You're Not a Feminist, Are You?

I came across this post on Gen Y over at Mamamia. I really should stop reading it just makes me stabby. Although maybe, that's all part of the evil plan. There, Beth Noble responds to the article which quotes her as saying that she can't operate an oven and has no interest in doing so. Apparently she thought the article would be about empowering modern choices, but she just came off as a ditz who can't cook. So she sets the record straight, she can cook - she just chooses not to.


But within all the assertions about cooking abilities, the fact that everyone burns toast and the implication that doing charity work somehow makes up for not cooking, was this which caught my eye:

I am not a feminist by anyone’s standards. Up until I left school, I firmly believed I would get married and raise a family (with a cooked dinner on the table every night).

Not a feminist. Really?! When did 'feminist' become such a dirty word. If you're not a feminist then I supppose, you'd like to go back to not voting, unequal rates of pay or better yet, not even have the ability to work or own property. And what's even better? It insinuates that anyone who is married and raising a family is not a feminist. I get the sense that some people would prefer to distance themselves from the Germaine Greer's of the world. 'I'm not THAT kind of feminist'. Well it's those sort of feminists who got women into the position they are today, so the next time someone goes on a pro-career, pro-choice, anti-cooking, anti-domesticity rant perhaps they should avoid trampling all over the people who gave them the opportunity to make those choices in the first place.