Shakesville: The Terrible Bargain We Have Regretfully Struck
http://shakespearessister.blogspot.com/2009/08/terrible-bargain-we-have-regretfully.html
This explains the need and a lot of the trials of feminism (and also acknowledges commanalities with other kinds of discrimination). It's about trust and how so many men fail at being trustworthy.
"This, then, is the terrible bargain we have regretfully struck: Men are allowed the easy comfort of their unexamined privilege, but my regard will always be shot through with a steely, anxious bolt of caution. A shitty bargain all around, really. But there it is." [Sometimes the worst isn't the asshole strangers. Sometimes the worst is a guy you care about casually, offhandedly acting like you're not a person. Making a rape joke, dismissing women as overemotional, telling you when you're offended and hurt that you have no sense of humor. The most damaging attacks are the ones from supposed friends. What can we do, but live in anticipation of the next betrayal?]
the everyday language of sexism and how much it hurts
"There is the perplexity at my fury that my life experience is not considered more relevant than the opinionated pronouncements of men who make a pastime of informal observation, like womanhood is an exotic locale which provides magnificent fodder for the amateur ethnographer. And there is the haughty dismissal of my assertion that being on the outside looking in doesn't make one more objective; it merely provides a different perspective."
English - A feminist about her feelings about men. [Warning: Page is huge and hard to load.]
Women sacrifice their rights to make men's lives easier. Beautifully written, and about all the little ways in which patriarchy is enforced. Use for teaching feminism 101.