Feminism Fails Every Time It's Tried
Eagle Forum Founder, Phyllis Schlafly
July 23, 2025 | Washington, D.C.
by Anne Schlafly, Chairman, Eagle Forum
Fewer American women are married and more women are anxious and depressed. So many are uncoupled and unmarried. Did feminism lead American women to an unhappy state of mind?
In a recent op-ed in the Post-Dispatch (“Once again, women are told they ‘can’t have it all.’ Why not?,” July 10 print edition), Los Angeles Times columnist Robin Abcarian defends feminism and attacks conservative women.
Today, a record 25% of all Americans at age 40 have never been married, compared to a mere 6% in 1980, according to the Pew Research Center. Women have almost twice the rate of depression compared to men, according to the Mayo Clinic. Young women are binge drinking more than their male peers, according to JAMA.
Today the opportunities for women seem limitless. There are no barriers to female achievement. So why are so many women tired, frustrated, and alone?
The most important thing that anyone can do in life is to have a successful marriage. The fulfillment that comes from a partner in life is far better than any financial or career success. Marriage does not just happen; success in marriage requires time and attention. For marriage to be a success, the marriage needs to be the priority.
The problem with feminism is that it discounts the meaning of marriage. Feminist ideology told young women that they need a man like “a fish needed a bicycle” — a famous slogan from Gloria Steinem in the 1970s.
But women do need men — and men need women. Humans are social animals who want and need to make the ultimate connection to another person. Do we want an independent life or do we crave a connected life? Of course we want connection and for any connection to happen, women would have to make room in their lives for marriage and children.
Feminism also posits that males and females are interchangeable, but that philosophy denies biology and desire. For example, women and men experience sex in different ways. Most women do not enjoy meaningless sex, but prefer sexual relations in the context of love and romance. Most women desire children. Despite the actress Charlize Theron celebrating her string of one-night stands, most women do not find pleasure in being mistreated and abandoned by a man.
When males started to masquerade as females and invade female spaces, many feminists applauded the transitions. The promotion of transgenderism is proof that feminism is not pro-woman but pro-progressive. Progressives have attacked the few famous feminists (such as Martina Navratilova and J.K. Rowling) who have stood up for women and spoken out against men pretending to be women.
Feminism pushes a one-size-fits-all ideology on young women to abandon their emotional desires. Feminism discounts the importance of men in the lives of women. Feminism is not mainstream, but a far-left ideology that seeks to crush the individual in favor of the collective.
Feminism blames “the patriarchy” for all problems, but “the patriarchy” is a straw man that does not exist. Today, nearly half of American women ages 25-34 have a college degree, but only 37% of men in the same age bracket have one, according to the Pew Research Center. No one is holding women back from career success. But feminism still counsels young women not to invest in marriage and family.
Fifty years ago, my mother, Phyllis Schlafly, had to gumption to reject feminism and to speak and write about how feminism leads to unhappy women. Phyllis did “have it all,” but she did it sequentially. Most importantly, she made space in her life for marriage and family. She was very happy.
No one is telling young women that they cannot “have it all”, but no one can possibly have it all at the same time. Life is a marathon, not a sprint. The best advice for young women is recognize that as we age, our priorities in life will change.
This article originally appeared in St. Louis Post Dispatch on Thursday, July 17, 2025.
Anne Schlafly is Chairman of Eagle Forum and has served on the Eagle Forum board of directors since 2008. She is the daughter of Eagle Forum’s founder, Phyllis Schlafly.