Breaking Free: Why 'Equality' Is a Patriarchal Lie

The Illusion of Equality

Published in 2024, “Breaking Free: The Lie of Equality and the Feminist Fight for Freedom” presents a radical argument: the “equality” we’ve been pursuing is actually a trap.

Author Dr. Amelia Hruby argues that “equality” is a “racist, patriarchal ideal that perpetuates women’s and disenfranchised communities’ systemic oppression.” The book challenges the core assumptions of liberal feminism and calls for a more radical reimagining.

The Problem with Equality

1. Equal to Whom?

When we say women should be “equal,” we’re actually saying:

• Women should work like men
• Women should lead like men
• Women should compete in systems men created
• Women should meet standards men set

This ignores a crucial question: Why should men’s way be the standard?

2. Equality Reinforces Existing Systems

Pursuing equality means:

• Accepting capitalist exploitation (as long as women can be CEOs too)
• Maintaining racial hierarchies (as long as some women of color can rise)
• Preserving militarism (as long as women can fight too)
• Continuing environmental destruction (as long as women can lead polluting companies)

The Intersectional Critique

The Trap of White Feminism

The “equality” movement has historically centered white, middle-class women:

• 1920s: White women gained the vote while Black women remained disenfranchised
• 1960s: Women entered the workforce while women of color had always worked
• 2020s: Celebrating female CEOs while most women struggle on minimum wage

Global Perspective

From the Global South perspective, “equality” means:

• Joining systems that exploit other women
• Adopting Western definitions of success
• Abandoning community and collective values
• Participating in neocolonial structures

Freedom, Not Equality

Redefining Success

True liberation requires:

• Valuing care work: Recognizing the worth of traditionally “feminine” labor
• Community over competition: Building networks of mutual support
• Diversity over assimilation: Celebrating different ways of being and working
• Sustainability over growth: Questioning the logic of endless expansion

Concrete Examples

Workplace Transformation

Equality approach: “More female CEOs!” Freedom approach: “Why do we need CEOs? Let’s create cooperatives.”

Political Representation

Equality approach: “50% women in parliament!” Freedom approach: “Abolish hierarchical power structures, create participatory democracy.”

Economic Justice

Equality approach: “Equal pay for equal work!” Freedom approach: “Why is some work valued 100x more than other work?”

Historical Lessons

Failed Equality Movements

1. Soviet “equality”: Women were “liberated” to do double work — factory and home
2. Corporate feminism: Created a few privileged women, left most behind
3. Lean-in feminism: Focused on “breaking glass ceilings” while ignoring “sticky floors”

Successful Freedom Movements

1. Zapatista women: Creating autonomous communities that redefine power
2. Kurdish women’s movement: Building democratic confederalism beyond nation-states
3. Indigenous feminisms: Prioritizing land, community, and future generations

The Capitalist Critique

Equality Serves Capital

Capitalism loves “equality” because:

• It doubles the labor pool (suppressing wages)
• It creates new consumer markets
• It maintains competition over cooperation
• It individualizes systemic problems

Feminist Beyond Capitalism

True feminism must be anti-capitalist:

• Reject productivity cult: Value rest and care
• Challenge private property: Embrace commons
• Redefine work: Recognize all forms of labor
• Build alternatives: Create feminist economies

Practical Applications

Personal Level

• Question your definition of “success”
• Prioritize community over career advancement
• Practice radical self-care as resistance
• Refuse to compete with other women

Collective Level

• Build mutual aid networks
• Create cooperative businesses
• Organize transformative justice circles
• Develop feminist pedagogies

Political Level

• Demand universal basic income
• Fight for workplace democracy
• Push for land back movements
• Create care economies

Responding to Critics

”But We Need Practical Change!”

Freedom is more practical than equality:

• Equality keeps us chasing forever
• Freedom lets us create alternatives
• Equality reforms the system
• Freedom transforms it

”This Is Too Radical!”

Every real advance in history was once called “too radical”:

• Abolishing slavery
• Women’s suffrage
• 8-hour workday
• Marriage equality

The Urgency of 2024

Why Now?

• Climate collapse demands systemic change
• Democratic backsliding exposes reform’s limits
• The pandemic revealed equality’s hollowness
• Young generations demand real transformation

The Path Forward

Imagining Freedom

A feminist future of freedom looks like:

• A world where we don’t need to prove we “deserve” to survive
• Societies where care is valued over competition
• Economies where diversity thrives
• Politics where power is shared, not hoarded

Building the Movement

The shift from equality to freedom requires:

1. Education: Understanding systemic oppression
2. Organization: Building revolutionary communities
3. Experimentation: Creating alternative ways of living
4. Persistence: Long-term commitment to change

Conclusion: Choosing Freedom

“Breaking Free” reminds us that feminism isn’t about getting a seat at patriarchy’s table — it’s about flipping the table and building something new.

Equality is a lie because it asks us to compete within a system designed to oppress us. Freedom is the truth because it demands we create entirely new systems.

The question for 2024 isn’t “How can women be equal?” but “How can we all be free?”

The answer isn’t in climbing the ladder but in building new structures. Not in breaking ceilings but in tearing down the whole house. Not in demanding equality but in creating freedom.

The choice is ours to make.