When I started this blog, I sent the link to all of my good friends, including all of my good friends from college, who are mostly dudes. I have to admit I was a bit self-conscious when I told them all about my blog because I knew I’d be writing a lot about feminist stuff which I thought they either might not get or might think is crazy. But, I’m really happy to report that, as always, my dude friends have been excellent. I also just got an excellent email from one of my long-lost dude friends, that made me feel warm and happy inside. So, I just wanted to take a moment to say how much I love the feminist boys in my life. Here is why they rock:
1) Many of them have read my blog and either written me or written comments showing that they really want to learn more about some of this stuff. It’s really awesome to have dudes around who are actively engaged in trying to learn more about this feminist thing that I spend so much of my time thinking about and doing. I also don’t see most of my dude friends anymore as they all live in different cities, but it is great to have the support from afar!
2) My dude friends always just treated me like one of the guys and I have to say, I think that is actually part of why I think feminism is important. By getting to play with both the boys and the girls in college, I really gained a strong appreciation for being able to do whatever I wanted regardless of my gender most of the time. It wasn’t that I had to act like a dude to be with the dudes or act like a girl to hang with the girls. I just got to be me and go where the fun was and then feel really loved by my friends. Interestingly, I also learned that the dudes could be just as “girly” as the girls given that we also spent tons of time gossiping and talking about people’s relationships and stuff. In my ideal world, that’s how it would be. (Ok, it wasn’t as perfect as I make it sound here, but it was pretty damn close).
3) Whenever I get to visit my dude friends (and some close female friends), it always feels like visiting family because I know them so well. I love that!
4) I spent a huge majority of time lately around female feminists. I work with them, I go to school with them, and I am mostly friends with them. So, it’s always great to have the dude friend outside perspective. I like that they ask me questions and keep me on my toes.
5) I’m pretty sure “See here’s the thing….” is a line I picked up from my dude friends when we used to argue about stupid things like whether or not you could survive on nothing but pizza and beer (let’s not forget, these are mostly my college friends).
Anyways, just wanted to say thanks to all the boys for all the fun over the years and for still supporting me even if that means reading and commenting on my feminist blog. All feminists should be so lucky to have such a great group of dude friends who are interested in learning more about this stuff and who are really great times to be around!
