Feminist Lessons From the Third Wave

The tensions both inside and outside the #MeToo movement reflect a long history of debate over which direction feminism should take. Back in 1994, the women’s movement was similarly drilling down on the workplace and issues of sex and sexuality. That January, now-disgraced television host Charlie Rose hosted a discussion about the new wave of pro-sexuality feminism that seemed to be taking hold, convening prominent cultural critics to discuss where the movement might go from there. In some ways, the cast of characters hasn’t changed much. But according to writer Rebecca Walker, credited with being one of the founders of third wave feminism, the conversation has. Brooke speaks with Walker about how the debates within and around feminism have changed since the 1990s and why she thinks that conversations about consent and pleasure are so essential to a feminist future.