Feminism is a big topic these days, but a lot of young women don’t want to identify as a feminist because of the negative stereotypes that are associated with being one. There is a lot of information about feminists and feminism that people don’t know, and therefore, they might judge those who identify as a feminist. There are feminists that are on the more radical side, but that’s not the majority of feminists.

Feminists are all man haters.
Feminism isn’t about hating men or wanting to be better than men. Feminism is about wanting gender equality for all. Just like in every group, there are radicals that, in some cases, hate males, but that is not what the majority of feminists are about.

Feminists hate sex.
Sex is something that is natural and something that should be done and cherished by consenting partners. Feminism isn’t about hating sex or the male population. Are there feminists that hate sex? Probably. Will that do anything to change the equality of things? Probably not, but people are still going to do things like that to try their hardest.

All feminists are lesbians.
Everyone is unique and likes different things. A person can be a feminist and be heterosexual. Feminism is not just about women being above all. It’s gender equality. This stereotype goes along with feminists hating males. Some people believe that all feminists are lesbians who hate males. This is not true in any way. There are some that do, the more radical feminists, but overall, it is not true. In a group, there are many different and unique people. Within a very large group, it is easy to know that there are many people who will be more radical than others.

Feminists are unattractive, hairy females.
A lot of groups have some sort of stereotype that is about looks, whether it be good or bad, it’s almost always there. It’s very common to hear that people to think that feminists are just a bunch of unattractive, hairy females. Feminists are called a lot of things, but I think this is one that pops up way too often. Just because feminists are trying to get to equality for all genders does not mean that they are unattractive or hairy. People who refer to themselves as “hippies” get the same stereotype. Not shaving or being hairy isn’t going to change the equality. Doing proactive things will change the equality.

Feminists are just angry and bitchy.
Probably the most common stereotype is that women are just bitchy and angry. This stereotype carries over for feminists. Feminists are passionate about gender equality and will do what it takes to get to that. Along that path, there will be people who think they are “angry bitches.” They are doing stuff that others never thought they would and to those people that makes them angry.

Feminism is a large movement with many people in it. It doesn’t matter what the stereotype, there are still going to be people that are going to fight for gender equality. Gender equality has come a long way, but there is still a lot to do