Feminists meet to discuss future of the movement

April 2, 2000
Web posted at: 1:18 a.m. EST (0618 GMT)

BALTIMORE, Maryland (CNN) -- Thousands of women are gathering this weekend to access the current state of feminism, once a powerful force for change in U.S. society, but now a movement that may be dwindling and changing.

Today there are more women than ever before in U.S. board rooms, conference rooms and even in the White House Cabinet room. But despite such progress, Eleanor Smeal, leader of the group The Feminist Majority, which is holding its convention in Baltimore, asked the question Saturday that was on many minds: Is feminism dead?

Her answer, as expected, was no, albeit it was qualified. Movement leaders insist feminism is still breathing and still needed.

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"We are not represented equally," said Smeal, pointing out that women make up just 12 percent of Congress and get paid 75 percent of what men earn. "But no one questions we have the right to be there," she said.

"It's as if we had cleared territory behind a barrier," said famed feminist Gloria Steinem , "There's more cleared territory, but there's still a barrier."

Survey: Self-described feminists diminishing

Feminists have good reason to wonder about the demise of their cause. A CBS survey suggested that the number of U.S. women who consider themselves as feminists has dropped from 31 percent in 1991, to 20 percent in 1999.

Author Christina Hoff offered a possible explanation of the declining numbers.

"Contemporary feminism sort of (got) carried away with male-bashing, with being angry at men, and I think they have lost a lot of their natural constituency," Hoff said.

Some female students at the University of Maryland say feminism is now less about "us" and more about "me."

"A feminist is a just a woman that goes after what she wants and doesn't, like, take 'no' for an answer," said one female student.

Another woman on campus had a more philosophical point of view.

"With the stereotype of feminism, if we keep that up, it will die out," she said. "There are so many bad connotations with it. But if we change it to what is a good standard in today's society, than I think it will flourish."

Reporter Kathleen Koch contributed to this report.

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Feminist Majority Foundation Online Homepage
Eleanor Smeal Bio
Gloria Steinem
Christina Hoff Sommers
University of Maryland

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