When I accepted a student organizer position for the Feminist Majority Foundation, I was excited and ready to work hard to fight against Measure 1 in North Dakota. I couldn’t believe I was selected to work against such an important issue facing women not only here, but across the US. I was proud to represent FMF and work collaboratively with North Dakotans against Measure 1. With this work came a much broader social media presence than I’d ever previously had.
I proudly posted my new position on Facebook, thus proudly presenting my feminist identity to the world. Through the process of working for FMF and trying to make Measure 1 a more visible issue, my feminist identity has become more visible. Whether it was during tabling or just talking about the work I was doing, the question was raised:
“So are you a feminist?”
“Yes, of course!” I would say.
“…Oh…” was often the response I received.
These people didn’t know how to react or respond. They either had no idea what it means to be a feminist or thought I was a radical man-hater. This is when I first realized that I was an extraterrestrial feminist. Yes, an extraterrestrial being, one who is not from the planet Earth because apparently my ideals about women’s health equity are just that far out! The futuristic notion of health equity, the notion that women’s bodies are not sites of political contest and control, the notion of a society that values women’s health and a woman’s right to choice is clearly too otherworldly for this planet. This extraterrestrial, however, believes that these are not futuristic notions, but rather notions of current, contemporary ideals that are not yet fully realized.
The feminist ideals and goals are not futuristic, however the way we do our work is. We extraterrestrial feminists utilize innovative ways of spreading information and communicating through social media activism and utilizing media to bring about social justice. See, we extraterrestrial, hyper-intelligent beings know how to spread our messages far and wide, rapidly. Besides being excellent viral communicators, extraterrestrial feminists are well-versed in intersectionality, inclusivity, diversity, and human rights.
Sometimes, when the severity and lack of rights for women on Earth is so overwhelming, I hop in my spaceship “The Choice Vessel” and make a quick trip to Femtopia. Femtopia is a peaceful planet where the residents have complete gender equity; socially, politically, and economically, so naturally everyone there proudly identifies as feminists. When I tell the residents of Femtopia about the work I am doing they are appalled that this work is even necessary. They have a hard time grasping the concept of a government making decisions about another’s health care choices. The women of Femtopia have always had the right to choice and had access to different forms of birth control and family planning options that best suit them. The individuals and families have explicit rights to their end-of-life care. Some families in Femtopia have a hard time conceiving a child of their own; luckily, Femtopia is advanced in in-vitro fertilization services. Femtopians are extremely disturbed that Earth dwellers may be facing laws that disallow them to access these services. I reassure them there are many dedicated feminists working against the measure (Measure 1) they are so concerned about. I hop in “The Choice Vessel” and head back to Earth, specifically North Dakota because I know there is much more work to be done.
In reality I am not an extraterrestrial feminist, I am just a feminist and the Femtopia I speak of is here on Earth, not yet fully realized. The femtopians I speak of are my friends, allies, and others concerned about the far-reaching consequences of measure 1 in North Dakota. If you want to see this Femtopian world become a reality, the first step is voting no on Measure 1.