#HowToSpotAFeminist Perpetuates Gross Stereotypes

In the last 24 hours, Twitter has blown up with #HowToSpotAFeminist, a hashtag that seems to be primarily devoted to spouting ridiculous and often offensive stereotypes of feminism. The trending topic has shown that a depressing number of people have no idea what feminism is, let alone what a feminist looks like. (Spoiler: A feminist can look like pretty much any human person.) Common threads of the responses include: Feminists are ugly; they don’t shave their armpits (heaven forbid!!); they hate men (mostly because they are all single and bitter); they see themselves as victims and want extra special treatment. Also, they LOVE abortion (because of course). Excuse me for a moment, I need a sec to despair for the fate of humanity.

OK, I'm back.

The online kerfuffle seems to have started a couple of days ago when conservative radio host Doc Thompson tweeted, “Any tips on #HowToSpotAFeminist??? We’ll discuss tomorrow.” Thompson hosts The Morning Blaze With Doc Thompson, a talk show that airs on The Blaze directly before The Glenn Beck Program, which may give you a sense of the demographic responding to his tweet. Here are just a few of the “gems” that have flooded in from the far reaches of the Internet:

Unsurprisingly, feminists have begun firing back with their ideas of #HowToSpotAFeminist (Hint: Look for someone who advocates for equal rights for men and women.)

While it's great to see people fighting back against the offensive vitriol of #HowToSpotAFeminist, the fact that they even need to—really, the fact that the validity of advocating for gender equality is still up for debate—is really depressing. For those of you who need a palate cleanser (I know I do), here are some adorable puppy GIFs. Enjoy.

Images: Giphy (3)