What feminism means today
Are you a feminist? “Yes,” some readily answer. Others grimace and deny any involvement with that “bra-burning, man-hating” movement. To Cynthia de las Fuentes, PhD, past-president of APA's Div. 35 (Society for the Psychology of Women), such negative perceptions derive from media distortion-not the movement's mission of equality for the sexes at work and at home. What's more, many young women--and men--don't realize that equality has yet to be achieved, she says. She laments the division's relative absence of men, minorities and members younger than 30--the last of which is a trend across all APA divisions. "We've had trouble communicating feminism's continuing relevance to young people and people of color," says de las Fuentes, an associate professor at San Antonio-based Our Lady of the Lake University. "Most current Div. 35 members were active in women's rights in the '70s, and they still are." So de las Fuentes made it her pre...
