We Need To Leave TERFs In 2016 | The Odyssey Online
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Politics and Activism

We Need To Leave TERFs In 2016

Fight for sisters, not just your cis-sters.

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We Need To Leave TERFs In 2016
CNN

This past weekend, we saw an estimated 4 million people in Washington and all over the world participate in the Women's March. While I was unable to attend any of them, it made me extremely proud to see so many people march for the rights women deserve. But, I did see a huge problem that was present at almost every single march.

A TERF is a Trans-Exclusionary Radical Feminist. This is typically a person who claims feminism but has the tendency to equate having a vagina to being a woman, and if you don't have the "proper" genitalia, then you aren't a "real" woman.

I have two major problems with this. The first one is obviously the fact that trans women are being left out. They are real women just like anyone else. They're fighting for the same rights and liberation that I and so many other women fight for. They're going through the same discrimination, hell, even worse than the women who marched. So, why are we leaving them out of the fight?

The second problem is with the TERFs themselves. The whole, "This pussy grabs back" phenomenon started back when Trump made extremely offensive comments about groping women. It turned into a popular saying and was the subject of the millions of signs that were used in the marches. I get it; it's meant to be a powerful backlash toward him and other sexists. But, here's the thing: we, as feminists, fight so hard for our identity to not be reduced down to our bodies and our genitalia. We make it a point to show people that we are more than just pretty faces and hot bodies. We want to be known for our minds, hearts, achievements, and activism. So, when we're marching for our rights in front of the whole world, why are we reducing ourselves to just our bodies and genitalia, especially when not all of us have a vagina or feminine bodies? We can't bring attention to the very things we're sick of getting sole attention for.

I hope that these marches continue. I hope that we keep the conversation going on how to achieve more rights or women. I also really hope that we start including our sisters of the trans community in these conversations and fights for rights. They deserve our love, acceptance, and fight more than ever.

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