I noticed something interesting while I was putting a shirt in my closet today. Sometimes when I put button-up shirts on a hanger, I like to button the top button in order to keep the collar's shape. But I noticed with this shirt, that the top button was all the way down at the bust line. And I thought, "of course! Women are expected to show off their cleavage."
But then I thought about how men's shirts are expected to be buttoned tightly all the way up to the neck, and then, as if that weren't enough, you're expected to tie a noose around your throat (something that I've always despised). And it occurred to me, that feminists frequently complain about how women are expected to dress sexy, but it's not like men aren't expected to conform to stifling (and uncomfortable) dress standards of their own. And given a choice, I would MUCH rather expose my chest (regardless of who stares at it) than restrict my breathing - but there is no choice, because that sort of thing is determined by your gender.
And it just seems to me that if we were to be honest, then the fact that men have to present themselves with such a professional image - which, don't think for a second isn't about sex: women are stereotypically (whether true or not) claimed to be attracted to wealth and power - is a feminist issue, too! Except, this isn't really feminism anymore, because it's not just about women. And it annoys me the way feminists talk about 'male privilege' - because men and women are oppressed equally under their own social customs.
That's why I'm a post-feminist. I think feminism was a good idea back when the idea of women's rights and gender equality was novel. In today's society, though, women's empowerment comes at the expense of the subjugation of everyone else. It's no longer an issue of gender - especially considering the problems that are coming to light about transgender and gender-queer individuals in society. Today, to be a feminist is to be conservative, and is contrary to the doctrine of gender equality (which states that men, as well as those who identify neither as male nor female, deserve the same treatment as women). The progressive alternative is post-feminism, which adopts the righteous foundations of feminism, but applies them across the board without consideration to an individual's gender identity.
If you like to wear nooses - I salute you! If you prefer to go topless - I salute you, also! And it doesn't make a damn difference to me whether you're a man or a woman or something else entirely. :-)
