--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Women who can, do. Those who can't become…" description: "\"Women who can, do. Those who can't become feminists.\" — Bobby Riggs" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/228/bobby-riggs-11410_feminism_women-who-can-do-those-who-can-t-become_2681906.png" --- # Women who can, do. Those who can't become feminists. ![“Women who can, do. Those who can't become feminists.” quote by Bobby Riggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/228/bobby-riggs-11410_feminism_women-who-can-do-those-who-can-t-become_2681906.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/228/bobby-riggs-11410_feminism_women-who-can-do-those-who-can-t-become_2681906.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/228/bobby-riggs-11410_feminism_women-who-can-do-those-who-can-t-become_2681906.png) > “Women who can, do. Those who can't become feminists.” [Bobby Riggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-riggs/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Women who are capable act, while those unable to act may adopt feminist labels, suggesting a critique of performative activism. **In simple terms:** Capability drives action; lack leads to labeling. Key Takeaway Encourage action over labels. Themes gender activism capability critique Mood critical provocative Type philosophical political When to use this quote - workplace - political discourse - community organizing Key Concepts Feminist theory social dynamics Questions to Reflect On - How can we support capable women? - When is labeling constructive? A Different Perspective Labels can also empower marginalized voices. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Feminism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feminism/) [Feminist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feminist/) [Feminists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feminists/) [Women](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/women/) [Women Feminists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/women-feminists-2587523/) ## Related quotes > [I love my country, by which I mean I am indebted joyfully to all the people throughout its history, who have fought the government…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ani-difranco/i-love-my-country-by-which-i-mean-i-am-indebted-joyfully-to-all-the/) [Ani DiFranco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ani-difranco/) > [“I had read them and congratulated myself for being black, as if I had chosen to be, because black women were feminists before there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carleen-brice/i-had-read-them-and-congratulated-myself-for-being-black-as-if-i-had/) [Carleen Brice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carleen-brice/) > [I honestly feel that most young women out there are feminists - they just don't know that the word "feminism" describes the things they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-zeilinger/i-honestly-feel-that-most-young-women-out-there-are-feminists-they/) [Julie Zeilinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-zeilinger/) > [I admire women who can be feminists and fight for women's rights, who believe in our powers as individuals and yet not apologize for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-wilde/i-admire-women-who-can-be-feminists-and-fight-for-women-s-rights-who/) [Olivia Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-wilde/) > [Coolest f-word ever deserves a fucking shout! I mean, why can't all decent men and women call themselves feminists? Out of respect for those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ani-difranco/coolest-f-word-ever-deserves-a-fucking-shout-i-mean-why-can-t-all/) [Ani Difranco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ani-difranco/) > [All women are feminists, whether they know it or not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabelle-holland/all-women-are-feminists-whether-they-know-it-or-not/) [Isabelle Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabelle-holland/) > [“If attempting to make the world a civilized one, makes you a bad woman in the eyes of the dumb patriarchal society, then, by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/if-attempting-to-make-the-world-a-civilized-one-makes-you-a-bad-woman/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [“The representation of women in the society, especially through mass media has been the most delusional act ever done on the grounds of human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/the-representation-of-women-in-the-society-especially-through-mass/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [All men should be feminists. If men cared about women's rights, the world would be a better place](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-legend/all-men-should-be-feminists-if-men-cared-about-women-s-rights-the/) [John Legend](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-legend/) > [I don't know why people are so reluctant to say they're feminists. Could it be any more obvious that we still live in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-page/i-don-t-know-why-people-are-so-reluctant-to-say-they-re-feminists/) [Ellen Page](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-page/) > [Men have been adjudicating on what women are, and how they should behave, for millennia through the institutions of social control such as religion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheila-jeffreys/men-have-been-adjudicating-on-what-women-are-and-how-they-should/) [Sheila Jeffreys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheila-jeffreys/) > [The audience I have in mind is always me and my friends. And my two sisters. We're the feminists in my life - and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-baumgardner/the-audience-i-have-in-mind-is-always-me-and-my-friends-and-my-two/) [Jennifer Baumgardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-baumgardner/) > [Feminists are those who cannot stand female characteristics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-k-chesterton/feminists-are-those-who-cannot-stand-female-characteristics/) [Gilbert K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-k-chesterton/) > [Feminists were psyched that I had armpit hair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paula-cole/feminists-were-psyched-that-i-had-armpit-hair/) [Paula Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paula-cole/) > [BUT MY RECENT RESEARCH HAS SHOWN ME THAT FEMINISM HAS BECOME AN UNPOPULAR WORD. WOMEN ARE CHOOSING NOT TO IDENTIFY AS FEMINISTS.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-watson/but-my-recent-research-has-shown-me-that-feminism-has-become-an/) [Emma Watson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-watson/) ## More by Bobby Riggs > [I couldn't care less about clothes or cars.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-riggs/i-couldn-t-care-less-about-clothes-or-cars/) [Bobby Riggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-riggs/) > [Never underestimate opponents.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-riggs/never-underestimate-opponents/) [Bobby Riggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-riggs/) > [I love the excitement, the center stage, the limelight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-riggs/i-love-the-excitement-the-center-stage-the-limelight/) [Bobby Riggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-riggs/) > [I've got to have a bet going in order to play my best.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-riggs/i-ve-got-to-have-a-bet-going-in-order-to-play-my-best/) [Bobby Riggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-riggs/) > [The proudest thing I have ever done was to win the singles, doubles, and mixed doubles at Wimbledon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-riggs/the-proudest-thing-i-have-ever-done-was-to-win-the-singles-doubles/) [Bobby Riggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-riggs/) > [If you're betting all the time, everything is just another bet. You don't even think about the money after you've made the arrangements. You're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-riggs/if-you-re-betting-all-the-time-everything-is-just-another-bet-you-don/) [Bobby Riggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-riggs/) > [I'm like a fire hose when the alarm goes off in a battle against a woman. Don't ever count me out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-riggs/i-m-like-a-fire-hose-when-the-alarm-goes-off-in-a-battle-against-a/) [Bobby Riggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-riggs/) > [It's no disgrace to play against the world's champions and lose by one service break in the last two sets.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-riggs/it-s-no-disgrace-to-play-against-the-world-s-champions-and-lose-by/) [Bobby Riggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-riggs/) > [I always rise to the occasion for that big bet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-riggs/i-always-rise-to-the-occasion-for-that-big-bet/) [Bobby Riggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-riggs/) > [I am the greatest money player in history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-riggs/i-am-the-greatest-money-player-in-history/) [Bobby Riggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-riggs/) > [People said I was tanking, but Billie Jean beat me fair and square.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-riggs/people-said-i-was-tanking-but-billie-jean-beat-me-fair-and-square/) [Bobby Riggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-riggs/) > [All my life, everything has been a contest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-riggs/all-my-life-everything-has-been-a-contest/) [Bobby Riggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-riggs/) > [The best poker game is seven-card stud, high-low splits. I mean, it's the best if you don't have to declare high or low, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-riggs/the-best-poker-game-is-seven-card-stud-high-low-splits-i-mean-it-s/) [Bobby Riggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-riggs/) > [Women should do kitchen work and take care of babies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-riggs/women-should-do-kitchen-work-and-take-care-of-babies/) [Bobby Riggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-riggs/) > [I'm out to prove that a guy 55 years old, with one foot in the grave, can play with the best woman in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-riggs/i-m-out-to-prove-that-a-guy-55-years-old-with-one-foot-in-the-grave/) [Bobby Riggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-riggs/) [Explore all 60 Bobby Riggs quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-riggs/) ## More Feminism quotes > [“But benevolent patriarchy is still patriarchy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sue-monk-kidd/but-benevolent-patriarchy-is-still-patriarchy/) [Sue Monk Kidd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sue-monk-kidd/) > [It's easier to change a law than an age-old mentality. Deep down, many prejudices, many hostilities, many fears persist. But if we take a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dacia-maraini/it-s-easier-to-change-a-law-than-an-age-old-mentality-deep-down-many/) [Dacia Maraini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dacia-maraini/) > [“This story is not at all an uncommon one in tech circles, including gaming. The popular notion is that women who get ahead must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bailey-poland/this-story-is-not-at-all-an-uncommon-one-in-tech-circles-including/) [Bailey Poland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bailey-poland/) > [Without meaning to sound anti-men, ghastly women are the closest you get to a male role.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathy-burke/without-meaning-to-sound-anti-men-ghastly-women-are-the-closest-you/) [Kathy Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathy-burke/) > [If the women in the factories stopped work for twenty minutes, the Allies would lose the war.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-joffre/if-the-women-in-the-factories-stopped-work-for-twenty-minutes-the/) [Joseph Joffre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-joffre/) > [“It took me years to learn to sit at my desk for more than two minutes at a time, to put up with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/it-took-me-years-to-learn-to-sit-at-my-desk-for-more-than-two-minutes/) [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) > [“If attempting to make the world a civilized one, makes you a bad woman in the eyes of the dumb patriarchal society, then, by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/if-attempting-to-make-the-world-a-civilized-one-makes-you-a-bad-woman/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [“there was something of the women molded into the great, stalwart frame of Hollingsworth; nor was he ashamed of it; as men often are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-hawthorne/there-was-something-of-the-women-molded-into-the-great-stalwart-frame/) [Nathaniel Hawthorne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathaniel-hawthorne/) > [Women rule the world. It's not really worth fighting because they know what they're doing. Ask Napoleon. Ask Adam. Ask Richard Burton or Richie…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-bon-jovi/women-rule-the-world-it-s-not-really-worth-fighting-because-they-know/) [Jon Bon Jovi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-bon-jovi/) > [“Bármilyen idiótának, aki azt kérdezi: „Feminista vagy? Akkor elégeted a melltartóidat, mi? HE? Melltartókat égetsz, te feminista?” – szép nyugodtan így kell válaszolni: „Ostoba.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caitlin-moran/b-rmilyen-idi-t-nak-aki-azt-k-rdezi-feminista-vagy-akkor-el-geted-a/) [Caitlin Moran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caitlin-moran/) > [People are capable of great, great change during the span of one lifetime. And women even more than men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-zevin/people-are-capable-of-great-great-change-during-the-span-of-one/) [Gabrielle Zevin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-zevin/) > [Susan B. Anthony must be turning in her grave if she knew that millions of women who have the right to vote are not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-m-kunin/susan-b-anthony-must-be-turning-in-her-grave-if-she-knew-that/) [Madeleine M. Kunin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-m-kunin/) > [Success will come when the societal attitude changes and not a single woman in America asks herself the question 'What did I do?'.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-biden/success-will-come-when-the-societal-attitude-changes-and-not-a-single/) [Joe Biden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-biden/) > [Women know things that men will never know. We keep the best secrets. We tell the best stories.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-hoffman/women-know-things-that-men-will-never-know-we-keep-the-best-secrets/) [Alice Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-hoffman/) > [“Women will be at least 50 percent of the communications community workforce … from executive suite to interns. Why? The “integrated” agency will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoram-wind/women-will-be-at-least-50-percent-of-the-communications-community/) [Yoram Wind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yoram-wind/) [Browse all 15,705 Feminism quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feminism/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Women who can, do. Those who can't become feminists.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Bobby Riggs" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-riggs/women-who-can-do-those-who-can-t-become-feminists/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Feminism" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-riggs/women-who-can-do-those-who-can-t-become-feminists/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/228/bobby-riggs-11410_feminism_women-who-can-do-those-who-can-t-become_2681906.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/228/bobby-riggs-11410_feminism_women-who-can-do-those-who-can-t-become_2681906.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/228/bobby-riggs-11410_feminism_women-who-can-do-those-who-can-t-become_2681906.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Women who can, do. Those who can't become feminists.” — Bobby Riggs", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Bobby Riggs", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-riggs/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Women who can, do. Those who...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-riggs/women-who-can-do-those-who-can-t-become-feminists/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-riggs/women-who-can-do-those-who-can-t-become-feminists/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```