Finally!…I finally have found a voice to articulate how I have been feeling these past couple of months. I have been disgusted by the smear campaign the MSM and “so-called” feminists have launched against Palin. These feminists – NOW, Gloria Steinhem, et al – have finally been exposed. They only represent equality for women who fit the liberal mold. If you’re successful, bright, intelligent, and energetic – but dare to be a conservative – they will rip you to shreds. Such a hateful, hateful group.

Thank you so much for this wonderfully written article, Artemis. You have managed to clearly articulate everything I’ve been feeling. I’m still fired up over the blatant sexism that has occurred on both sides of the aisle – and it continues. But at least I know I’m not alone since finding this organization. Thank you.

My response:
It is odd… even now a woman’s intellect is in question because of her dress. I was actually told by someone yesterday, “Maybe Palin should have considered a pants suit verses a skirt, she could have been taken more seriously.” REALLY????? The more and more I think about that, it almost has enraged me. Again this morning, reports from so called “insiders” to the McCain/Palin campaign are saying she was a “Diva.” Why couldn’t she be characterized as plain pissed off rather than a diva? I do not think people gave Sarah Palin the credit she was due. Yes she was not as acquainted with international issues as I personally would have liked… but, her record back in Alaska as a Governor and Mayor where amazing to me. The ascension from a mom who decided that because her school wasn’t as she wished for her child so she got involved to Governor of Alaska… my word!!! If only I had half her guts and her record speaks for itself… If only the media looked at the positive of her political career I wonder what people’s perception of her would be? No instead they chose to show beauty pageant pictures (which she entered to get scholarships to go to college because her family couldn’t afford to send her otherwise),pictures of a college age man looking up at her while she spoke, with a camera angle to it showing the man’s head right between her heals and bare legs because she was wearing a skirt and the worst the attacks about her motherhood and ability to serve as VP because she was a mother of 5. I am disgusted. Sexism which when I was growing up was almost never spoken of. My mother taught me that if I wanted to be something it took hard work. Never was it mentioned that because I just so happened to have a vagina rather than a penis, I would have to work much harder or that the way I dressed would show my intelligence level. I suppose my mother thought it was irrelevant to the times. In another news report this morning there was discussion about Michelle Obama’s dress she wore the other Tuesday night when her husband made his speech becoming the next president elect. When is America going to grow up? It isn’t what you wear it’s what is in your brain. So now that I have pondered the quote above by Mercy B. Jackson I think to myself… this now has changed a bit. Perception of ones intelligence is now based upon what she wears by people in general, not woman exchanging looks for intelligence as the quote refers to. Woman have a clear choice here. What are we going to do about this? It is our duty for our daughters, nieces, granddaughters and friend’s children to start standing up for ourselves. I personally am not the most ideal feminist as some would say out there because of my conservative views, stance on abortion and the fact that I have decided to stay home to raise my children verses being a carrier woman… but I am a feminist. I have the right to choose my destiny and I have which all females do. We have come along way, who would have thought that two woman in one election cycle would have been in the position they where in running for the two highest elected offices in our nation? I didn’t…Now that we know that we are intellectually able….we as woman need to band together and say what now is relevant to us that can change sexism. For one I think that we need to stop beating up on other woman for the choices they decided for themselves. Deciding ones fate is the beauty about feminism to me. Then I think we as a coalesced front need to say how we are going to be spoken about in general…so on and so on…. What is encouraging to me is that I have 3 sons to teach how to be woman supporters and a daughter to coach her to be anything she desires and not to accept anything less regardless what her points of views are and attire consists of.

We are all adults here. We don’t need to be told who we should vote for. Besides, my rorschach article has nothing to do with who to vote for or this election, so such comments are off topic. This piece is about the limitations of the strategies of liberal feminism, its failure to stand up for either of the female candidates against the avalanche of misogyny, the reason why a woman can’t deal with sexism solo, and the profoundly disturbing hysteria and woman-bashing behavior and vitriolic language of women who call themselves feminists.

There are not put downs of academic feminists. We are a big tent and welcome all. Several of our founders are academic feminists.

The issue some of our members are speaking out against is the attacks coming from Second Wave Feminists – target being those who would speak out for and defend Gov. Palin.

We believe the Fourth Wave will be an all inclusive wave of feminism. Certainly, that is the way forward.