstream/liberal feminism, and that I couldn't possibly understand the intersectionality required in any feminist movement.

   
   

Neither of these is true. To me (and many others), being feminist simply means that I believe that everyone has a right to live a full, rich life in any manner they wish, without insisting that the rest of the world follow their choices. I believe that we can and should have the choice to live as we please, as long as we do no harm.

To me, feminism means believing in choice and bodily autonomy. It means creating a world where nobody has to be afraid of going outside or is limited by the restrictions set upon them by a patriarchal society. This includes all genders, all races, and all religions. It means supporting science and evidence over the tales told and written by men and people in power over the centuries.

Again, I ask, is that too much to ask?

Embracing My Inner Killjoy

I don't feel the need to explain this. If being a killjoy means sucking the fun out of people who feel empowered to say vile things about other people all the time, then I am a killjoy.

If being a killjoy means stopping others from saying, "It's my way, or you are a criminal and deserve to starve or be punished, " then feel free to call me a killjoy.

I strive to bring joy into the world, but when language goes topsy-turvy, I guess I am a killjoy.

Anyone want to join me?