Meanings of Feminism

By Maren Ostrem

I’ve always considered myself a feminist from the moment I knew what “feminist” meant. In elementary school, when other students would say things like, “You run like a girl,” or anything remotely sexist, I would be the first kid to stand up and put the kid in his place. I’m not exaggerating - one time I was at Camp St. Croix playing volleyball or something and none of the boys would pass to me and so I called him a “sexist pig.”

I believe that feminism is nothing without intersectionality, and I always have, but traveling to India has truly changed my perspective on what feminism looks like. When visiting various NGOs such as Dastkar and Pardada Pardadi, we met and heard stories about various women and girls who have taken control of their life and gained independence.

The women at Dastkar Ranthambore have done what is very hard and rare for rural women in India to do, which is to become financially independent. All of these women were entirely displaced by the establishment of the Ranthambore National Park and in most cases are caring for multiple children as well as managing their homes. The husbands are in some cases irresponsible and don’t care for the children or provide very much incomes, or are working too much and don’t have time to help the woman with housework or childcare. Instead of solely dedicating themselves to the household and their children, these women have taken the initiative to provide for their families and support themselves. I can’t think of many things more feminist than that.

Since Pardada Pardadi was started, the girls were paid 10 rupees a day to attend their classes. This hasn’t changed, but the intent behind it did. When the school was started, the intention of the money was that by the time the girls graduated, they would able to pay for a wedding. However, when girls started to graduate, they said that they didn’t want to get married, but rather receive higher education. And so now, those rupees go to pay for college or university, or whatever education opportunities the graduates pursue.

Both of these examples are truly feminist in nature, whether intended to be or not. Feminism does not have to be vocally renouncing the patriarchy or attending protests, but in the way one lives their life to the fullest. Furthermore, feminism does not look the same across the world. Feminism adapts to its environment and to people’s needs. When we look at women in other countries who live differently than us, we might think them oppressed, when in reality they are empowered and independent feminists.