Conceptualizing Backlash: (UK) Men's Rights Groups, Anti-Feminism, and Postfeminism

Abstract

Conceptualizing “backlash” and “postfeminism” is important to understanding the gender politics of men's movements and men's rights groups. Drawing on the work of relevant (feminist) scholars, I argue for a particular understanding of both backlash and postfeminism and map out a typology intended to help situate different men's movements. The typology distinguishes between backlash, postfeminism, and feminism in terms of the different empirical claims and value judgments relevant to each perspective. Backlash is based on the claim that society disadvantages men rather than women. Gender is seen as political and as requiring a collective, anti-feminist politics. Postfeminism is a fundamentally ambivalent perspective that assumes that gender equality has already been (mostly) achieved. Some feminist ideas are taken for granted, while feminism itself is cast as anachronistic. Gender is depoliticized and feminism becomes an individual lifestyle choice. Finally, feminism, like backlash, assumes that significant gender inequalities exist in contemporary society but sees women as the disadvantaged group. Here, gender is politicized, and gendered inequalities necessitate a collective feminist politics. To illustrate the different perspectives articulated by men's rights groups, I discuss UK fathers' rights group (Real) Fathers 4 Justice, arguing that they alternate between postfeminist and backlash narratives.