Kim Kardashian Doesn’t Care About ‘Women’s Rights,’ ‘Equality,’ And ‘Women’s Empowerment’

It is true that Kim Kardashian does not give a hoot about equality and the empowerment of women. This came out clearly in an essay that was published last year. The essay, “why I don’t label myself a feminist” highlights her reasons on why she thinks she doesn’t qualify to be labeled a feminist. For Kim Kardashian feminism should be about advocating for the rights of all human beings, not just women.

The problem with this argument that feminists should fight for the rights of all and not just women’s fails to grasp the concept of feminism itself. Feminism started because the female gender had been undergoing institutionalized discrimination for a long, long time. By now saying that feminists should fight for the rights of all, she would be denying that discrimination on the basis of gender no longer exists. This is clearly not the case as discrimination of women persists including in developed countries where wage gaps exist. The very industry she is in, show business, is a case in point.

Another reason that proves that for Kim women rights are not her cup of tea is the fact she has severally been accused of being a poor role model to young girls and women the world over. This is because of her relentless posting of nude selfies and shameless materialism. Critics also constantly point out that her breakthrough point came courtesy of a sex tape. That does not fit the bill of a role model that young girls and women should aim for.

Yet another thing that proves that for Kim women’s empowerment is not one of her concerns is the fact that she has continually and consistently commoditized the female body, the very thing that feminists are continually fighting against. This is because by profiting from the shameless exhibition of her flesh, she has done a disservice to women as it demeans them and reduces them to objects defined by looks and curves.

Additionally, another thing that proves that for Kim women’s rights are not important is the fact she agreed to and encouraged lyrics that were derogatory and demeaning to women. This was during the furor raised by her husband, Kanye West’s song Famous in which he referenced Taylor Swift.

For a woman of her ilk to encourage a man to use derogatory language towards another woman shows just how uninterested she is in equal and proper treatment of women.

But while it seems that for Kim Kardashian feminism is something to be distanced away from, some have disagreed with her saying that she actually is one as she has done and said things that point to the fact that she is, in fact, a feminist. She has in fact said so, albeit with a disclaimer.

“Obviously, there are things about me that people might say make me a feminist: I work hard, I make my own money, I’m comfortable and confident in my own skin,” Kim wrote in an essay.

The reason she doesn’t want to publicly admit to being a feminist, some say, is because she doesn’t want to offend and hurt her brand. This is because for Kim Kardashian feminism has a negative connotation in some quarters. The fact that her answer sounds rehearsed in that she has said the same thing in almost the same exact words and sentences for the last couple of years also adds to this belief.

There are also contradictions of sorts in her assertion that she is not a feminist. For instance, she says that she doesn’t want to be labeled a feminist because she is not fond of labels whether on gender, sexual orientation, political leanings, social class, race, or even body type.

“I don’t like labels. I do what makes me happy and I want women to be confident and I’m so supportive of women… But I’m not the ‘free the nipple’-type girl,” Kim said in an interview at BlogHer 16 conference.

This argument is contradictory and self-suiting because she is on record as saying she doesn’t care what other people think of her. Clearly going by her controversies and actions other people’s opinions of her are the least of her worries. So why would she care when people label her a feminist?

[Featured Image by Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images]