By Emily Slater, News Editor
A recent speaker on campus, Robert Jensen, said, “Feminism is a gift to men.” Jensen said feminism allows men to escape traditional masculinity and the controlling, demanding, and aggressive attitudes and actions required of a traditional man.
Jensen spoke during an event at Lone Star College-Kingwood on March 2 to speak on his new book, The End of Patriarchy: Feminism for Men.
Over 100 students and faculty members gathered in the Student Conference Center to attend Jensen’s talk.
Jensen discussed many of the core issues of radical feminism, which he defines as a “movement against suffering,” which differs from the more mainstream “liberal feminism” in that liberal feminism tries to “optimize female opportunity in the existing [patriarchal] system,” while the radical feminism that Jensen subscribes to questions the validity of that system.
Much of the discussion focused on what Jensen calls the “industry of sexual exploitation,” or the pornography and prostitution industry.
“[Jesnen’s presentation] was informative and insightful on some aspects of the issues with gender inequality, a small story to add to a larger picture,” LSC-Kingwood, first-year student, Rosemary Culver said.
In addition to commenting on the way pornography, and prostitution harms both men and women.Jensen also spoke on the choice that those who are a part of the powerful groups in society must make: to continue in being a part of that elite group of to be human.
This controversial statement caused many LSC-Kingwood students in attendance to question the argument being presented.
“He talked about feminism as a way to abolish the problems of a hierarchy, but he did it while demeaning men,” said first-year student Amy Palacios, “You’re talking about how we’re unequal and that’s not okay, but the things you’re saying seem to only establish more inequality.”
Jensen, a journalism professor at University of Texas at Austin, is no stranger to controversy and dissent, after his 2001 article published in the Houston Chronicle comparing the September 11 terror attacks to American military actions caused the then president of UT, Larry Faulkner, to write a letter to the Houston Chronicle, distancing himself and the university from Jensen’s views, saying that he was “disgusted” by the views expressed in the article.
The radical feminism Jensen champions is also a source of controversy, particularly in its exclusion of transgender woman in its defense of a woman.
This March 2 event was Jensen’s third time presenting at LSC-Kingwood– something of a rarity for Jensen, who said that he is often not invited back to the institutions he presents at to speak a second time.
Jensen’s presentation on The End of Patriarchy: Feminism for Men was co-sponsored by The Men’s Center and the LSC-Kingwood “Writers, Thinkers, and Ideas” committee. The next speakers presented by “Writers, Thinkers, and Ideas” will be Nicole Dennis-Benn presenting on her novel, Here Comes the Sun, on April 8 at 11:15 a.m. in the black box theatre and LSC-Kingwood professor of Biology, Brian Shmaefsky, presenting “Facts & Myths: DNA Genealogy” on April 13 at 12:30-1:30 p.m. in CLA 114.
