click: when we knew we were feminists

a compilation of young feminists
who recap their life experiences
in order to locate moments
where they clicked.

clicked with the word "feminist" of course.

the beauty of it all
is that each moment ranges
some involve fishnet stockings
some involve hunting
others kurt cobain

but, ultimately, they arrive
at this muddled word
that has the ability to empower
a once lost soul

feminist.

when people ask me
point blank
are you a feminist?
i want to say yes.
but i stall.
not because i am unclear of my feminism
but because i am afraid that my inquisitors idea of feminism
is not the same as mine.

see, white feminists had a wee bit o'problem
when they first kicked off the liberation movement
they wanted to liberate women
but they often had a narrow definition of woman
therefore, women of colour (in particular) were excluded from this movement.

of course things have been mended - depending on which philosopher you speak to.
but i often feel the need to clarify
"yes. i am a feminist but i hold an interest in global feminism as well.
i am interested in intersectionality - how all of our locations intertwine
and what that evidently means for us in society.
throw in a special interest in health and disordered eating and bam.
you have a little ounce of my politics"

but how did i get here?
like many of the women in this book,
there was no single moment.
it was a series of clicks
and i am not naive enough to say that i have stopped clicking.

it is ongoing.
and, yes, sometimes it is exhausting.

there are times when i sit
surrounded by essays
bell hooks, mary daly, chandra mohanty...and on...and on..
and i wonder what the hell i am doing.

sometimes it seems too daunting.
too overwhelming.
and i need to step back.

the ebb and flow of activism.

it only takes one news story
of a young girl
who was gang-raped
then accused of "wanting it"
because she always dressed provocatively.

and click.

i'm back.