Becoming the FOURTH Wave

            My introduction to feminism occurred through the Internet.  My “Feminism” Pinterest board has over seven hundred pins and is my most popular board, by far.  I use Facebook to connect with feminists across my state and across my country.  I am a fourth wave feminist.

            I am female, but I am also cisgender, heterosexual, able-bodied, and white.  I acknowledge that I have privileges that many do not.  I can rest assured that on my favorite TV show, there will be characters who look like me.  I know that when I choose to marry, I will be free to marry whomever I choose, wherever I choose.  I can be certain that I will have no trouble navigating my college campus every fall.  I know that no one will make harsh, negative, snap-judgments about me based on the color of my skin.  All of these privileges, and many more, are mine, but I am not afraid to recognize them, because I know that the first part of stopping the problem is by recognizing that I am part of the problem.  I am both the oppressor and the oppressed.  I am a fourth wave feminist. 

            I understand that not all women have vaginas.  I understand that not all women want vaginas.  I understand that the phrase “my body, my choice” applies to others, as well as to myself.  I understand that not every person is comfortable with she/he gendered pronouns.  I understand that sometimes I will not understand everything.  I understand that my experiences are not universal.  I know that sometimes experiences outside my realm of understanding will confuse me or make me uncomfortable, but I am okay with that.  I am a fourth wave feminist.
             Even as a woman, I have many privileges that my mother and my grandmother did not have at my age.  If I am raped, I know that there is a growing culture that will work to ensure that the blame is placed on my rapist, not on me.  I know that there are women’s centers across the nation that would be able to help me through my time of need.  I know that if I required an abortion, it is still possible for me to have one performed legally in all 50 states, although it may be more difficult in some places than in others.  I recognize the advances that feminism has made over the past one hundred and fifty years, but I can also see where it has fallen short.  I was born in the middle of the third wave, but I am a fourth wave feminist.