In mainstream discourse, consent is often reduced to a simple “yes” or “no” , a legalistic checkbox that determines whether an interaction is deemed acceptable. But this framing is insufficient.
Consent, as currently understood, exists within structures of patriarchy, capitalism, and white supremacy that shape the conditions under which people, especially women, queer people, and those marginalized by race and class, are asked to “consent” in the first place.
Patriarchal Power and Manufactured Choice
It’s understandable patriarchy not as a relic of the past, but as a present-day system of domination that conditions how people are socialized, how relationships function, and how sexual scripts are written. In a world where men are trained to pursue and dominate, and women are trained to please and submit, the very notion of “freely given” consent becomes suspect.Consent is only meaningful when it is given under conditions of true equality. Yet, under patriarchy, women are often coerced not by overt violence, but by economic dependency, fear of social rejection, internalized misogyny, or lack of alternatives. When a woman “chooses” to say yes to her boss, her husband, or even her date, we must ask: was that choice free, or was it constrained by the reality of male dominance?
Capitalism and the Commodification of the Body.
It teaches us to view everything, including bodies as commodities. Sex work, for instance, is often framed as empowering through “choice,” yet we must interrogate the conditions under which that choice is made. Can someone truly consent to commodifying their body if their only other option is poverty, hunger, or homelessness?
The logic of the market infiltrates interpersonal relationships, reducing consent to a transaction rather than a process of mutual liberation. In this sense, capitalism not only exploits labor, it distorts intimacy.
Abolishing Coercive Systems, Not Just Redefining ConsentA radical feminist and leftist vision does not aim to merely reform how we talk about consent; it seeks to transform the conditions under which consent is given. We must dismantle the social, economic, and political systems that uphold coercion, exploitation, and dominance.
This means:
* Ending male supremacy in all its forms.
* Creating economic systems based on collective need, not private profit.
* Building relationships rooted in equity, mutual care, and autonomy.
*Teaching consent not just as personal responsibility, but as part of a radical ethic of liberation.
Toward Collective
LiberationConsent cannot be separated from the broader struggle for liberation. It is not a static agreement, but a dynamic, ongoing process grounded in respect and equality. True consent is only possible in a world where no one is dominated, exploited, or oppressed, where every individual has the material and social freedom to say *yes*, *no*, or *maybe* without fear, shame, or survival on the line.Radical feminism and leftist politics reject the neoliberal myth of “choice feminism” and instead demand that we challenge the systems that shape those choices.
Consent is not enough. Liberation is.