We’ve all been there: you’re dropping feminist knowledge left and right when some ignorant person chimes in with “there are children starving in Africa how dare you talk about [insert feminist issue here] like it’s REAL OPPRESSION”. It totally derails your rant right before you get to the grand finale, where you take your top off and free the nipple in the middle of the cafeteria. But, have no fear, I’m about to equip you with the knowhow to shut down that argument.
First of all, let’s talk about the likelihood that this ignorant person only thinks about starving African children when they want to put a “social justice warrior” in their place. They aren’t doing anything to help end world hunger, they’re just exploiting the struggles of others for their own benefit, not to mention that Africa is more than starving children. But, they don’t really want to talk about Africa, they just want you to shut up about issues that make them feel uncomfortable.
Plus, who said we can’t care about more than one issue at a time? Feminists are spectacular multitaskers; we can care about sexism in dress codes while simultaneously caring about world hunger. But that doesn’t mean we have to end world hunger before we can talk about how dress codes often have misogynistic undertones.
Of course it’s necessary to realize the immense privilege that comes along with living in a higher income country. But, when someone interrupts you when you’re talking about a legitimate social issue to remind you that some people have it worse, don’t take that shit. The things you have to say should not be trivialized or ignored. Your thoughts and words are valid. Now, tell that asshole off and get back to sharing your feminist knowledge.
