Feminism 101

Practicing child & youth care through a feminist lens means understanding and adapting feminism to build an approach that strives for gender equity in how we work with young people and their families. It is not enough to simply call ourselves feminist or to espouse feminist rhetoric--we must have actionable items that allow us to ensure we are actually embodying the values we claim.

How do we do this? First we need to consider what the core tenants of Feminist CYC might look like, and then we need to consider how we can apply those in our practice.

But let's back up a little bit. What exactly is feminism? And what is child & youth care?

Feminism, the fight for 'women's rights'

Feminism has been around for centuries, and in that time it has gone through many changes.  At its conception feminism was an ideology espousing the need for (certain) women to be incorporated into the public sphere at a wider rate, but today's feminism looks a lot different than that to many of us!

Generally, folks look at feminism as an evolution of ideology via 'waves'. Within each wave there are different movements, different branches, and different priorities. It is also important to remember that feminist movements occur globally and each is unique to its geographic and cultural location.

For the purpose of feminist CYC we will look at feminism in the Western context, as this is the feminism that most resonates with me (and my lived experience).  Your feminism might look different from my feminism, but that is what makes this project so interesting!  

First wave feminism

The first wave of feminism is generally looked at as the wave occurring around the turn of the 20th century. This wave of feminism focused on women being declared as persons and having the right to vote. This was also an extremely exclusionary wave of the feminist movement with many arguments for white women receiving the right to vote finding base in racist, ableist, and classist rhetoric.

Second wave feminism

The second iteration of feminist movements is generally considered to have occurred around the mid-20th century. This wave focused on women's sexual liberation, access to abortion, to daycare, and the right to work. While this movement was slightly more inclusive than the first wave it was still focused on the wants and needs of predominantly white upper class women with marginalized and racialized folks finding their demands cut from the list of concerns.

Third wave feminism

The third wave of feminism is generally associated with the riot grrrl and zine movements of the 1990s and the very early 2000s. This wave focused on being more inclusionary, for example focusing on queer theory and intersectionality when considering gender-based oppression.

Fourth wave feminism

Generally, the current feminist movement is considered to be the fourth wave. This wave focuses even more on inclusion, equity, and on recognizing feminism that focusses solely on white, non-disabled, middler/upper class, heterosexual ciswomen is highly problematic. This wave also recognizes that patriarchy oppresses men and boys and seeks to find ways to dismantle systems of oppression in an effort to liberate all people, regardless of gender identity.

Is feminism still relevant?

In the early to mid-00's there was a period that is often referred to as 'post-feminism'. During this period many folks argued that women had won all the rights they needed, equality had been achieved, and feminism was no longer useful.

Oof. What a big conclusion to draw! 

We live in a world where, in heterosexual relationships, women are doing the majority of caregiving, of household chores, and of managing family tasks. Where so-called women's work is still considered unskilled and is compensated at a lower rate. Where women are being denied access to basic health care, where boys are being taught that girls owe them their bodies, and where having children and taking maternity leave seriously penalizes career growth. Where gender fluid, gender queer, non-binary, and trans folks are attacked, legislated against, protested, and neglected in mainstream programming. Where boys are discouraged from emotional expression, from healthy communication, and from learning the skill of caring.

Someone's gender is not a niche.

We need feminism today to expand on the feminism of yesterday. To grow and build communities that are more equitable, more understanding, and more supportive.

So how do we integrate that with CYC practice? 

Well, first we need to understand the brief history of child and youth care!  Check back next week for CYC 101 and in the meantime check out our instagram @thefeministcyc, our linktree https://linktr.ee/thefeministcyc, and drop a comment on this post.

• Feminist CYC ✌