Feeling inspired by the readings, I decided to jot down a quick post about what I have observed about feminism on tumblr...from my personal (loose) definition of what it means to be feminist.
I suppose it is important to begin with how I would define feminist, cyber or otherwise:
A feminist is an individual who actively believes in the political, social, and economic equality of the sexes; the importance of female solidarity; and woman’s right to be defined by her femininity, or to not.
In the tumblr fitblr community, feminism is a tricky subject. It appears in this community that some women define their existence by their appearance. I would not consider this viewpoint consistent with the feminist movement, which is about equality for the whole woman, not just for the female body. However, whether this assumption is true can not be determined by tumblr...here is why:
Fitblr tumblr ladies might dedicate their blogs to getting “fit” and achieving the body they have always wanted. This is not at all what my blog is about (my blog explicitly promotes feminist initiatives by expressing the importance of appreciating one’s self as more than just a body but as a mind and spirit deserving of the same respect opportunity for success as anyone else) but most of the blogs I see in the fitblr world are focused on the physical. That said, one can not make the assumption that just because a female blogger only blogs about her body that she is not concerned with or active in feminist initiatives. Perhaps she is just not explicitly including her interests in equality on her page because that is not its purpose.The point is, often times tumblr pages only represent one side of self, or one isolated interest...and that is ok.
On the other hand, some blogs I have come across to reflect messages that are highly inconsistent with the feminist movement. These blogs are defined by posts having to do with: how to body defines womanhood, how having a “hot body” will get you a man and lead to a comfortable life, how a woman’s responsibility is to be a sexually attractive mate for a male...etc.
I will definitely be elaborating on this topic in future posts, but I felt motivated to share this blurb with you all.