Valentina Gutierrez

Advisory 11
Beth Thurber
Feminism - Facing History Reflection
Describe the Facing History activity.
The day started with a presentation regarding the stereotypes revolving around feminists.
Later, we watched a YouTube video by Laci Green, in which she passionately explains reasons
for being a feminist. After that, we watched a BACS version of the, Run Like a Girl YouTube
video. In it, we saw students run horribly in an attempt to imitate a girl and then try to back up
why their perceptions of women are that they are delicate and frivolous, especially in activities
reserved for boys. Finally, for the activity, we split off into groups of boys and girls and
answered various yes/no questions regarding our lives and feminism.
What did you notice during this activity?
Throughout this activity, I noticed that the Facing History group did not focus on
intersectional feminism, which would have resonated better with students at Blackstone because
it has to do with the intersections of being a woman, race, class, culture, sexuality (or lack
thereof), transgenderism, and more. Facing History also did not address why the feminist
movement is important, not only to women but everyone.
How did the activity feel?
The activity felt very shallow because it seemed like more of a questionnaire of where
students stood in relation to feminism instead of forcing them to think critically about how
feminism could help them. It was obvious that by the end of the day, many students were still
unclear about what it means to be a feminist or ally. In fact, because of their lack of
understanding of how important it is to have a space strictly for women to discuss and analyze
their experiences, especially in a world that is still very much male dominated, some boys felt
compelled to call themselves humanists. It became even clearer to me that the presentation had
not been adequate, when, after sharing that sometimes my mom doesnt let me walk home alone
but lets my younger brother do it all the time, some freshmen boy exclaimed, I would walk her
home. It was as if everything they had heard had come in through one ear and out the other,
because it should have been obvious that the problem was not that I needed a male chaperone but
that I was being treated differently because of my gender. Moreover, I noticed that the
conversation began shifting to other forms of oppression, such as fat-shaming. This would have
been totally fine had it not been done in a way to make feminism seem less important.

What did you learn?

I did not learn anything new regarding the feminist movement. Rather, I learned how
important it is for our school to have a feminist club that discusses issues in depth. In addition, I
learned that many of my friends do not consider themselves feminists, which is totally fine, but
their reasoning showed me that they lacked understanding of feminism.
What did you contribute?
I participated in the questionnaire and very firmly put myself out there as a feminist. I
hoped to compel other students to think critically about how being a feminist does not mean you
hate boys or that feminism is sexist toward boys. As someone with a strong self-esteem
would, I shamelessly acknowledged that I am hard working and intelligent and would be totally
willing to take on a leadership role. I did this because I wanted other students, especially girls, to
proudly acknowledge their strengths.
What are you left wondering about?
The presentation left me wondering whether the world can be changed to support women
and femininity and accept it as a strength equal to masculinity -- even if Blackstone couldnt be
changed to do that.