Bra-burning is a loaded term used to describe strident or radical feminism — typically by those who want to mock or minimise it.
Bra-burning is a loaded term used to describe strident or radical feminism — typically by those who want to mock or minimise it. The phrase references a popular myth from the 1968 protest at the Miss America pageant, where feminist demonstrators were said to have burned bras, though in reality no bras were actually set alight. Despite being historically inaccurate, the image stuck, and bra-burning became a dismissive shorthand for feminist activism, deployed by critics to make political engagement sound trivial or hysterical.
The editorial dismissed the campaign as bra-burning nonsense, which only proved the campaigners' point about how seriously they were taken.
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Regional slang from around the English-speaking world — British, Australian, Irish, Caribbean, Nigerian, Filipino, AAVE, and the hyphenated-English dialects that make the internet sound local.
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(derogatory, slang) A strident feminist.
A feminist riff on 'brass balls', this phrase means exceptional courage, audacity, or nerve — specifically applied to women or used to describe boldness in a gender-neutral or feminist framing. When someone has brass ovaries, they're not just brave — they're willing to do what most people wouldn't dare, whether that's standing up to authority, taking a massive risk, or refusing to back down under pressure. It reclaims the macho 'balls' idiom and turns it into a celebration of female boldness.
(Internet slang, politics, derogatory) To take direct action, in the context that the threats of such action are empty.
An aesthetic and vibe — messy, unapologetic, slightly unhinged fun. Defined the summer of 2024 via Charli XCX's album. Wearing lime green became a political statement for 12 weeks; "kamala IS brat" briefly united two unrelated universes. Half the internet is still recovering.
(derogatory, slang) stridently feminist.