*dies of the stupid*

[alixtii]

Oh yes, (systemic) sexism and racism don't exist outside the United States at all, do they? Feminism is simply just a part of some American agenda of cultural imperialism, and everyone knows that Western Europe is a utopia when it comes to gender and race issues. (Apparently everything I've read in the New York Times--not to mention The Guardian--is a big fat lie. Who knew?)

Really, how does one respond to that?

Comments

[http://users.livejournal.com/peasant_/]

Ah, it sounds as if you have met a member of that fascinating sub-culture of Britain which we term 'a wanker'. It sounds as if your initial conclusion that you can't talk to her was right.

The problem is when non-American feminists hear American feminists speaking and assume that because they don't see what the feminists are talking about operating in their culture, then those dynamics must not exist outside of American culture. Which misses the point that these dynamics are often difficult to recognize (at least at first) in any culture.

I guess from your point of view, the tricky problem is to distinguish between people who are being blind to the dynamics and people who observe the dynamics but interpret their cause and hence subsequent action in a different way. Mind you, by definition most liberal feminists aren't in a discussion with radical feminists at all, so the problem probably doesn't arise as often as it should. And as you say, the radical types are certainly most vocal in this corner of LJ land.