Are we in a new wave of feminism?

When you think about feminism, who comes to mind? Those who are against it might picture an unshaven, “man-hating woman,” or a “butch” lesbian. Those who identify as feminists might imagine an ancient female leader or simply one who goes about her everyday life, despite challenges. Regardless of stereotypes, there are certain individuals who are generally seen as imperative to the movement.

First-wave feminism focused largely on legal inequality and a women’s’ right to vote; Mary Wollstonecraft and Susan B. Anthony are among those considered pivotal to this wave of the movement.

Second-wave feminism cast a much wider net, aiming to combat broader inequalities, both legal and cultural, as well as fighting for the right to work, control one’s body and be seen outside of the domestic sphere. Betty Friedan and Gloria Steinem were two of the movement’s early leaders.

Third-wave feminism is relatively young, having originated in the 1990s. Rebecca Walker, the daughter of Alice Walker, and a writer herself, is one of the most commonly cited founders of third-wave feminism. The third wave addresses the failures of the previous two waves to include women of color, non-Western women and transgender women. It has also made strides in reclaiming derogatory words and dismantling rape culture. Now, a fourth wave may be upon us. In my ideal world, the fourth wave would deal with addressing sex work and the problems behind simply legalizing it, sexual assault against men and sizeism.

In 2009, feminist blogger Jessica Valenti was interviewed in noting that many third-wave feminists are 20 years older than she, prompting what became an unimportant throwaway quote in a 12-question piece— “Maybe the fourth wave is online.”

Valenti herself has been criticized for some of the problems that plagued early waves of feminism, failing to include working-class and queer women. I think other famous faces of the fourth wave include Marissa Mayer, who is President and CEO of Yahoo!, and Sheryl Sandberg, CFO of . I’m all for shattering the glass ceiling, but when Mayer claims that she’s not a feminist and bans her employees from working from home, I think it’s regressive. Things seem to be taking weird turn.

BBC  interviewed Miley Cyrus on Nov. 12, in which she claimed, “I feel like I’m one of the biggest feminists in the world because I tell women to not be scared of anything.” Though, she quickly followed that comment with another, saying she’s not necessarily a feminist. It may be freeing to twerk around in a leotard, and Cyrus has certainly made salient points about critics who attempted to police her body after the VMAs, but she has said nothing about Robin Thicke’s performance.

Women still have a lot to be scared of: legislators who are still attempting to curb our reproductive freedom, bosses who harass us and a culture that insists rape be qualified by behavioral standards. It doesn’t help that Cyrus’ hit “We Can’t Stop” appropriated black culture and used black women’s bodies as disposable.

Courtney Stodden, whose claim to fame I could not remember until looking her up on Wikipedia, was a 16-year-old aspiring singer who married 51-year-old actor Doug Hutchinson in 2011. Stodden is now 19 and looks like a 2013 version of Dolly Parton. She appeared on Couples Therapy and the British version of Celebrity Big Brother; she and Hutchinson legally separated last week and intend to divorce. On Bethenny Frankel’s talk show, Stodden said, “I know people might think this is funny, but I actually feel that I am a true feminist because I believe in women looking the way they want to look, I think real women support women.”

I think telling someone that they cannot be a feminist is inherently not feminist, but Stodden also said in her interview that she does not write or read, which is a setback, since she is attempting to closely tie herself to the movement. As young, conventionally attractive women, it’s interesting that both Stodden and Cyrus focus so much on the freedom to wear anything and act any way, yet ignore more relevant issues of the moment. They were pushed into the spotlight as teens and have the unique opportunity to speak out about how the media circus affects women, but they do not.

Since it was impossible to pin down a specific cause of the third wave, I think having a fourth wave of feminism with a sole focus on appearance is a step backward. Fourth-wave feminism must include figures like author and political commentator Melissa Harris-Perry and young leaders like Malala Yousafzai and Manal al-Sharif, the Saudi Arabian woman who organized the “women’s right to drive campaign” two years ago.

It can take place on the Internet or on busy city streets, but it must be even more all-encompassing than the third wave. I don’t doubt that Cyrus and Stodden’s hearts are in the right place, but they would both benefit from reading a bit more about feminism—especially Stodden—and attempting to be more truly inclusive of other women.