Twitter is very upset over Miss USA’s comments on feminism
We’ve officially got a new Miss USA, and she’s an incredibly accomplished winner even without a crown. Kára McCullough, Miss District of Columbia was crowned 2017’s Miss USA last night, but she has already earned herself plenty of social media foes after her answer to questions about feminism.
The new Miss USA received backlash after calling herself an “equalist,” as opposed to a feminist. The social media backlash was swift, with Twitter users expressing outrage over the responses.
The 25-year-old is a nuclear scientist at the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, but some of her answers during the question-and-answer segment didn’t sit well with viewers.
McCullough was asked, “What do you consider feminism to be and do you consider yourself a feminist?”
She responded, "As a woman scientist in the government, I'd like to transpose the word feminism to equalism. I try not to consider myself this die-hard, like, I don't really care about men."
She further explained that she aims to inspire women to work towards leadership roles, especially in the sciences, but her response about feminism was perceived as dismissive of men and women who identify as feminists, furthering the stereotype that feminism is “man-hating” or “man-bashing.”
Needless to say, the Twittersphere was not happy. false false
#Wow District of Columbia, you just lost me. #missusa2017 #MissUSA pic.twitter.com/ZkmXIP4VVt
— Agent Lizzo (@Kimplaints_NYC) May 15, 2017
For her part, McCullough has not directly addressed the controversy surrounding her comments. Needless to say, it frustrates us to see feminism so often misconstrued. Feminism, at its heart, is about simple equality, and to portray it as anything but (and especially to portray it as a desire to oppress men) reflects a major misunderstanding.
