Senior Bea Tabacchi, founder of “FEM Club,” defines FEMinism as “the equal treatment and opportunity of genders.”

FEM Club is open to all students.

“I think the name assumes the existing condition of patriarchy, and therefore emphasizes the liberation of females specifically. However, anyone can be a feminist. Girl, boy, transgender, white, black,” said Tabacchi.

Things like the “hot list,” which is made every year and is comprised of 50 of the “hottest” New Trier girls, makes the female population of New Trier who didn’t make the list feel insecure about themselves and their body.

Tabacchi said, “The process of ranking girls superficially and without their consent, hurting people’s feelings and invading their privacy, it’s just so wrong.”

She also mentioned, “A boy in my math class told me to ‘shut up because I was a girl.’ My junior year, in AP US History, a substitute teacher commented on my ‘behind’ and the boys in my class later defended him, saying I had overreacted. That’s a culture of denial.”

Tabacchi’s goal in founding FEM Club was to create a place where students could discuss the issue of feminism.

“I just wanted to make the idea of feminism more accessible to my peers. I wanted those who did think progressively to be able to have a discussion forum,” said Tabacchi.

This is FEM Club’s first year as an official New Trier club. “FEM Club is varied in what we offer: a discussion forum, lectures, FEM Zine, which is our art and literary publication,” Tabacchi said.

Zine is a small, pamphlet-like “magazine”. It’s mainly visual, but also contains written submissions. FEM Club will be publishing editions quarterly.

The first edition, coming out second quarter, is focused on what Feminism means, the misconceptions of feminism, and mainstream feminism.

Regarding New Trier’s recent “sexting scandal,” Tabacchi said, “The sexting scandal sounds stupid. People should learn that once you’re in high school, you’re only a few years from having to act like a full-grown adult.”

Regarding the recent domestic violence within the NFL involving Ray Rice and his wife, Janay Palmer, Tabacchi said, “I don’t even watch football, but whoever that guy is that is a ‘role model’ and beat up his wife, should be fired,” she said.

“Victims of domestic abuse often find excuses for their abusers, for the very reason that they are loved ones, but that’s unhealthy.”

According to Tabacchi, “the problem with feminism is that it’s been hard to define for many people. Some talk about the ‘three waves of feminism.’ A lot of scholars have a problem with this term because it assumes only the history of white feminism. I think defining feminism is hard because of the variation from culture to culture.”

Bea Tabacchi provides New Trier with the opportunity to notice feminism by creating and leading FEM Club, which will continue to be open to anyone and everyone who wishes to be a part of it.