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Feminist not a naughty word

This letter is in response to Ken Wilson’s article “Fortunate to Live in Such a Great Province, Country” dated Oct. 11, 2013.

Editor:

This letter is in response to Ken Wilson’s article “Fortunate to Live in Such a Great Province, Country” dated Oct. 11, 2013.

Ken Wilson, aka Contemplating Ken, wrote an article that was initially discussing giving thanks at Thanksgiving time, but diverged into a passive aggressive rant against feminists.

He alleged that “these feminist types” would like to have everything to fit their imaginations.” Mr. Wilson alleges that son is a gender neutral term and I am not writing to argue about that or about changing the lyrics to a national anthem.

I am writing to state that a newspaper is responsible for the articles it publishes and this article was derogatory to us “feminist types.”

Being treated as a human and not an object, having a right to bodily integrity and working to change patriarchal traditions to be inclusive to and represent women are things I imagine.

I would very much like to have everything to fit my imagination.

Perhaps, we can all expand our imaginations to try to understand the experience of being a woman who experiences and recognizes prejudice, objectification, dehumanization and victimization.

Every woman has been there.

All of your mothers and sisters and wives and daughters have experienced being women.

They have all been treated as less intelligent than men, they have all watched images of sexualized girls and women swim before their eyes on calendars, television and magazines.

Most of them have been harassed for being female and many of them have been assaulted for being female.

Please expand your imaginations to include a vocabulary in which “feminist” is not a naughty word and there is consideration for the reality of women’s lives worldwide.

Feminism is astronomically misunderstood and it is in all of our best interest to have everything to fit us “feminist types” imaginations.

Nicole Keyes

Hanceville, B.C.