They have become more conservative. At the same time, the number of young women who declare themselves feminists is falling. The movement that fights for equal rights between men and women seems to be experiencing moments of uncertainty. Surveys and studies point to this. There is a significant percentage of men aged between 16 and 24 in Catalonia who consider that feminism “has gone too far”, and one of the latest reports from the FAD Joventut Foundation points out that they feel “victims of feminism”. But what do young people think? Does this polarization exist that endangers the progress of the movement?
They are the most pessimistic in this matter, although harassment and insecurity worry both sexes. Experts believe that there is more consensus than it seems, but they believe that they need to be convinced that the feminist struggle also benefits them. And they point to the harmful role of social networks in this polarization.
“More and more of us are feminist women and many men join us in this fight, but it is also true that there has been an opposite reaction”, acknowledges María García, a 22-year-old Aragonese student of Law and ADE currently on Erasmus in Tampere (Finland). Marc Carot (21 years old), from Tortosa, studies Computer Engineering and sees feminism as a “positive” claim, but believes that taken to the “extreme” it can be “harmful”. And he gives the example of nocturnal leisure: “I’ve had them touch my ass and nothing happens, but the other way around it would be different”, he says.
Despite the recent barometers showing this trend towards polarization between boys and girls, FAD Youth Foundation researcher Stribor Kuric believes that there are elements of “great consensus” between the two sexes, such as the importance of equality or that gender violence “is a very serious problem”.
Taking a tour of the Industrial School of Barcelona during break time is a good way to immerse yourself in a world far removed from surveys – but influenced by the networks – which seems less polarized. There is disagreement and debate, but they are united by one concern: the insecurity they suffer at night.
Carlota López (24 years old), a graduate student in Administration and Finance, assures that she does not experience the polarization indicated by the surveys and regrets that feminism “is too exaggerated”. That is why it is positioned “in the middle”. With her, Noa Navas (18) is encouraged to talk about the insecurity at night and admits that she does not see it as “viable” to walk alone on the street, especially after an episode in which a boy passed by on a bike and touched her ass. At this point, Judith Romeu (18) sees “masculinism” and a backlash in comments like “don’t wear this outfit”.
In a mixed group is Héctor Sánchez (21), who studies Marketing and Advertising, the first to speak to deny with a hint of irony that there is polarization: “We are in the cause, feminism is a way of claiming”. Elliot Bondia (19) regrets that there were times when being a man seemed like a “crime” and that part of feminism has become “radicalized”. But his colleague Masantu Isla (19) disagrees with him and assures that she does not consider that “it got out of hand”, on the contrary, she believes that “almost nothing has been achieved”. Give examples: the wage gap or going out quietly at night.
“There are men who oppose feminism because there are fewer and fewer of them and they see that they are no longer on top,” María Sánchez, 18, explains to a group of students from the upper level of Chemistry. For Abril Lozano there is “a tendency to criticize today’s feminism”, a tendency that she believes is “misinforming”, especially on social networks, the place where she sees more “machismo”. Young people like Idoia Castro (19) regret that no importance is given to feminist education. This group agrees that a war is being “created” that “endangers the feminist movement”. “There is a lot to improve and the important thing is education from a young age”, concludes Lozano.
There is consensus on the insecurity that women feel and suffer, especially at night. MaríaGarcía has noticed the change between Finland: “Here you are not afraid that someone will tell you something”. On the other hand, in Zaragoza he says that it is common to return home with the keys in hand. Or that when a friend suffers an episode, the boys “get involved and help you”, but find it difficult to give their opinion. “Girls know that there are patterns that we should not even tolerate”, and with the speeches of hate it seems that we are taking a step back and this generates a “wear and tear” that causes us to “not want to be anyone’s educators” , explains this student.
Stribor Kuric believes that the very progress of the feminist movement that “makes women more visible” can cause men to believe that they are losing “privileges” that they believed were “rights”. According to the sociologist, when these inequalities are perceived “any progress is perceived as going against it”. And he warns that there are certain media or institutional discourses in which principles on which there used to be consensus are questioned. An example is the discourse that assures that gender violence does not exist. The researcher points out that there are digital spheres that reach many people and that generate misinformation. The manosphere Kuric warns that this “is filtering into young people”.
“Anti-feminism is a trend on the networks, it seems to be cool”, laments María Sánchez. “We live in a very polarized country and misinformation contributes to it”, laments María García. Can this polarization lead to a backlash? Neither she nor the majority of those consulted are clear, but what García does consider is that “we need to continue making a lot of noise and we depend on the new generations and how things are explained”.
