A different kind of feminism
By Eve McGrady, 4th year, French and Russian
The Croft Magazine//The feminist movement is universal, but is different everywhere you go. Eve McGrady spent six months studying in Tomsk, Siberia and learnt about the stigma and struggle that comes along with the term 'feminist' in Russia.
Russia’s complex relationship with feminism is something that’s intrigued me ever since I began studying the language and culture, and in February I finally found myself sitting on a plane bound for Tomsk, Siberia, ready to live amongst Russians for the first time. It felt like the culmination of the last two years of hard work, and I was filled with a cocktail of excitement and impending dread, as everything I’d learnt was about to be put to the test.
As I and my fellow Bristol students attempted to adjust to our new icy but beautiful hometown, we began to consider topics for our essay assessment. During class, I decided to raise the subject of feminism with one of our teachers, Tatiana. She was one of a motley crew of 6 stern but kind Russian women who taught us everything from grammar to media studies.
After a pause, and an exhale of breath that sounded both amused and bewildered, she replied ‘in Russia we don’t have feminism’, going on to explain that many Russian women have difficulty with the label ‘feminist’.
Tatiana suggested that because Russian women were granted many freedoms after the revolution of 1917 - with the introduction of laws enabling women the vote, abortion rights and paid maternity leave to name a few - they have not needed to fight for their emancipation in the way many of their European counterparts have. Because of this, she observed that many women today in Russia find it hard to identify with or affiliate themselves with the feminist cause because women were given these rights by law, without need for struggle or protest.
I couldn’t help but feel that Tatiana had only illuminated part of the picture, so I decided to broach the subject with one of my female friends at Tomsk Polytechnic University, Rufina. She told me that from a young age she thought feminists were women who hated men.
It wasn’t until she experienced sexism at the hands of a male professor, who refused to help her with a programming project because she was a woman and should be having children, that she began to research women’s rights in Russia. She stumbled upon the YouTube channel NixelPixel, run by a young woman named Nikita, and after watching several of her videos, Rufina now considers herself a feminist.
This realisation however has put a strain on relationships with the closest people in her life: she has recently broken up with her boyfriend because of their different views. When I asked if her friends and family knew about her opinions, she admitted she cannot discuss feminism with them as they don't understand it, blaming this on negative media coverage of female activists. Rufina recognizes that her own upbringing has shaped her outlook on women’s rights, saying that there are still some aspects of feminism that will take time for her to accept and understand.
Tatiana replied ‘in Russia we don’t have feminism’
After talking with Rufina, I felt somewhat inspired and comforted, as I had proven my teacher Tatiana wrong: of course there is a feminist movement in Russia. Rufina had however pointed out that she comes from a small, Siberian town and attitudes towards feminism in Moscow - a hefty 2,240 miles away from Tomsk - are different.
She mused that whilst it is a challenge to change such engrained beliefs about women’s roles in older generations, she is hopeful that in 10 years or so, Siberian people will become more understanding and accepting of feminism. Until then, she is herself continuing to learn and expand her knowledge of women’s rights and gaining the confidence to share it with her peers.
As I prepared to leave Tomsk, I began to reflect on my time in Russia. I realised that what had most impacted me from my time in Siberia was the people I had met and the insight into their outlooks on the world, particularly on a subject that was so divisive and complex in Russia. Perhaps the response Tatiana gave me did not mean ‘in Russia we don’t have feminism’ but instead ‘in Russia we have a different kind of feminism’.
Featured Image credit:Epigram/Eve McGrady
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