Key Thinkers
This is not a casual feminist moodboard.
This is where you go to actually learn radical feminist thinkers and theory.
If you're already angry but feel your theory is thin, this is where you meet the big names, see what they fought over, and walk away not just madder, but sharper and better-armed.
Start from the questions
Theory begins with questions that refuse easy answers.
Why isn't prostitution just 'work'?
People say "sex work is work", "licensed and free". But when you see street prostitution at night or open sex trade in wealthy cities, can you really equate that to an ordinary job? If it's just "time and skills for money", why does violence almost always land on the women, and why does dignity seem reserved for the paying side?
Key thinkers: Sheila Jeffreys, Catharine MacKinnon
Explore this questionWhy question "beauty standards"?
Many radical feminists are still trapped in beauty labour: makeup, hair, dieting – who hasn't agonized over it? Even powerful women – from pop stars to athletes – work under brutal appearance rules. We know "beauty is a standard", but why is it so hard to actually step outside it?
Key thinkers: Sheila Jeffreys (Beauty and Misogyny), others to be added
Explore this questionWhy question heterosexuality?
Heterosexual dominance plus "brain wired by desire" is often the last thing many sisters dare to question. You might know "you can use men", but once you fall in love and invest, it easily shifts from "I'm in a relationship" to "I'm his unpaid emotional manager and life assistant".
Key thinkers: Sheila Jeffreys, Adrienne Rich, others later
Explore this questionWhy question "choice feminism" and consumerism?
"I have money, I choose, I'm free" sounds great – but the more we glorify "relying only on myself", the easier it is to erase class and forget other women. Men never think they must rely only on themselves; they lean on family, friends, networks. Why are women the only ones told to carry everything alone?
Key thinkers: Critics of consumer feminism and neoliberal feminism (to be added)
Explore this questionStart from time
An emotional timeline of feminist resistance and theory.
Riot Grrrl as a bomb
90s riot grrrl bands were like a bomb: turning anger into songs, zines, and scribbles on T‑shirts, telling girls they can be loud, messy, and furious.
Keywords: "Rebel Girl", DIY zines, garage bands
From silence to #MeToo
Hollywood started to crack; Harvey Weinstein fell, but many powerful men stayed untouchable. #MeToo spread from the US to France to China. Survivors spoke up everywhere, then were pushed back into silence. You might remember the Xianzi vs Zhu Jun case, and how Peng Shuai's name was systematically erased.
Keywords: #MeToo, survivors speak, systemic erasure
4B and Chinese feminist waves
South Korea's 4B movement exploded in East Asia – "no dating, no marriage, no childbirth, no sex" as a refusal of patriarchal family structures. On Chinese Weibo and Douban, feminist energy surged and was then suppressed in waves of bans. The "Feminist Five" left traces and fire seeds others continue to carry.
Keywords: 4B movement, digital feminism, resistance
Start from the people
Meet the S-tier thinkers who shaped radical feminist theory.