We're so fucked.

I wonder if more Canadian's watched the VP Debate or the actual Canadian Debate?
 

"I'm still fragile, I'm still hopeless. I'm not perfect, but I am free."

This semester I decided to take a Women's Studies course through the University. I think I was misguided, hoping for lessons of empowerment, which is something I can only achieve by myself.

The prof is a self-proclaimed feminist, which would be fine with me if she actually "allowed" other females to have their own opinions. She's the kind of feminist who believes all females should conform to one opinion, which to me, is the complete opposite of what feminism is.

We were to read an article written by Emily Martin called, The Egg and the Sperm (Which can be found here). Martin discusses societies need to define everything in a stereotypical nature, specifically dealing with human biology. She takes to biological textbooks and picks out words that cut down the female reproductive system and place the male reproductive system on a pedestal.

Ridiculous.

The whole article made me angry. Maybe she has a point. Scientists using words like "waste" and "debris" to describe female menstrual cycles, however, could she have not used her power to voice more pressing female issues than how the reproductive system is viewed in a textbook? Could she not have spent her time helping the female race achieve greater things, rather than spending hours, months, researching negative words used to describe ovaries, eggs etc.?

Back to my original thought. I truly believed that because everyone has the right to an individual opinion, that I would be able to state mine in class when asked my thoughts on the article. I, apparently, was wrong. My professor actually told me that I was wrong, that this WAS an important issue, because how in God's name are we supposed to move forward as empowered females if our reproductive system is being trashed in textbooks? To which I replied, "How are we supposed to move forward as empowered females if we're wasting our time nitpicking articles and textbooks to death? How are we supposed to move forward and help women in other countries who have NO freedom, no choice, if we're spending our time trying to change a few words in a textbook?"

She had no answer.

I'm okay with her voicing her opinion, she's entitled to it. I disagree with her on many of her points but I would never tell her, straight up, "You're wrong."

And really, how are we supposed to help women who don't have the ability to make the decisions we can every day? Women who still are not able to vote? Women who are beaten and underminded every day, if we're spending our time sitting in a Women's Studies class discussing a textbook that uses "debasing" words to describe an egg?