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Notes -
A lot of gender critical feminists would say that they're at the root of the issue.
Sex is not a social construct, but that gender is. Once upon a time wearing powdered wigs might have beeen manly, so too wearing tights, or heeled shoes that today we'd definitely see as looking more feminine. If you met a Leslie or a Sam a hundred years ago, you would probably be meeting a man, not necessarily true today. Some of what we think of as masculine or feminine is true for our culture in our time, but not necessarily for all cultures in all times.
Gender critical feminists tend to believe that sex is real and important but that gendered assumptions and gender roles are what is problematic. And then you would have more conservative feminists who agree that sex is important, but don't really have a problem with gender and gender roles, so long as there is no discrimination placed on women in society. I think gender critical women would say you can't have your cake and eat it too - that as long as there are different gender roles for men and women you will have discrimination, and conservatives would probably disagree that that is a foregone conclusion, and that gender roles serve no benefit to girls and women. Gender criticals would argue what about lesbians and others who might defy gender roles, and find those roles stifling? More conservative feminists would argue that's fine, they can certainly do their own thing but if those roles seem comfortable for the majority of people, it doesn't seem to make sense to abolish them.
Mostly, these people are trying to put aside their differences right now to oppose those who demand we pretend that sex itself is not real, that sex is what is actually the social construct, while gender is what is real, biological and unchangeable.
Feminists tend to believe that gender is MERELY a social construct. I think the reality is that gender is rooted in sex, biology, and evolution.
Most of feminist activism is kicking against the pricks of biological evolution at the expense of society's health.
But I should acknowledge my strong antifeminist bias.
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