Femen: who are they and why do they provoke so much rejection?

This collective associated with acts of protest against sexism is viewed with suspicion by feminism.

Femen is an activist and peaceful resistance group that leaves no one indifferent, not even many feminist groups.They are often viewed with suspicion by feminist groups. There are also different theories about their foundation, some claiming that they have served the United States of America as a weapon to destabilize the countries of the Middle East, and others attributing to them a role as a group financed by businessmen to harm the feminist struggle.

Although their public appearances are rare, they always turn out to be extremely mediatic and make international headlines. Their fields of action are usually congresses or political meetings, transnational economic entities or even in inaugurations of women's fashion companies, always with the same modus operandi: to attract attention.

Who are Femen?

Femen defines itself as an international organization that fights sexism and religious impositions against women, in addition to considering itself "the special forces of feminism", the militias of the movement, as it is quoted on its website. They make it clear that they use the transgression of norms to vindicate themselves..

It is necessary to take into account the context to understand the emergence of a group with radical slogans or actions justifying violence. The origin of Femen is Ukrainian, and although it seeks internationalist sense, the main object of denunciation are the sexist abuses that occur in that country, as well as in neighboring Russia. Most of its actions are acts of protest starring women naked from the waist up, with slogans painted on their bodies..

Numerous non-governmental organizations, human rights organizations and local journalists show that in these Eastern countries there is still a sexist line to the detriment of the female gender, both at the socio-familial and at the political-economic level. Let us recall the incidents of the feminist musical group "Pussy Riot", who were imprisoned and dissolved as a group for breaking into a church.

On the other hand, members of the Femen group are constantly exposed to potential police repression.The Ukrainian laws are significantly harsher than in the rest of Europe, and sentences can sometimes reach up to two years in prison.

One of Femen's main goals is to go where institutionalized feminism does not go directly: to strongly charge against religion.. In 2014 they appeared directly in front of Pope Francis in Vatican Square, when the usual mass was being celebrated, to carry out one of their acts of protest.

The Femen method

As we have already mentioned, Femen's modus operandi responds to that once initiated by the Suffragettes by the hand of Emmeline Pankhurst back in the twentieth century: street violence and public uproar to attract the media. With the added bonus of a naked torso and a clear intention to show breasts with a message inscribed on them.

Why are they so rejected by feminism?

The most classic feminism, the well-known first and second wave feminisms, view with skepticism the use of the naked body.They are even more so when the activists in question are not very representative of the majority of women, being white, with little connection to religion and, in their early stages, close to the canons of beauty. Some associations and institutionalized organizations see this method as counterproductive, and denounce the re-exposure of women's physique in the service of media consumption.

Femen is also rejected because of a major historical difference: Western feminism is almost a century ahead of them. Outside of Femen, protests against sexism no longer focus on questioning religion as simply "contaminating reason", but rather attempt to include in feminism collectives that seek to make non-male chauvinist readings of their own religiosity, which implies a clash of interests in methodology.

Moreover, these feminist institutions decline to support Femen openly because they consider it an ambiguous collective. they consider it an ambiguous collective and not very elaborated in its theories. This group of Ukrainian origin seems to position itself before a very ambiguous idea of sexism, while most feminist groups elaborate theories based on the concept of patriarchy. In this sense, Femen's orientation seems to be closer to a liberal conception of gender issues, since it protests against the violation of forms of repression applied against women as individuals, not as a collective.