Madison Dobrzenski

WGST 2310-001
Due: October 3, 2017

1. Third Wave Manifesta-A Thirteen Point Agenda

a. I think these thirteen points brush on some important topics of feminism. I think they
touch on all of the topics that drove feminism to exist in the first place, such as birth
control and bringing down double standards in sex and sexual health, while also
incorporating more modern goals, such as supporting the visibility and power of
lesbians and bisexual women and trans people in the feminist movement. I think these
goals are a good way to look at feminism.
b. Number 5 really resonated with me; I think its because Ive always been aware that all
movements start as youth movements. All revolutions start with youth, and movements or
revolutions shouldnt be dismissed because a new generation is pushing them. I feel
passionately about this, and I think its worded well in this context.
Number 12 resonates with me because ultimately, no matter WHICH one of these goals
you identify with, you (if youre a feminist) aspire to have equality, and thats what
everyone wants.
c. I would add: To inform people of the social construct that is gender, and what that
means for the feminism movement. Because we, as feminists, are aware that gender is
merely a social construct, we should never treat people differently that dont identify with
either binary gender, and we should raise awareness for all gender queer people.
To crush the negative stereotypes associated with the word feminist and give it a good
connotation. When we hear or see people using the word incorrectly, we should raise
their attention to the true definition and why that is better than their preconceived
notion.
2. Things I learned about feminism
a. One of the new things I learned about feminism is a concept in Getting to Activism,
which is: The problem is that while feminism includes these issues [animal rights,
environment, youth advocates], these movements dont necessarily include feminism;
thus girls and young women are rarely radicalized around gender. This was a well
worded concept that I had not grasped yet. Its true, though, that a lot of people are
activists in other realms before feminism; I even was. I was an environmentalist before I
was a feminist, and then I educated myself and researched what feminism is. Most people
who are activists in other ways are aware that they need to educate themselves, and are
more open to becoming feminists. These issues go together, but advocates for those
issues often dont see feminism that way, as something to include in their activism.
I had an Aha! moment when I read the time that birth control was legalized; I am
ashamed of the fact I didnt know that prior to reading this book, but I was surprised
nonetheless. My ignorance is shameful! I read that and realized that REALLY was not
that long ago. That bothers me. My father was alive when birth control was legalized, and
when the Civil Rights Act was passed, so it really puts into perspective how recent that
was.
b. I could incorporate some of these tactics into my goals for feminism by using the internet
as a platform to educate people of the facts about gender that they have yet to be educated
 about. (I know this because I wasnt educated about it in school, until I got to my
Womens and Gender studies classes)
3. This seems small, but the line in the epilogue that says women say Im sorry only when they
should be, really resonated with me. Ive always been an apologetic person, and I dont know if
its because I have anxiety or because as a woman I feel I should be, or a combination of both (I
think its the combination) but I got chills reading that because wow, what a world it would be. I
know too many young women who are apologetic when they dont need to be, including myself.
Another point that resonated with me was Environmentally sound menstrual products are
government-subsidized and cost the same as a months worth of shaving supplies. I enjoyed this
whole paragraph because it highlighted the clear fact that men getting vasectomies is the most full
proof form of birth control and should be more normalized.
Since the 2000s, we have normalized growing up with single parents and parents that are
members of the LGBTQIAA community, and we have drawn more attention to slut-shaming in
the feminist movement. That is a major concept that most (if not all) feminists are aware of and
strive to fight against. As the book states, at the beginning of a new millennium, we have
witnessed a woman running for President on a major party ballot, that had a chance of winning;
no matter your opinion of her, that is immense progress and a huge milestone.