Reclaiming the F Word (Book)

In today's 'post-feminist' society, women and men are considered equal. For younger women and men, feminism is often portrayed as unfashionable and irrelevant. But since the beginning of the new millennium a revitalised feminist movement has emerged to challenge these assumptions and assert a vibrant new agenda. This groundbreaking book reveals the what, why and how of the new feminist movement and what it has to say about women's lives in today's society. From cosmetic surgery to celebrity culture and girl power to globalization, from rape to religion and sex to singleness, this book reveals the seven vital issues at stake for today's feminists, unveils the beginnings of a fresh and diverse wave of feminism, and calls a new generation back to action

Reclaiming the F Word

We want to finally put to rest the myth that feminism is dead today and in particular, that young women are not interested in feminism or that feminists are only interested in a narrow range of issues. We want to showcase the resurgence of feminism that's happening, give a whistle-stop tour of the key issues, and highlight some of the feminist activism that inspires us. Our book is an optimistic look at the feminist movement today and we hope it gives people a taste of the incredible diversity of feminist issues and activism both in the UK and around the world.

Half of each chapter is about the issues and the other half shows what feminists are doing about it.

What do you mean when you say feminists are 'Reclaiming' the F Word?

Feminism today is much maligned in the media and in general public opinion; partly because everything we tend to hear about it is negative. The feminists we know are reclaiming feminism for themselves, proactively, and despite all the negativity around it.

They're inspired by feminism's past and optimistic about its future.

They're reclaiming feminism; not reinventing it.

What do you mean by 'the new feminist movement'?

We're shining a spotlight on new forms of feminist activism that have arisen in the last ten years as well as feminists who were too young to be around in the 60s and 70s, whose voices aren't often heard in the mainstream. Three quarters of the feminists we surveyed were under 35, and women in their twenties are in the forefront in the resurgence of feminism, working alongside older feminists.

However, whilst there are new groups, new events and new contexts in which to fight (such as the internet); the issues are not necessarily all new - many of the aims of the original Women's Liberation Movement have not been achieved.