Imperial Feminism

Mainstream American feminism has become imperial feminism. Initially socially transformative, it has devolved into a movement organized by, about and for white middle class women whose primary goal is breaking the glass ceiling and (secondarily) securing birth control and abortion rights. And while birth control and abortion rights do benefit all women, breaking the glass ceiling benefits only those women who aspire to power within the framework of our current political economy. That is, those who see themselves competing with men to lead our militaristic, war-mongering, neoliberal society in pursuit of global hegemony. Small wonder that these "feminists" support Hillary Clinton, a proven war-monger and the very embodiment of ruthless ambition.

Authentic feminism seeks to fundamentally transform the political economy. Many of the problems which women face are but symptoms of our materialistic and militarized society created to further imperial ambitions. Empire and feminism are mutually exclusive. Women will always be second class citizens in a highly militarized society. How could it be otherwise? The relative handful of female imperial executives are the exceptions which prove the rule, demonstrating only that ambitious women are as capable as men in supporting a system which relies on exploitation and militarism in pursuit of power.

In capitalism, spending shapes the political economy. Some things get funded, others don't. When war and weapons get funded and schools and social programs don't, then militarism and aggression are empowered and compassion and community are disempowered. Warfare and destruction are the traditional province of men and machismo, social services and community welfare the traditional province of women. A true feminism would seek to channel funding toward social needs and community, and away from conflict and destruction. It is a false feminism which seeks to replace male warriors with female warriors, to exalt in the brutalization of the feminine. If our species is to survive, society needs to be restructured away from hyper-masculine militarism towards a more feminine community of shared concern for our fellows, rather than the ongoing exploitation inherent in power-seeking. Yet, most of the better known "feminists" are mostly concerned with their individual power-seeking and their careers within the imperial political economy. How many times has Hillary or her supporters called for the elimination of nuclear weapons, the end to American wars against the Third World, or the elimination of the American led neoliberal global empire? All of these are necessary first steps for authentic feminism to grow and prosper.

And how have these "feminists" supported their Third World sisters? By calling for war and "humanitarian" intervention against those who resist imperial hegemony. How many of these interventions have benefited Third World women? Are the women of Afghanistan better off because of the bombing and invasion? Are the Northern Alliance warlords feminists? Go back to Afghanistan before the US recruited Osama bin Laden and created the Mujahideen, women had it much better before imperial aggression destroyed the country. Iraq? Same story. Iraq is now a terror ridden sectarian state thanks to empire. Libya? From the highest African development index under Gadaffi to a failed state ruled by warring factions of Takfiri terrorists thanks to Uncle Sam. And Syria is now under imperial assault as planned years before. The lives of Syrian women have been turned into a living hell as a consequence of ongoing destabilization by imperial proxy forces of Islamic terrorists supported by the US coalition. Are these Islamic terrorist mercenaries feminists? Why does Hillary Clinton support them? Why do the professional feminists support Hillary and the Syrian destabilization?

Even putting aside overt warfare, where are the feminist voices opposing neoliberal globalization and the expansion of NATO? Neoliberalism targets social spending beneficial to women while creating massive debts which benefit the imperial financial system while impoverishing the 99%, disproportionately women and children. And "trade" deals which make the corporations a law unto themselves. Where is the "feminist" opposition to this direct attack on the majority of women? And NATO, which requires the new members to divert tax money to purchase new American equipment to support the new militarized culture? And where are the American "feminist" voices in opposition to empire and militarism with all that implies for the future of us all?

No, American organized feminism is a fraud. These are imperial feminists seeking career advancement through service to empire and useful to empire as mobilizers of women in service to the imperial agenda. Unfortunately, it appears to be a characteristic of the capitalist system that organized efforts at change ultimately become corrupted, a seemingly inevitable consequence of the monetization of power.