White Feminism

12.15.15

     Present-day mainstream “feminism” is commercialized by pretty young white women leading the brigade of the #FreeTheNipple campaign, while failing to understand what true feminism entails. The definition of feminism, courtesy of our friends at Merriam-Webster, is the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes.      To achieve this, there needs to be organized activity on behalf of women's rights and interests. The intentions behind this movement are moral, in essence, as they call for equality and freedom of expression across the board regardless of gender. However, this gets skewed by the fact that white women are often at the head of this movement and focus on topics that dismiss the issues of minority women.

     This “white feminism” fails to acknowledge and address the struggles of women of color, Muslim women, transgender women, LGBTQ+ women, and so on. We talk about how white women make $0.78 to the white man’s dollar, but who brings up the fact that Native American women make $0.65 to that dollar, that black women make $0.64 to that dollar, and that Hispanic/Latina/Chicana women make $0.54 to that dollar? Too often,  self-proclaimed advocates for feminism go radio silent when conversations like this arise.

     White feminism doesn’t talk about cultural appropriation, especially in pop culture, with white women donning bindis and Native American headdresses in the name of fashion. White feminism hides the fact that it took another forty years for black women to be able to vote after white women could. White feminism doesn’t address the terrible truth that the average life expectancy of a black transgender woman is thirty-five years. White feminism dodges statements like “black lives matter” and “trans lives matter” by saying “all lives matter.”
     The ignorance that defines white feminism is a deterrent to people who would otherwise be all for the movement. For example, many black women have turned to womanism as an alternative to feminism. Womanism actively acknowledges that black women face oppression on multiple levels, offering them a safe space that feminism hasn’t always been able to.

    We’d like to believe that those who perpetuate white feminism are often not malintentioned. They just aren’t aware of issues that affect women in minorities. As social media permeates our culture, it allows for voices that were once silenced to be widely heard, and feminism grows more intersectional. Amongst these voices is Amandla Stenberg, whose insights into modern feminism have spread rapidly on a variety of social media platforms.

     Amandla, a seventeen-year-old actress, poses questions like “what would America be like if we loved black people as much as we love black culture?” Her influence, along with many others’, has encouraged discussions about the real goals of feminism.

     And for the record, feminists who are white don’t necessarily subscribe to white feminism. Emma Watson, when asked if she did, responded “I want to hear as many voices as possible.. this is a universal and global movement.”  

     The good news is that it’s become increasingly easier for us to hear more voices. If not real-life conversations, then watching slam poetry on YouTube, reading social justice essays on Tumblr, or even retweeting tweets about police brutality and race issues can help us educate ourselves. The truth is, factors such as race, class, sexuality, and religion are inextricably linked to how different people experience sexism. Let’s all strive to make our feminism more inclusive.