I feel the same in many respects. There was some famous feminist who argued that the more we accomplish, we more work we have ahead of us. Reforming ancient and entrenched perceptions of women’s worth will take a fucking long time. With each problem we speak out against, we reveal all the sources of sexism that contributed to that problem, making for a great challenge indeed. At times, like when I watch TV (holy christ!), I feel so incredibly overwhelmed with how sexist and bigoted our society is and that feeling can be crippling. However, I have to remind myself that only 30 years ago, it was acceptable to rape your secretary, etc. etc.

I think that just by participating in the safe spaces like FemSex, Sherman, VagMon, etc not only are you empowering yourself (which I would like to think has some type of ripple effect) but you are helping to empower other women to demand equal social power in their lives. If I had never seen Vagina Monologues two years ago (which YOU were a part of!), I would not have the feminist consciousness that I have today. Seriously, it was that show that did it for me. And hopefully my feminist consciousness can influence some other women (and men) on this campus and abroad.

I feel that by participating in these spaces, I am more empowered to demand equal social power in my personal and professional relationships. Hopefully when I enter the workforce or a relationship, I will demand the same respect, right to speak, etc as “the man”.

I guess my point is that while it does seem hard to translate feminist theories and ideas into positive social change, your personal empowerment is, I would argue, one of the most important contributions to the social change we want to see.