First, and foremost, I believe that, as bell hooks' famously titled her amazing book, feminism is for everybody. Feminism is not a movement that exists in a void of the other social justice movements that active, aware, and progressive people are constantly finding themselves involved in. Feminism, at its core, is about equality. Therefore, as we all have a stake in being treated equally to our fellow humans, it is absolutely true that feminism is for everybody, be they black or white, gay or straight, male or female.

As I stated, at its core, feminism is about equality. Equality for everybody. One of the biggest arguments that anti-feminists make is that women want men to be the subjugated class, as women have been throughout history. However, all it takes is a cursory review of feminist literature and theory to see that this is not the goal of the feminist movement at all. True feminism, the movement that I am proud to proclaim myself a member of, wants equality for all people. True feminism doesn't want women to rule the world just because they are women anymore than it wants men to rule the world just because they are men. What feminism really wants is for the opportunity to present itself for a man and a woman to start on equal footing when they strive to reach a position of power. However, it doesn't just stop there.

True believers in the feminist movement know that the discrimination that women face is directly tied to the discrimination that members of ethnic groups face in our society. In the feminism that I subscribe to, nobody can say that we live in a truly equal society until every single person, regardless of race, gender, or sexual orientation is treated as equal to the next. This is the reason that we fight for things like equal pay, equal rights, affirmative action, and entitlement programs. We, as feminists, know that the subjugation we fight against is one based on gender, race, sexual orientation, income, and a host of other discriminatory categorizations that we all see on a daily basis in our lives.

I'm often referred to as a "male feminist". While I wear the title proudly, I think that maybe it is time I started correcting the people who apply it to me. I'm not a "male" feminist. My gender has nothing to do with my feminism. I'm a feminist, plain and simple. Feminism to me means equality. How could I be anything else?