Cats. We love them, but do they love us? We may never know. But there’s one thing we know … cats hate patriarchy.
If you’ve ever tried to make a cat live up to your expectations of cat behavior, you probably already know this. They despise ALL systems of unequal power and expectations. Cats are over patriarchy.
How over it are they? Really over it.
We might expect cats to do all kinds of things … you know, like, show affection maybe? Or not sleep all day? Or get OFF the kitchen table because I’m working a puzzle??!?!! But guess what? Cats don’t care about your rules. They don’t care about your expectations. They’re over it.
So, I figure: Let’s learn from the cats. No one knows better how to turn their tails to societal norms than cats.
Cats are so over:
1. Biased dress codes
This cat is so over shaming female bodies by referring to them as “distracting” in school dress codes …. it can’t even deal.
Don’t make me wear this hat because my cuteness is so distracting. We can all control ourselves AND dress appropriately for school!
This cat is done with the sexualization of girls in school dress codes. He’s also so over the underlying obsession and attachment to what boys should wear versus what girls should wear. It’s keeping Kanye from truly owning his leather kilt, Hulk from being the true princess he deserves to be, and Shiloh Jolie-Pitt from truly rocking denim. Get over it. This cat has.
2. Rape existing
Come on, everyone, we can do this.
Obviously, this cat is not here for that. Nor is this cat here for rape culture and the idea that the burden is on women to somehow stop themselves from being raped as opposed to the burden being on, you know, rapists to stop raping.
What IS this cat here for? A good pet. Maybe a cuddle. Also: any shrimp you might have in your pocket.
3. Sexual consent being based on a defensive “no” and not an enthusiastic “yes!”
This cat LOVES an enthusiastic yes. And in a world where you’re so over patriarchy, that’s what you listen for!
4. Men, like women, getting forced into restrictive gender roles
This cat loves the dudes of the world and wants them to be over patriarchy, too!
As Dr. Michael Kimmel, a sociologist and educator, says in a trailer for the masculinity documentary “The Mask You Live In“:
“We’ve constructed an idea of masculinity in the United States that doesn’t give young boys a way to feel secure in their masculinity, so we make them go prove it all the time.”
Men get squeezed into masculine ideals of strength, emotional repression, and non-crying … and it’s not healthy for them.
Did you know that men commit suicide at a rate three times that of women? For both the U.K. and the U.S. it’s about 3:1, and according to the World Health Organization the global ratio is around 2:1. Me-ouch. Seriously!
5. Hiring bias
20 years ago, zero women were CEOs in Fortune 500 companies. Now? 5% of Fortune 500 companies are run by females.
This cat is thinking … 5%? A study from Fortune magazine showed that women-run companies reward their investors, so what’s up?
According to Fortune, “5% of Fortune 1000 companies have female CEOs, but those giants generate 7% of the Fortune 1000’s total revenue.”
So there you have it.
We can’t change these silly rules and biases simply by being over them. But noticing them is a good start.
brb, dreaming of a better future for everyone waving bye-bye to patriarchy dumbness.
This cat is over it. And so am I.
So let’s all crouch on the snowy car roof of life and realize, we’re all just cats trying to jump onto the roof of gender equality and relax in the sun. Even if we don’t get there…
It’s not about whether or not we reach the roof of 100% equality right off the bat. It’s that we keep on trying.
Read more: http://www.upworthy.com/5-cats-that-are-so-over-patriarchy?c=
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