Sorry for the thematic disruption, but this is important. Also, sorry about the exclusivity of this rant. Abuse online is disgusting in any and all cases. However, I am personnally moved to action about issues of woman equality and feminism. What is at stake here is not disagreement or dissension to points, ideas or even personalities in online discussion: these can be dealt with, even when they get emotional or personal. No, I am infuriated to tears here about the hatred on exhibit.

I am a naive, idealistic man. Living in Québec, Canada, surrounded with so many examples of women succeding and making their place in what was a man’s world 40 years ago, getting respect and equal opportunity in many aspects of their lives, folding all of this goddamned laundry all by myself (please laugh along), I thought ah! we’re there. My generation is the first to have women and men stand on equal footing. I even started pleading for less feminism in discussion of gender issues, and try to redirect our efforts towards equity and equality.

In the name of all that is holy and sacred to me, I was so biased. So wrong!

I take it all back. Feminist —- hear this, not equalitarian —- activism is as important today as it was in the time of suffragettes. It might be even more, because the big visible victories have been won, so the revolutions’s flag is waving over parliament hill, while the reactionaries have fallen back to waging a guerilla war. Affronts at womens’ freedom of speech are marginalized and neglected in the greater public discourse, so as discussed in the linked article, writing in public as a woman requires much more courage that I’ve ever had to muster.

To conclude, I would like to call upon two groups of people. I have nothing to say to haters, so my first point addresses the indifferent. The fight for basic women rights, such as arguing opinions in public, is not over. Are men threatened of rape or assault every time they take the soap box? No. If it were the case, the outrage would make such a racket that I could not go to sleep at night, which would shake some politics into action. These sorts of threats are happening for women writing in public today. And no, I won’t accept that the hating commenters are young temporary imbeciles, so that the problem will go away once the Internet crowd grows up. Young haters grow into old haters. Hate left to itself festers, ferments and blows up in your face the day you lift the lid. Haters must be identified, accused and condemned. Be warned or be sorry.

My second call is to women of all ages. Do you participate to mixed-gender communities where opinions are exchanged? Do you do it while identifying as women? I offer you my sincere admiration. As a man, I pledge to always consider the point before the author’s gender, to never make point validity a question of gender and to make any effort of empathy when the argumentation goes beyond the limits of my male experience of life. I hope this can be made better.