Feminism for the recovering "Karen"

“I’m not a feminist, but…I support women!”

Yes. Because white women know what happens when *we align with feminism.

It’s a risk. There’s a lot of privilege on the line. And many of us are far too fragile and far too fearful, to jeopardize our access to this *privilege. So we don’t align. We don’t support the work. We stay silent when feminism is mocked and slandered. We laugh along. We ridicule and demonize feminists - picking them apart with the same debilitating perfectionism that we police ourselves with.

Except, when we dialogue with *other women, when we listen to women outside white Christian America, (Black women, Indigenous women, women of color and culture, women on government assistance, solo moms, incarcerated women, women in abusive relationships, women tangled up in domestic violence, marginalized women, women experiencing deep depression or suicidal ideology, women at shelters, women in therapy, women at the gym DOING INNER WORK, etc, etc...) we hear a song stuck on repeat:

“I once had low self-worth."

"I suffered from low self-esteem."

"I was raised to be quiet, obey, and submit to men in authority, without question."

"I didn't have permission to use my voice."

"When I did use my voice, I was not heard."

Translation:

"I HAD NO AGENCY to protect myself from violence, manipulation, and dependency."

When we engage in dialogue with *other women, we also learn that a large part of healing - an essential element of raising dignity levels, fortifying inner strength, grasping at wisdom, standing in discernment, and taking strides toward self-sufficiency - comes from adopting feminist theories. Feminism, at the most elementary level, is the belief that *all genders should have equal rights and opportunities. Feminism counters supremacy, racism, exploitation within capitalism, patriarchy, and social ills that keep *all women down, under, and held below. It is about respecting diverse experiences, identities, knowledge, and strengths for every human within this intersectional and global community.

*The path from the dehumanization of women to the disposal of women is swift and sweeping.

“Authentic allyship is not about amplifying your own voice, but rather listening to the voices of people within that community and what they are saying. They need to be uplifted.”

– Graham Ball, Penn State Law

White-women supremacy club culture, however, prefers to throw resources at religious institutions claiming to “help women” but instead merely perpetuate patriarchal values, demonize feminism, exploiting a woman's journey for their marketing purposes. White women also prefer a good social performance, preferring work that offers public recognition for our financial "gifts." Performative allyship, according to Penn State Law graduates, is disingenuous, based on the idea of se