How Can You Be A Christian and a Radical Feminist?

First, My Journey...

If you had told me 30 years ago that I would plunge headfirst into radical feminist activism, I would have rebuked you with all my righteous indignation. Like a lot of Christian women, I fell for the lie that radical feminism was a plot from Satan to destroy women, men, children, and the family unit as a whole. Needless to say, I was steeped in internalized misogyny and had zero understanding of what radical feminism was. My first encounter with radical feminism was a women's studies course at my alma mater, SUNY Albany. The instructor was a White woman with a second-wave hairdo pulled back on the top with the rest hanging past her shoulder blades. Her black top and shorts made her look as though she just facilitated a consciousness-raising group. A list of different types of feminism was sprawled all over the chalkboard (Remember those?) She tapped the chalk on the board next to the words radical feminists and said,

“This group of feminists believe that sexism is the worst oppression, even worse than racism. It deserves our sole focus.”

I also found it odd, at the time, that she did not at all seem uncomfortable saying that in front of me, a Black woman. I thought, worse than racism? These radical feminists are out of their minds. That didn't sit well with me and I quickly dropped the course. It's entirely possible that I dropped the course prematurely. Years later, I would come to agree somewhat. I now believe that while sexism is just as severe as racism, I do believe sexism is ground zero for all other oppressions, including racism. I came to realize that my angst was due in part because racism impacts women and men. As a recovering race woman, my mantra was: If men aren’t also victims, it’s a lesser form of oppression. I now believe that men don’t have to be included among the oppressed for an issue to be worthy of attention. I would not have been enlightened to that by the Christians I knew. There was one memorable mentor at a Christian women’s meetup back in college. Originally from France, she warned us in Parisian-accented English,