“Don’t go all feminist on me.”
These were the words my friend said to me as we discussed the idea that not only the guy in the relationship has to ask the girl to prom.

This statement led me to think about why the word “feminist” has such a negative connotation, when really all feminists want to do is bring about gender equality.

There is a mass misunderstanding when it comes to the true meaning of just what a feminist is today. Some may think that feminists are a group of women who don’t shave their armpits, want to take over the world, or demand to be seen as the better sex, but the reality is far different.

The feminist movement was initially born in the mid 1800’s to empower women to stand and fight against the oppressive and unfair treatment they faced in society, including a lack of political standing and no voting rights. Today, the feminist movement is no longer solely focused on those subjects but has shifted to topics such as creating equal pay and battling domestic violence.

Third-wave feminism, or modern feminism, as it is usually called, is something that has been in the spotlight recently because of the Presidential election. With Hillary Clinton as the Democratic nominee, many women’s rights issues have gained increased coverage in the media and attention from voters.
Clinton’s ascension to the role of Presidential nominee and her consistent focus on issues such as the wage gap have brought feminism into the spotlight as well. The wage gap is the difference in the pay that men and women receive for doing the same jobs.

Of course, as it is with any politically charged issue, any discussion of the wage gap brings along with it some serious disagreement. While some feel that the fact that a wage gap even exists is ridiculous, others refuse to acknowledge it at all, saying that it does not exist and that it is just modern-day media trying to make nothing into something.

The wage gap is such a hot-button issue that The Washington Post has often published articles examining both sides of the argument. In his article, “What’s the real gender pay gap?” Robert J. Samuelson, an economic columnist for The Washington Post took the side of most conservatives. In this article, he argues that the wage gap is a mere exaggeration. He also admits that a very small wage gap does exist when women take maternity leave.

However, Danielle Paquette took the opposite opinion. In her article, “For One Group of Women the Gender Wage Gap Keeps Getting Bigger,” Paquette argues that the wage gap starts for women as soon as they exit school and enter the workforce, which contradicts Samuelson’s argument of the gap being caused by maternity leave and other family commitments women have.

Although both of these articles are talking about the same issue, Samuelson’s article does not mention feminism at all, while Paquette’s article briefly mentions feminism. To be specific, she says, “While discrimination is difficult to prove, research offers insight into how today’s women may encounter it.” Samuelson neglects to mention feminism ,even though the wage gap has such an immense connotation with feminism.

When issues that feminists are trying to battle are talked about separately from the tag of feminism, no one seems to have a problem with them but ,when people bring up the word “feminism,” some people’s whole demeanor changes. It’s as if the term has become so loaded with negative connotation that it is seen as a bad or dangerous word.

To those people, I say,feminism is not a bad word and it is not a bad concept. I hope you learn to associate the word with areas such as equality and freedom and relinquish your unnecessary negative associations.