What "Counts" as Feminist?
In my life, I keep bees alone. It’s usually just me out there, going from hive to hive. I don’t mind keeping bees alone except for this one thing: I’m not very strong and I don’t know how to use power tools. Furthermore, I don’t want to learn how to use power tools. You kinda need power tools for most hive styles: log, sun, lang, top bar, warre, tree, etc. I don’t want to learn how to build hives, or carve out logs with chainsaws, or climb up in trees to attach swarm boxes, or lift 100lb boxes of bees alone, or build an enclosure for a sun hive. ⠀
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I’ve been getting some entertaining internet flack for what “counts” as feminist. It seems if you post feminism AND bees, WHILE wearing skirts, you are really aren’t being feminist (because how dare I also talk about sexuality and maybe take a tasteful topless photo?). ⠀
Or how about the time I got called out for talking about bees in association with feminism, (I’m clearly misguided because bees are about bees, not feminists). Besides, aren’t feminists angry, man-hating and super into power tools? ⠀
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Look, I am all about boss women with power tools, or crazy boxing skills. I’m just here to say, it’s also okay to be a feminist who wears skirts, talks about female pleasure, and needs to ask people for help when it comes to the heavy lifting. Did using a woodshed to build my first hive make me feel powerful and accomplished AF, you bet. You know what also makes me feel powerful and accomplished, the ability to intentionally dream about my hive and diagnose what’s going on with them. Power doesn’t always me to dominate the gym, the office, the bedroom. Power can also be the roots of an oak tree. It can mean the ability to hold your form in the midst of indecision and turmoil. It can mean knowing what lies beneath your skirt and between your legs is a vast territory of sovereignty. It can mean a heart laid bare.⠀
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I’m a feminist and sometimes I ask some really wonderful women to help me change a tire.⠀
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I’m a feminist and sometimes I ask some really wonderful men to build shit for me. Get over it.⠀