Is feminism anti-capitalist?

So I'm taking a transnational Feminisms class, and nearly all of the material we've read (Mohanty, Ong, Ngai) share a sentiment that the only way to liberate women globally is the downfall of capitalism. Now, I am aware of the detrimental effects of global capital, especially on Third World women. But I must offer the same question to you all that I asked myself: Is feminism necessarily anti-capitalist? If so, is there any socioeconomic system that inherently serves the interests of feminism?


I've been arguing with my partner about it for several months now. He is an objectivist, and Ayn Rand's philosophy is a glorification of capitalism (at least as I understand it, I haven't read enough of her writing to make a judgment.) He argues that capitalism gives us all the freedoms to choose our profession and move ahead in the world, and all socialism does is limit our choices. I honestly think he values the ideals of social democracy more than capitalism itself. However, I ask the question of whether we can realize the great things about social democracy (i.e., freedom, equality, self-determination) without economically fucking the rest of the world over?


Is socialism the answer? I honestly have no idea. I think that we can grow on certain models from other countries in which the government provides health care, childcare (with both maternal and paternal leave), education, and all of the things that people really need to even think about trying to get ahead professionally and economically. In other words, I truly believe in a controlled capitalism - but then, is that really even capitalism at all?


Capitalism in its current form has made the entire world financially unstable. I think it will take several generations to sort through economic systems to see what will work, because it's clear that not the same thing will work for every part of the world. So I'll put the question to you - how do we level the economic playing field without sacrificing the benefits of a free(ish) market? And how are our social philosophies (freedom, democracy, etc) tied up with our economic policies? I'd really like to know what other people think about this because I certainly do not have a definitive answer right now.