Re: Joss Whedon’s alleged adultery doesn’t make him a fake feminist, Teitel, Aug. 22

Joss Whedon’s alleged adultery doesn’t make him a fake feminist, Teitel, Aug. 22

Emma Teitel excuses writer/director Joss Whedon for cheating on his wife because he is a good feminist. Teitel argues that we should not expect all feminists to be saints, because this is unachievable and will alienate people from the cause.

Whedon, best known as the writer of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and a self-declared feminist, cheated continuously on his wife with people on TV and movie sets. But Teitel says this is no reason to judge him as a hypocrite and pretender; a typical “nice guy abuser.”

Why? This would require too much of allies, set the standards too high for feminists and thereby discourage people from calling themselves feminists.

We have an unequal society, where privilege and entitlement create an unfair and unsafe playing field. As I understand feminism, it can make us more sensitive to power differences between genders and between other groups as well.

It is hard to judge whether someone is a feminist or not. It is easier and more valuable to judge actions than character traits. But to excuse Whedon for cheating and abusing a position of power, just because he did not rape someone, is setting the bar quite low.

Whedon has contributed to gender equality by giving female actors a prominent place in popular culture. But this achievement does not give him a wild card, it is not an excuse to behave disrespectfully in other areas of life without being called out on it.

This wild-card argument from Teitel is exactly the “nice guy” excuse. I think we should expect better from people who are recognized for their feminist values and life choices.

Jan van Heuzaen, Ottawa