Evolving Feminism…Healing the Wounds of Patriarchy

Facilitator: Dale Mary Grenfell, (970) 484-1945, grenfell@q.com Dates: Mondays, Jan. 6 — Jan. 27, 2025 (4 Weeks) Time: 1:30 PM - 3:30 PM Text: None Presentations: None (but plenty of space for shared narratives) Location: Foothills Activity Center Class limit: 25

Feminism is for everybody. (bell hooks) All men should be feminists. (John Legend) I am a proud feminist and embrace that within myself. (Mark Ruffalo)

So often completely misunderstood, feminism is NOT about matriarchies or bashing men. Feminism has nothing to do with gender. Catherine the Great was patriarchal. Alan Alda, John Legend, Matt Damon, Harry Belafonte, Forest Whitaker --- all are outspoken feminists. The term surfaced in 1848 when women (with very few rights at the time) gathered at the Seneca Falls Convention and began to demand their right to vote. A right that took almost 100 years to realize. Since then, there have been three more “waves of feminism” (1960s, 1990s and currently). Each evolving from a movement into what is now considered a paradigm that values diversity, inclusion, compassion, justice and restorative solutions to conflict. Examples of the paradigm are (among others): restorative justice, environmental justice, reproductive autonomy and creating communities of “others” before “self.”

At a time of unprecedented divide in this country along with growing oppression, conflict and violence around the world, our journey in this class will be one of seeking insight into this oft misrepresented social structure, its intersectionality and its powerful potential to heal.