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Third-wave feminism


Third-wave feminism refers to several diverse strains of feminist activity and study, whose exact boundaries in the history of feminism are a subject of debate, but are generally marked as beginning in the early 1990s and continuing to the present. It is referred to as an "individual movement", because part of the purpose is to redefine what it is to be a feminist. This movement is usually perceived as a reaction to or continuation of second wave feminism. The movement arose partially as a response to the perceived failures of and backlash against initiatives and movements created by second-wave feminism during the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s, and the perception that women are of "many colors, ethnicities, nationalities, religions, and cultural backgrounds". This wave of feminism partially destabilized constructs from second-wave feminism. It attempts to expand the topic of feminism to include a diverse group of women with a diverse set of identities. Although the term intersectionality was coined in 1989, a few years before third wave began, they embraced this concept during this wave.

Rebecca Walker coined the term to highlight the third wave's focus on queer and non-white women. In 1992, she published an article in response to the Anita Hill case, about how she is sick of women being silenced and men using their privilege to get away with sexual harassment and other forms of oppression. In the end she states "I am not a post feminism feminist. I am the Third Wave." Walker wanted to establish that third wave feminism is not just a reaction, but a movement in itself, because women's issues were far from over. Third-wave feminists have broadened their goals, focusing on ideas like queer theory, and abolishing gender role expectations and stereotypes. Unlike the determined position of second-wave feminists about women in pornography, sex work, and prostitution, third-wave feminists were rather ambiguous and divided about these themes (feminist sex wars). While some thought these sexual acts were degrading and oppressing women, others saw it as empowering that women were owning their sexuality. There was a divide in opinion but third wave feminism embraced differences, personal narratives, and individualism, instead of all having one agenda; in exception to a few topics, such as rape culture or equal pay. Their focus was less on political changes and more on individualistic identity.


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