Women and men of all ages and backgrounds gathered in the The Idaho Commons building on Tuesday to learn from two leading experts in the third wave of feminism.

Amy Richards and Jennifer Baumgardner, co-authors of the best-selling book “Manifesta: Young Women, Feminism, and the Future,” gave a lecture on the stereotypes of feminism and how someone can choose their own kind of feminism.

“That title was meant to encapsulate the stereotypes,” Richards said. “It’s sort of a primer on feminism today.” The speakers said women and men often ask them if they can call themselves a feminist if they’re anti-abortion or into wearing high heels. This lecture is an answer to such questions.

“It is just as oppressive being told you should wear a miniskirt than being told you can’t,” Baumgardner said. “I think it’s very important to honor other people’s choices and not undermine them as a feminist.” In the lecture, the two authors explained the history of American feminism and how it has changed. Baumgardner said today’s feminism is more individualized, but that it isn’t necessarily a negative.

Women now have the choice to pick and choose what parts of feminism suit their beliefs and don’t have to conform to the standard definition, they said.

“Sometimes your discomfort with some of feminism may be illuminating to others,” Richards said as she discussed her problem with the slogan, “Keep Your Laws Off Our Bodies.” She felt it was hypocritical for women to proclaim that slogan when they were, at the same time, asking laws to allow them to use birth control.

The lecture covered topics such as race, class, STDs and masculinity.

Baumgardner talked about the influx of HPV in today’s adolescents, and how women are deemed responsible for getting tested and preventing its spread.

“We are never going to stop HPV until men start getting tested for HPV,” she said.

They also addressed masculinity and men’s roles within feminism. They agreed that men were just as tightly bound to the stereotypes of masculinity as women were to the brainless Barbie or the bra-less banshee stereotypes, and that both sexes needed to work together to overcome the stereotypes.

“I don’t think being a woman means you have any claim on feminism. Men were raised by women and men influenced by the women’s movement,” Baumgardner said.

One audience member questioned the issue of race in their lecture.

“Your white feminism is a lot different than black feminism or Indian feminism, like me,” said the audience member. “We don’t ask white women to give up their privilege.” Other audience members were pleased with the lecture.

“I just think it’s really cool we have the opportunity to listen to women who are key members in the women’s movement,” said Lindsay Merrill, a University of Idaho senior communication major. “It was cool getting more of a history of feminism.” The audience was left with the overall impression that being a feminist is an individual choice.

“To what extent can we as women be dependent on these very stereotypical ideas of gender?” Richards said. “It’s about liberating the individual.”