Radfem Dictionary

A

Androcentrism

Also known as the "default male." An emphasis on the centrality of males and maleness in the human experience, which is built into the foundation of patriarchy.

Anti-porn

A movement opposed to the creation, distribution & consumption of pornography. While some non-feminist groups are anti-porn, such as conservative Christians and certain online men's communities, radical feminists are against pornography due to the myriad of ways in which it harms women & normalizes their abuse and objectification.

B

Believe women

A slogan from the 2018 MeToo Movement, which advocates for taking women's reports of sexual violence and harassment seriously, rather than defaulting to excusing perpetrators and interrogating victims. This term has often been co-opted by misogynists to falsely assert that feminists expect to be believed whenever they say anything; rather, it simply advocates for believing reports of sexual violence with the same respect & empathy that we would believe reports of any other kind of crime.

Benevolent sexism

a set of patronizing attitudes that frame women's subordination in a seemingly positive way.

Biological Reality

The recognition that human beings are a sexually dimorphic species and that this fact has profound social, medical and political implications.

C

Compulsory heterosexuality (CompHet)

The societal expectation that everyone should be heterosexual.

Cult of domesticity

A 19th century western (and mostly white middle-class) ideology that was used to restrict women's political, educational & economic opportunities by deeming the home their "proper sphere." Emphasized four cardinal virtues for women: piety, purity, submission, and domesticity. The modern concept of the "tradwife" idealizes this concept.

D

DARVO

An acronym that stands for "Deny, Attack, and Reverse Victim and Offender." This is a common manipulation tactic used by abusers to deflect accountability, and is often used by members of the manosphere and in sexual assault, domestic abuse, & workplace harassment cases against women.

Default Human

Historically, men have been viewed as the "default human," leading to underrepresentation of women in data, society and media, as well as sexist implicit biases and flawed AI algorithms. The default human is typically also white, able-bodied and heterosexual.

Double burden

AKA dual burden or the second shift. Refers to the phenomenon where, since women have entered the workforce, they have been expected to manage both paid employment and unpaid domestic labor, including the vast majority of child & elderly care, housework and the mental load.

F

Femicide

The murder of women and girls due to their sex. This is a global crisis that affects women in every part of the world. The majority of femicides are committed by someone close to the victim; in 2024, 50,000 women and girls were killed by intimate partners or family members, which is one every 10 minutes.

G

Gender abolition

A movement advocating for the dismantling of gender roles, norms and stereotypes in order to end sex-based oppression. This is, or should be, distinct from erasing gender categories (man and woman), which are necessary in order to provide women with necessary legal rights & protection.

Gender critical

A term for viewing gender as a social construct used to oppress women.

Gender data gap

The systematic lack of sex-disaggregated data and underrepresentation of women in data collection, resulting in a world that is designed for men's bodies, health and comfort.

Gender non-conformity

Ways of expressing oneself that do not align with traditional masculine or feminine gender norms. Gender non-conformity is distinct from gender identity, and gender non-conforming people have existed throughout history.

I

Internalized misogyny

The subconscious adoption of sexist ideas & behaviors by women due to being born and socialized within a patriarchal society. Internalized misogyny can be used to subordinate other women and also oneself. Ideas such as "not like the other girls" are associated with internalized misogyny.

L

Lesbian erasure

The systemic tendency to marginalize or exclude lesbians in history, media, and LGBT groups. This includes a societal focus on gay men over lesbian women, the mislabeling of lesbian experiences, and the conflation of lesbian identity with broader categories such as "queer" or "gay women."

Linguistic erasure

The distortion of language in order to make women and their experiences invisible, such as the use of "gender-neutral" or male pronouns as generic terms, as well as the erasure of the word "woman" in favor of offensive terms such as "bodies with vaginas," "pregnant people," or even "non-men."

M

Madonna-Whore Complex

A psychological phenomenon where men place women into 2 categories, perceiving them either as prudish but pure and virtuous (Madonnas) or desirable but promiscuous and manipulative. The term was originally coined by Sigmund Freud.

Male-centered woman

Also sometimes referred to by the controversial term 'pick-me,' a male-centered woman is a woman who structures her identity & self-worth around the validation and approval of men.

Male gaze

The male gaze is a concept in film theory, describing the tendency of media to depict women from a heterosexual male perspective. The male gaze presents men as the viewer or consumer, and women as the subject or the object of consumption. This concept is not limited to film but can also be applied to the way society views women, and the way women learn to view themselves.

Manosphere

A collection of online communities dedicated to promoting misogyny, toxic masculinity, and intense anti-feminism. These communities include incels, pick-up artists, MRAs (Men's Rights Activists) and MGTOW (Men Going Their Own Way).

Mansplaining

A legitimate phenomenon with a goofy name, which describes the condescending and patronizing explanations given by men to women who already understand a topic perfectly well.

Maternal mortality

Death of a woman during or following pregnancy/childbirth. This is an urgent public health crisis; in 2023, approximately 260,000 women died in this way, almost 1 woman every 2 minutes. Most of these deaths could have been prevented. In the United States, Black women are over three times more likely to die from pregnancy-related causes than White women. In fact, one California study found that wealthy Black mothers have a higher risk of maternal mortality than low-income White mothers.

Matriarchy

A social system where women, particular mothers and female elders, hold primary power, authority and control in a society. There has never been a true matriarchy documented in human history.

Matrilineal

A kinship system where ancestry and lineage are traced exclusively through the mother's line rather than the father's. Women tend to hold significantly more authority and societal respect in these systems than in patrilineal ones, and households in these systems are often female-centered. There is evidence that matrilineal societies were very common in early human history. There are also a few matrilineal societies today, including the Minangkabau in Indonesia, the Mosuo in China, and the Khasi in India. Jewish heritage is also matrilineal.

Matrilocal

A residential system where a married couple resides with or near the wife's parents (traditionally most societies have been patrilocal). While matrilocal residence is the norm in most matrilineal societies, matrilocality does not necessarily indicate matriliny.

Medical misogyny

The systemic bias, dismissal, & mistreatment of women within healthcare, which has abhorrent implications for women's health and safety. This ingrained sexism is particularly prominent in the United States compared to other wealthy countries.

Mental load

Also known as "invisible labor," the mental load is the unpaid and often unseen cognitive and emotional work of planning, organizing and managing a household and family. This kind of labor, like all unpaid labor, is performed mostly by women.

MeToo

A global social initiative that went viral in 2017 following the allegations against Harvey Weinstein. The movement was aimed at raising awareness about sexual harassment/assault and holding perpetrators accountable; it has led to systemic changes regarding workplace misconduct and the resignation or firing of many high-profile offenders.

Microaggressions

Subtle, covert forms of gender discrimination, such as interrupting, infantilizing, and invalidating women, making sexist "jokes," or underestimating women's intelligence and expertise.

N

Naming the agent

The practice of explicitly naming the person responsible for an action (using active voice instead of passive). For example, instead of saying "violence against women is increasing," we would say, "men are committing more violence against women." Or instead of the headline "a woman was attacked" (as if by a magical invisible entity), we would advocate for language like "a man attacked a woman."

P

Patriarchy

A social organization where men are dominant.

Pink tax

The extra amount women often have to pay for products & services marketed specifically to them, compared to similar/identical items marketed to men. A particularly heinous example of this phenomenon is the ridiculous line of Bic pens sold in the early 2010s. "Bic for Her" pens were pink or purple & cost up to 70% more than the company's non-gendered pens.

R

Reification

A fancy word for objectification; the act of treating a person as an object, tool or commodity to be used.

S

Sex class

The definition of women as a politically and economically subordinated group due to their biological sex, systemically rather than just individually.

Sex vs. Gender

Radical feminists consider "sex" to be the biological categories of male and female, usually as determined by gametes (XX and XY). While the term "gender" is sometimes used interchangeably (and confusingly) with sex, from a radical feminist perspective, gender is a set of stereotypes that are imposed on an individual due to their sex. This distinction is important, as radical feminism aims to abolish gender while acknowledging the sexes, particularly the ways women have been systemically oppressed throughout history due to their sex.

Socialization

The cultural process, starting at or before birth, which programs individuals to internalize cultural norms, expectations and behaviors associated with their sex. This is strengthened through family, schools, peers and media.

T

"The Personal is Political"

A radfem slogan highlighting the fact that what happens in private (such as unpaid labor, sexual dynamics, and domestic violence) is rooted in systemic oppression and should be a public issue.

TERF

A derogatory term for a gender-critical feminist, which stands for "Trans Exclusionary Radical Feminist." This term is often used to silence women, as well as to justify anti-feminism and hatred of women.

U

Unpaid labor

Labor that does not receive compensation, primarily household chores and family care. This work is crucial for an economy to function, is disproportionately done by women, and is intentionally under-studied and unmeasured.

W

Woman

An adult human female. The word "man" means an adult human male, but is not included here because the word has not been contested in the same way as the word "woman."

Womyn

An alternative spelling of the words "woman" and "women," used by some radical feminists in order to remove "man" and "men" from the words. This spelling dates back to the 1970s and is a symbol of the fact that women should not be defined by their relation to men. You may also see spellings like "womban," "womon" or "wimmin" in older texts, and "womxn" in newer liberal feminist texts.