A World of Feminists? Far From It …

If you think feminism is a firmly established and respected concept globally, think again. In a recent survey by Ipsos, only 39 percent of respondents from 31 mostly high and upper-middle income countries said that they identified as feminists, while an average of 51 percent disagreed with this description for themselves.

Only two countries out of 31, India and Spain, had a majority agree that they saw themselves as feminists - despite a mixed records of gender rights in both nations. The tally rises to a still meager seven countries when only counting the responses of women, showing that while some countries have big gender gaps in the response to this question, many do not.

In Japan, the country ranked lowest, 15 percent of both men and women agreed that they were feminists, while overall, 61 percent disagreed with the statement - highlighting the overall negative connotations connected with the concept of feminism in the country. Japan and second-lowest ranked South Korea have come under fire for a lack of women's rights, lack of identification with feminism and the tendencies of a growing group of men that have been described as anti-feminist or even incel. A new article by The Economist describes a backlash against feminism in the context of women excelling at universities while traditional role models long holding strong in society are fading. This observation is underscored by surveys finding that 79 percent of young South Korean men believed in reserve discrimination in 2021, while the same year, 43 percent of young Japanese men say they hated feminism.

Economic hardships hitting developed economies around the globe, but that seem most disruptive in East Asia, are adding to the feeling of unfairness when policies champion women. An excess of men - a legacy of the now faded preference for sons - is also making life harder for males at work and in personal affairs like dating, which has been identified as another factor of frustration that sometimes comes to a boil online, the place where incel culture has been flourishing.