On being a bad feminist

I've been letting the sisterhood down all my life

Me letting the side down by winning my local beauty contest in 1997.

I don’t often talk about being a feminist. I am one, but quite a bad one. I’m pretty sure most feminists would disagree with me on at least one issue.

Then again, there’s often a lot of disagreement within the movement, especially among feminists from different generations. And many women refuse to claim the label, even those you’d imagine definitely would.

For example, I’ve written a biography of Sinéad O’Connor, which is coming out next month. Despite being seen as a feminist icon, O’Connor stubbornly refused to identify as part of the movement.

‘I don't think of myself as being a feminist, so I don't really think about feminism a whole lot to be honest,’ she told the Guardian’s Tim Jonze in 2014. ‘I wouldn't label myself anything, certainly not something with an “ism” or an “ist” at the end of it. I'm not interested in anything that is in any way excluding of men.’

Which is a misinterpretation of what feminism is: in its broadest sense, it’s fighting for women to be considered equal to men and achieve the same rights - and of course I’m on board with that, and Sinéad would have been too, I’m sure.

Also, plenty of men would say they were feminists. Just look at Ed Miliband rocking this t-shirt a decade ago, looking pensive, wary and bored!

This is what a feminist looks like: unsure and distracted. Photo by Elle Magazine.

But I can understand O’Connor not wanting a label. Because once you say you’re a feminist, people immediately make assumptions: are you an angry, man-hating killjoy? Do you wear flat sandals, have hairy armpits and wear ‘natural’ deodorant which doesn’t work? Do you have a buzz cut, permanently rant about ‘issues’ and go on protest marches? Are you going to shout at me if I hold open a door for you or ask you out?

Having known many feminists, I don’t make these assumptions, because there are huge differences in terms of beliefs. There’s a schism between second wave feminists - who are anti-sex work and anti-trans - and third and fourth wave feminists, who are sex-positive and pro-trans. I’m third/fourth-wave, but most of the feminists in the public eye - Germaine Greer, Camille Paglia, JK Rowling, Julie Burchill, Suzanne Moore, Julie Bindel, Hadley Freeman - are second wave.

But most people don’t understand the distinctions - they just make a crazy load of incorrect assumptions when you say you’re a feminist. And sometimes you don’t have the time or inclination to set them straight, so it’s easier not to proclaim that you’re a feminist. Which, of course, feels like letting the sisterhood down.

But I do have the time and inclination right now. So, as a bad feminist, here’s what I believe.

Like most political issues, feminism is complicated

Porn star Stormy Daniels, who has been where no other woman wants to go. Photo by Glenn Francis.