What Our Students Think About Feminism Today

Shakira Maxwell and June Castello, lecturers at the Centre for Gender and Development Studies at the University of the West Indies, Mona, Jamaica surveyed students on what feminism means to them and submitted the responses as their contribution to this issue of CAFRA News. The students are from the classes AR20A (Gender in Caribbean Culture 1: Theoretical Issues, History and Religion) and AR21A (Introduction To Women’s Studies). The students range in age from age 20 to 50, with a female to male ratio about 90 to 10.

The students responded, via questionnaires, to two questions:

1. What does the term feminism mean to you?
2. Do you think there is still the need for a Caribbean feminist movement?

Following are their responses to question 1:

Student 1 (Female)
A feminist is someone who tries to highlight the needs and wishes of women, and tries to examine her role throughout history and how it affects contemporary society. A feminist tries to place women into the limelight.

Student 2 (Female)
Feminism is the movement that is based on the need and desire to empower women by striving to uplift the way in which women are seen in society and the roles that they (are) placed (in).

Student 3 (Male)
For me, feminism has always had a somewhat negative connotation, as it almost always seems to be anti-male. Here, we have a group of women who are lobbying for women’s rights and equality, while (at the same time, they are) lashing men, possessing an attitude of “I can do without men”.

Student 4 (Female)
(Feminism is the) enlightenment of women. It is the empowerment and recognition of (women’s) worth.

Student 5 (Female)
Feminism is believing in and supporting the success of women, without any form of discrimination. Women are not seen as submissive to men and their rules but have ideas and opinions of their own, which are valuable to society.

Student 6 (Female)
(Feminism is) a response by women to continuous inequity in society. This is because men are given a higher rank under a patriarchal society.

Student 7 (Female)
(Feminism is) an ideology that questions the unfair way in which women have been treated traditionally, and it also seeks to advocate for the visibility and importance of women.

Student 8 (Female)
Feminism is the thought or concept of women empowerment. It is the idea that women are important and have knowledge or can function in any sphere of their society, and also that women can do anything that men can do, and so much more.

Student 9 (Female)
To me, feminism means women having a voice in the working of society. It’s about not being restricted to certain behaviour patterns or values because of sex. It is being free to choose how you will live and not having to face ridicule or insults from other members of society.

Student 10 (Male)
A group of women who are advocating women’s issues and women’s rights, sometimes not taking into account the importance of the whole picture.

Student 11 (Female)
To me, the term feminism signifies a united attempt by women to obtain equality in the social, political and economic spheres of life. In other words, it is the need to be considered and treated equally as men.

Student 12 (Female)
(Feminism is) the movement consisting of a collection of people, dominated mainly by women, who are working towards the empowerment of women in the society.

Student 13 (Female)
Feminism implies a movement which focuses on issues of relevance to women which are either not sufficiently addressed or may not even be addressed at all.

Following are the responses to question 2:

Student 1 (Female)
Yes I do. There are particular traditional notions of women that need to be changed. We are now living in a contemporary society, which has evolved over time, so new ideas or needs have been introduced which affect women. For example, in the past, it was the role of the man to work outside the home, while the women stayed in. Today, you find that women are acquiring jobs outside of the home. It simply means that the traditional “housewife” is no longer applicable, so house chores need to be shared.

Student 2 (Female)
I do not think there is a need for any radical group in the Caribbean, such as Radical Feminists. However, I do think that in light of some of the social issues that are evident in the Caribbean, a feminist movement is still needed in order to educate the society on the value of its women.

Student 3 (Male)
I believe that it is important for women in the Caribbean to be able to express themselves, especially since we live in a region in which our men do and still believe that they are superior to women, and that we (women) ought to be subjugated. However, based on my concept of feminist movement, this is perhaps too radical, and I am not sure if this would be significant to the region.

Student 4 (Female)
Yes, there is still a need for a Caribbean feminist movement. Many Caribbean women have a low self-esteem, and need to be motivated. Some are highly abused and need to get assistance in regaining their self worth.

Student 5 (Female)
No. I think women in the Caribbean are given equal opportunities especially in some male dominated jobs, such as construction and politics (among others). They are free to voice their opinions and make valuable contributions to the Caribbean society at large. Only in some areas of religion, where women are forced to conform or submit to the men, would a feminist movement be useful, for example, the Rastafarian Movement and other religions that do not allow women to take active role in worship. Otherwise, women seem to be progressing in almost every area, and in many cases, better than men.

Student 6 (Female)
Yes, there is still the need for a Caribbean feminist movement, because inequity still exists. Rights need to be earned and social attitudes need to be changed.

Student 7 (Female):
Yes, there is still a need for a Caribbean feminist movement, especially since gender roles are continuously being redefined.

Student 8 (Female)
Yes, there are still a lot of females that are being oppressed, and do not have the knowledge or skills to move forward, but with this movement, they would/could have a movement to rely on and to help them to move ahead and from their present situation(s).

Student 9 (Female)
Absolutely. The work being done by the feminist movement is still significantly reserved to academia, and even there it is still not yet recognized as valid in comparison to other disciplines. In addition, the feminist movement at the grass roots level is still not fully accepted as relevant to all women and men.

Student 10 (Male)
Yes. But the mission must be established on a sustainable level which results in more harmonious and complementary relationships between men and women.

Student 11 (Female)
Yes, I do think that there is still a need for Caribbean feminist movement. Although women have begun to excel within today’s society, there is still room for improvement, and so, a Caribbean feminist movement would encompass the problems faced, so as to allow improvement and advancement of women.

Student 12 (Female)
There is a need for the feminist movement in the Caribbean. Over the years, men have dominated many of the institutions/organizations. Therefore, a feminist movement will give rise or help to incorporate a stronger presence of the female population in some of the key areas in these institutions, or even give them a stronger voice.

Student 13 (Female)
I think there is need for a Caribbean feminist movement based on the fact that in some instances, the voices of women are not heard/aired, and some are still discriminated against usually based on race and social status.