Plenty of People Were Afraid of Andrea Dworkin

Since I'm behind on my newspaper reading, I just found out today that feminist writer Andrea Dworkin died on April 9, 2005. After reading the obituary, I thought about college and "fringe" social writers I was introduced to during those years. Occasionally, I hear their names. Unfortunately, they are usually still treated like some wacko, you are supposed to treat like a joke instead of really listening to what they have to say. Presenting an alternate point of view from the mainstream or speaking for segments of society that are usually ignored DOES NOT mean that you hate men. I never got that reasoning.

On the Feral Scholar blog of Stan Goff, I found a copy of Catharine MacKinnon's New York Times article, Who Was Afraid of Andrea Dworkin? She gives a fond farewell to her friend and does a nice job summarizing the conflicted relationship Ms. Dworkin had with the media. I’ve long admired both Andrea Dworkin’s and Catherine MacKinnon’s writing. After being introduced to them in college, I learned what happens to people who don’t toe the line. I learned not to believe everything told to you, just because it comes from a “reputable” source. I guess that's why I'm such a fan of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. They get such a kick out of poking the sacred cows and saying stuff you aren't supposed to say.