Feminist machines

A few days ago I was victim of one of the worst (non-injurious) incidents than can befall a mother.

When I tell my fellow mothers what happened, they wince, roll their eyes and ask how I'm coping. It's been six days now. Six long and painful days.

My washing machine broke down.

People who don't have children appreciate that this must be difficult. People who do have children appreciate the full nature of the calamity

The daily battle to keep my offspring clean is usually dealt with in the short minutes it takes to load, unload, hang up and put away a load of washing (rude nasty girls don't iron). No more.

Washing and feminism

Appliances like the automatic washing machine have set us free. By doing these mundane domestic tasks for us, in a fraction of the time they would otherwise take, they allow us to spend our time doing other things, such as earning money and becoming financially independent.

Once upon a time, laundry was a thing that might take a woman with a family an entire day each week. A day of pummeling and wringing the stains from her whites until her hands were red and sore.

Wealthy women in the past, as now, may have been able to hire cleaners to wash their clothes. And that provided work for other women.

But as washing machines became more affordable, it's meant that those of us who couldn't shell out for a cleaner can deal with this most labour-intensive chore with ease.

Women do more housework than men, even today. Washing machines mean that this doesn't have to take over our entire lives.

Washing around the world

Gender inequality exists for many reasons. Culture, poverty and education all play their parts, and I certainly wouldn't lay the credit for great strides feminism has made in the last 40 years in the West solely at the door of the automatic washing machine.

But it is true that in developing countries where the majority of people are less able to afford labour-saving devices such as washing machines, the opportunities for female independence are far fewer.

The sad fact is that if you are a woman who can't afford a washing machine, you will probably spend a large portion of your life scrubbing your husband and children's socks. You won't have time for a career.

Thank you

The inventor of the electric washing machine is unknown. Whoever he is (although you never know, maybe it was a she), I'd like to plant a big firm kiss on his whiskery cheek. But it would probably be good if he emptied the machine from time to time.

Locking up women seeking asylum

Nothing shouts female emancipation louder than locking away persecuted women the moment they set foot on British soil.

This is what we do, in the UK.

Yarl's Wood detention centre

Imagine arriving in Britain for the first time in your life. You’ve travelled alone. Before this you’d never left your own country. But you been beaten/abused/raped, and fear for your life, all because you spoke out. You clung to the idea that you would be safe when you reached the UK, all through that terrifying journey. You just have to get to passport control and you will be there and safe.

You arrive and are taken to Yarl’s Wood detention centre. And there your dreams of freedom without fear evaporate. You may no longer live in fear, but you’re imprisoned. This is just a temporary stop, but the first night turns into the second night, which turns into the third week, into the fourth month. And so on.

Women are detained at Yarl's Wood for months on end while the authorities check out whether their claims for asylum are legitimate and decided what to do with them. 

There are all kinds of allegations about the mistreatment of women at Yarl’s Wood. Women regularly self-harm and are placed on suicide watch. I wonder why? Possibly because they’ve been through hell only to find themselves not in the promised land but someone else’s nightmare.

I‘ve been lobbying my MP about this. Apparently one of the reason women’s are detained at Yarl's Wood is to 'ensure their health and wellbeing is safeguarded at all times'. In what sense is driving women to self-harm safeguarding their health and wellbeing?

There's a parliamentary review due around these issues. I hope it leads to some changes, although I'm sceptical. Either way, in the months before this is completed, women who are not only innocent  but extremely vulnerable will continue to be locked up for months at a time. 

Women (and men) who arrive in this country in fear should be treated with care and compassion, not thrown into what is essentially a jail.

Justice for Men and Boys

In a few weeks time there will be an election. And some lucky constituencies get to vote for the Justice for Men and Boys party. Lucky them.

This is an openly anti-feminist party - the same people that run it also run an Anti Feminist League.

The basic tenet is that the rise of feminism is impinging on the rights of boys and men, and is also bad for girls and women.

The party is run by Mike Buchanan (left), a former Tory consultant, who radiates white middle class male smugness. I don't like to be personal, but sometimes I can't help it.

Lazy lazy lazy

The ole 'feminists hate men' chestnut is the easiest, laziest way to have a go at feminism. It's so lame, I'm struggling to find the energy to defend it. It's playground argument.

No, feminists don't hate men. We just want women and men to be treated equally. That's not the same thing. Sigh.

Women generally don't hate men, we're just not like that. In fact there's a well known word for hating women, 'misogyny'. There's also a word for hating men - 'misandry'. It's certainly not feminism.

"Balance justice" by Eurobas. Licensed under CC BY 3.0 via
Wikimedia Commons - http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/
File:Balance_justice.JPG#/media/File:Balance_justice.JPG

'Man'-ifesto

The party says a number of scary things, bolstered by some badly thought-out arguments.

• Feminists are trying to destroy the nuclear family: because a unit in which a man and woman work together in an equal partnership to bring up children is clearly a threat to feminism. Down with that sort of thing.
• Feminism is the pursuit of female supremacy: no, it's the pursuit of equality
• Lying Feminist of the Month: indeed
• Women in the boardroom leads to financial decline: women are happier outside the boardroom. When people tell me that I'll be better off not doing something that I want to do, I'm always deeply suspicious. 

My *favourite* thing about the Justice for Men and Boys party is how they make out that they're trying to be helpful to women. They're big on promoting women's roles as mothers, suggesting we shouldn't be pressurised or encouraged into high powered jobs. 

Feminism is about allowing choice. Some women don't want to climb to the top of the career tree because they want to put their energies into being mothers. And that's OK. But for those who want to get to the boardroom, they should have the choice. 

Democracy is about giving people the freedom to stand for what they believe in, so it's important that everyone can air their views, even Mr Buchanan and his friends. But it's sad and a bit scary that feminism has to be seen in a dirty word by this section of society, so much so that they feel they have to form a political party against it.