Women have come a long way in the past 50 years. I came of age at a time when college girls weren’t allowed to wear pants on campus. Jeans could be worn only to chemistry classes. Assertive women were shunned, especially if they were good looking. But that all changed in the 60’s, when the pill allowed women the same freedom men had always enjoyed. Women no longer have to depend on men for their livelihood. They now have access to careers in formerly male -dominated occupations like doctor, lawyers, and engineers. And yet, when we see the way misogyny targets Meghan Markle, we know it’s alive and well in Britain and all over the world.
Some misogynists simply hate all beautiful women. But British television reporter Piers Morgan demonstrates a particular kind of misogyny. They don’t hate beautiful women who conform to their ideal of the way women should act: women who defer to men in all things, and behave as if they are inferior to men in ability and intelligence. Morgan’s particular kind of misogyny is reserved for women with power and status, who stand up for themselves and make their own decisions.
Why do the British love Kate Middleton and hate Meghan Markle? Because Kate is nothing more than a wife and mother. She has never accomplished much of anything on her own. She came from a wealthy family, and was called “waity Katy,” because she dated Prince William for 9 years before he finally proposed.. She’s sweet and demure and never challenges the status quo. She knows what good for her, and that’s to behave more or less like a Stepford Wife. Look beautiful and fashionable, and be a good sport when your husband has an affair with your best friend.
But Meghan was a bootstrapper from the git go. A mixed race child from a marriage that ended in divorce. A little girl envied and despised by her step siblings. Graduated from Northwestern University, then finally made it as an actress in a popular television series. Then had the nerve to get a divorce from a man she no longer loved. This is not what wins the heart of misogynists like Piers Morgan.
Misogyny is alive and well, even in the United States. Misogyny targets Megan Markle, but you know what? I think she can handle it.