Book Review
For young women today, feminism and politics are dirty words

By Kimberly Marlowe Hartnett
Special to The Seattle Times

Kristin Rowe- Finkbeiner

E-mail this article Print this article Search archive Most read articles Most e-mailed articles

Other links Search event listings

It's a tough pill for some of us to swallow, but "feminist" is a near-insult to many young women today. Not that they are willing to be treated as second-class citizens; far from it. But if there's a bumper sticker that appeals to these women, it's the one that says DON'T LABEL ME in big red letters.

Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner's survey of college-campus women (ages 18-24) found that 68 percent don't want to be identified by "political party, sexual preference, ethnicity, religion, race or physical ability" and they include "feminist" right at the top of their no-no list, saying all such terms are insensitive, inaccurate stereotypes.

There's a lot to be said for scraping off moldy, restrictive language, but the related avoidance of all political parties and process has a very scary result. As Rowe-Finkbeiner points out, almost 19 million of these young women (again, ages 18-34) did not vote in the 2000 presidential election. That's too many voices missing out of the collective chorus at any time, but in a race that turned on a few hundred votes, it's a mind-blower.

Rowe-Finkbeiner, a Washington state political consultant and researcher, is a liberal voice. But her work is relevant and revealing to readers all along the ideological spectrum. She deals briskly, and well, with the historical and civil-rights struggles that have shaped women's roles in our society. She also neatly disputes the "why bother, my vote won't matter" claim raised by many Americans of all ages who stay away from the polls. Most of the book focuses on an intriguing question: What would happen if those 19 million women did vote? Her short answer: "They would turn the country on its ear."

First off, Congress would have a lot more women in its ranks, reflecting America more accurately and looking a lot less like an exclusive white, male club. Important rights and protections gained in the past century would be secure. As Rowe-Finkbeiner reminds us, much of the status quo is relatively recent history: Women got the vote just 82 years ago; abortion has been a legal choice for 31 years; sexual harassment on the job became illegal only 18 years ago; and just seven years ago the Supreme Court ruled that women's college athletic programs were entitled to equal funding. "Most of these rights were won through electoral and political action, and many will have to be defended in the same way," she points out.

Author appearance Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner will read from "The F-Word: Feminism in Jeopardy — Women, Politics and the Future," 5 p.m. tomorrow, Elliott Bay Book Co., 101 S. Main St., Seattle; free (206-624-6600 or www.elliottbaybook.com).

If millions of younger women move into the political process, they will also dramatically change the way politicians vote on new issues affecting them directly — wages, privacy, education, healthcare, even that Social Security withdrawal they see on their pay stubs.

Rowe-Finkbeiner knows better than most how political process works and doesn't work; she's labored in the environmental and political-action committee vineyards for years. She'd be forgiven for ranting even a bit more about voter apathy, but she wisely takes the high road in describing the disenfranchised young women who reject much of the rhetoric of their feminist foremothers. She provides practical tips in the final sections, including guides to voter registration, getting others involved in the political process, and digging up objective information on candidates and issues. Armed with these pages, any concerned teacher, parent, friend or organizer can make a difference: one voice, one vote and one woman at a time.

Copyright © 2004 The Seattle Times Company

E-mail this article

Print this article

Search archive

More Entertainment & the Arts headlines...