I guess people think of us as ‘feminazis’: Discussing equality with the Exeter FemSoc presidents

‘I’d like for people to stop being scared to be feminists’

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An ignorant buffoon who calls his daughter “hot” has been sworn into the most powerful position in the world. With only 22 per cent of his Cabinet female or non-white, swathes of sexual assault allegations and his restriction of abortion aid on his first day as President, it seems clear that Mr Trump views the furthering of LGTBQ+ and women’s rights as of little importance.

Feminists and social activists around this world are “grabbing this patriarchy by the balls”. The millions who joined the Women’s March across the world aimed to empower people through mass solidarity, giving a voice to the millions silenced and offended by Trump’s divisive words and prejudice.

In light of this fragile climate for women, we spoke to the presidents of Exeter’s Feminist Society, Sachal Khan and Arabella Comyn.

Arabella

Sachal

What does feminism mean to you?

Sachal: Feminism means liberation. It means solidarity with all women and gender minorities. For me, feminism is a lifestyle of constant care to the people around you, loving and militantly, and of a readiness to always be learning and unlearning. It’s a force which seeks to uproot all sources of inequality, and it’s heading straight for those at the top.

Arabella: To me feminism means that I am valid as a person. I don’t have every opportunity in the world, and I definitely have more opportunities than others, but feminism is all about expanding those opportunities, and building a world where everyone is equal. Not just men and women, all genders. Every race and every religion and every ability has just as many rights as anybody else; we need liberty and equality for all, now.

Are there any men in the society and is the society open to everyone?

Sachal: Of course there are and of course it is.

Arabella: We welcome everyone of all genders, our only rule is that we want no cis men on committee.

Why is that?

Arabella: We don’t want cis men on the committee because, although cis men are welcome in the feminist movement, it is not their movement. They can be instrumental in our struggle, but cis men are not institutionally and systematically oppressed for their gender, unlike other genders. We prefer to leave the administration of a society that exists to support oppressed genders in the hands of the oppressed. Cis men are obviously still welcome in our society and in the feminist movement, but we must lift the voices of the oppressed above the voices of their oppression in order to ensure that their liberation is achieved in line with what they want and need.

Sachal: While feminism helps cis men it needs to be led by voices that aren’t over represented – that’s the only way to locate what marginalised groups need. We ask cis men not to join the committee but to be involved and supportive and to use their privileged platforms to take feminism into spaces we (women, trans people, people of colour) can’t. Cis men can truly subvert patriarchy by doing this.

What do you hope to achieve this year?

Sachal: A mix of action, solidarity, and awareness. This year we’re campaigning for St Petrocks, a local homeless charity, as well as supporting the campaigns of Movement For Justice against immigration detention centres and Sisters Uncut, hosting talks by feminist figures and sexual health/relationship workshops; and organising more fun events like the Women of Colour Poetry Night on 21stAs a society we’re constantly looking inwards for self-improvement – how can we diversify and better our representation of marginalised students – how can we better represent transgender students, students of colour, disabled students, etc. By the end of the year we hope to leave FemSoc with a legacy of intersectionality and presence. Keep an eye out for a big speaker soon

Arabella: I’d like for people to stop being scared to be feminists. Feminism is a wonderful thing, when it’s intersectional, and everyone should be a feminist. I’d also really love to continue learning, with the rest of the society, how best to be intersectional with my feminism.

What have you already achieved?

Sachal: Creatively, we’ve run a weekly feminist radio show, featuring guests on a range of subjects from witchcraft to Black feminism; and our lovely treasurer Beth crafted a sexual health zine, INTERSEXTIONAL, which we like to give out at events. We helped organise the Black Protest in solidarity with Polish women protesting against abortion laws, helped with the Guild’s #NeverOK campaign as well as established a society presence at local events, vigils and marches. FemSoc are most proud of shipping some of our feminists to the 10th demonstration against Yarl’s Wood, Bedford, in December – I’d encourage anybody interested in protecting the rights of refugees, asylum seekers and international students to join the next demo.

When did you first decide to start campaigning for women’s rights?

Sachal: I saw of our beautiful trans students present a Gender 101 event in my second year. Though I drew my feminism from my admiration for my mother, seeing a group campaign not only for women’s rights but also for people who feel the way I do – that got me hooked!

Arabella: I’ve always been a feminist. In high school I began to understand how much of a need there was for active feminism, but in my first two years of uni I was a bit bogged down by being in a new country with some new mental health issues going on, so it wasn’t really until this year. In my second year I was increasingly involved in the society, culminating in me realising that the best way for me to act was to get involved- so I ran for committee, and everything we’ve done since then has made me so grateful for that decision.

Do you feel you get a lot of opposition?

Sachal: For sure. It’s a shame since a lot of people we speak to believe strongly in our politics – but find the society unapproachable. We want to change that impression as much as we can without losing our radical edge – however there are some people who will always try to shout over us.

Arabella: Yes! Everyone hates FemSoc and I don’t really know why – I guess people think of us as ‘feminazis’, which is a horrific word in itself because liberty and equality are nothing close to murdering millions of Jewish people. In reality we just want to help people understand that everyone deserves access to the same rights. Within the uni we get opposition and ridicule, but honestly it just reinforces my resolve: opposition to feminism is the reason that we need it. Plus, I’m sure I’ll face more opposition outside of uni, so this is a bit of a practice run I guess.

Is there a strong feminist movement in Exeter?

Sachal: It’s hard to say. There has always been a tension within feminism between those whose activism primarily helps white middle class women, and those whose activism seeks to represent everybody disadvantaged by patriarchy. There may be a strong movement for the former, but Exeter needs a stronger intersectional movement.

What do you think is the greatest challenge facing young women today?

Sachal: As I’m not a woman, I’ll sit this question out!

Arabella: I’d probably have to say ‘White Feminism’. There are so many challenges that feminism must tackle in order to achieve liberty and equality for all, and while ‘White Feminism’ does support some important causes, it is inherently not intersectional. Intersectionality is paramount in feminism. You need to acknowledge that people can be oppressed on multiple levels of their identity, and this means that there multiple different, often overlapping, struggles that must be fought.

Plus, feminism was built off the backs of women of colour and was co-opted by white women, for white women. As a white woman I think it can be easy to feel like it is ‘feminism’s moment’, that we’re making gains, but a lot of the progress that is being made is leaving behind the most vulnerable. We can’t afford to do that. By re-centering the movement around the struggles of the most marginalised we actually make things better for everyone. We’ve got to work from the bottom up. If there is no liberty and equality for all, then society cannot truly claim to be free.

Do you believe that men and women are different on a more than biological level?

Sachal: Well, “sex” itself is a very loose categorical grouping of genitalia, chromosomes, hormones, among other things. In reality there is a lot of variance within sex itself, but the determination of a child’s sex happens when a doctor simply looks at their genitalia and makes a decision, surgically “fixing” it if it is “wrong”. Why should that determination dictate who a child grows up to be? Gender is a mess and I won’t have any of it.

Arabella: Absolutely not. Sex is not the same as gender, and gender doesn’t prescribe whether or not you’re masculine or feminine. I do believe that there are some attributes that tend to be more strongly associated with a specific gender, but I firmly believe that that is because of social norms and influences.

 

How much does it cost to join?

The minimum (£3.50) so that everybody can get involved, but everybody is free to come to our events!