We Need to Talk About White Feminism Part III—Solutions

During the last couple of months, we have talked about what the term white feminism means—in short, an exclusionary type of activism that only looks at the experiences of white, straight, able-bodied, cisgender, middle- and upper-class women. Part II of this series exposed some of the ways in which white feminism is disguised as actual feminism. At this point, you must be asking yourself what the solution against the shortcomings of white feminism is. 

As you’ve probably heard before, the very first step to solve a problem is to recognize there is one. White feminism is not an exception. But recognizing the problem does not only mean calling out other people’s white feminist practices or denouncing approaches like carceral or corporate feminism—it also means recognizing your own biases, and calling out the white feminist within you. 

You are not exempt from this work. We all need to do it, even if we are not racist and even if we are not white, rich or straight. And that is because of a sneaky thing called implicit bias. 

According to the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, implicit bias is when we “act on the basis of prejudice and stereotypes without intending to do so.” In other words, you don’t have to be racist to be unconsciously guided by racist impulses.  

Jennifer Eberhardt, a psychology professor at Stanford University and author of Biased: Uncovering the Hidden Prejudice That Shapes What We See Think and Do, said that unconscious prejudice “can affect everyone, even a black child,” referring to an instance when her son worried that a fellow black passenger would blow up a plane.

“We’re living in a society where we’re absorbing images and ideas all the time and it takes over who we are and how we see the world.” Eberhardt said. 

This process of socialization also affects how we develop our feminist thinking. If we are not cautious, the “default” and mainstream approaches of feminism—often in the form of white feminism—might influence our actions. 

If you are still convinced you are immune to this, I highly recommend taking the Implicit Association Test. As Mahzarin Banaji, a Harvard University psychologist and one of the creators of the test said: "Think of implicit bias as the thumbprint of the culture on our brain." 

So, what can we do to avoid our implicit biases?

We can start by self-reflecting and educating ourselves on issues that don’t affect us directly. Keeping an open mind when others talk about the issues that they face is also a must to remind ourselves that our individual experiences don’t represent the diversity of experiences of all women. We can only grow and learn as feminists when we make the effort to get to know women from different backgrounds. Ultimately, we must acknowledge and fight against our implicit biases by listening to, connecting with and learning from a diverse range of voices. 

After acknowledging our implicit biases and learning about gender issues that we have no direct contact with, we can embrace intersectional feminism.

If you never heard the term, don’t be intimidated, it sounds complicated but once you have a good grasp of what it means it will become second nature in how you see gender. 

Intersectionality is a term coined in 1989 by American law professor Kimberlé Crenshaw to highlight how racial and gender prejudice simultaneously impact the lives of black women.

Intersectional feminism is basically the opposite of white feminism. It is “a prism for seeing the way in which various forms of inequality often operate together and exacerbate each other” Crenshaw said. That is, intersectionality, as opposed to white feminism, understands how class, gender, race and other identities overlap with one another.

“We tend to talk about race inequality as separate from inequality based on gender, class, sexuality or immigrant status. What’s often missing is how some people are subject to all of these, and the experience is not just the sum of its parts,” Crenshaw said.

An intersectional approach, therefore, requires centering on the voices of those experiencing the greatest number of overlapping forms of oppression. Not to create a “contest of who is more oppressed,” or to conflate disadvantages with moral superiority, like some critics say. But to acknowledge how interconnected these issues are, and to understand how they impact the lives of those most oppressed in society. Again, the first step to solve a problem is to recognize there is one. 

According to the UN, using an intersectional lens also means “recognizing the historical contexts surrounding an issue. Long histories of violence and systematic discrimination have created deep inequities that disadvantage some from the outset.”

That is, the impact of intersecting inequalities extends across generations; they are systemic. That means one’s individual “willpower” is not enough to overcome them. Intersectionality helps us separate the individual from the collective—the anecdotal example from the systemic nature of social issues. 

In 2020, from the disproportionate impact of the pandemic in communities of color, to the global uprising against police violence, it has been made clear that we, as a society, are not close to achieving anything resembling equality or justice. Women’s issues are inserted in this context. 

It is challenging to think about a myriad of issues simultaneously. After all, isn’t patriarchy bad enough in and of itself? Also, most of us are already overwhelmed with an economic crisis, a pandemic and a high-stakes U.S. presidential election. There is, however, no better time to educate ourselves on intersectionality, and to revise our feminism. This crisis has exposed injustices in such obvious ways that it gives all of us, no matter our background, the chance to turn this moment as a catalyst for reflection. 

I hope that this series helped you recognize the power of your voice. Feminism is nothing but a group of people coming together to demand equality—you get to choose the direction that the movement takes. 

We Need to Talk About White Feminism—Part II

Last month, we discussed why it’s important to talk about white feminism, and—more specifically—why it is harmful not to talk about it. (If you feel confused or defensive after reading this, make sure to check the part I of this series.) Today, let’s focus on what white feminism looks like, so you get savvy at spotting it. 

White feminism has a limited idea about what feminist issues are

Whenever women of color talk about the issues that are more prevalent in their communities (e.g., police brutality, Black maternal death rates, attacks and murder of trans women, racism, voting suppression) white feminists will say that these are race problems, not gender problems. These issues, they argue, are outside of the scope of the feminist movement. So, if you ever hear a feminist say something along the lines of “we’re not talking about (insert any issue that pertains to women of color, queer, low-income or immigrant women), we’re actually talking about gender.” or “talking about this issue is divisive” well, chances are you are dealing with some form of white feminism.

Corporate feminism

Corporate feminism means demanding that a few women achieve positions of power to “break the glass ceiling,” while ignoring the systemic unequal structures that further block low-income women or women of color from these leadership roles. This type of feminism is satisfied with a world where there are more women CEOs and political leaders, yet it is comfortable with other current inequities.

For example, corporate feminism focuses on closing the wage gap between men and women, while it ignores how Latina and Black women make significantly less than white women in the first place. As Mikki Kendall, the author of the book Hood Feminism: Notes from the Women that a Movement Forgot, said: 

“It's great to want to be a CEO or to be president, but you should also probably make sure that your neighbors have enough food to eat and their homes are safe.”

Ignoring Stereotypes 

Toni Morrison made a very emblematic observation in this 1971 New York Times article. She noticed how Jim Crow signs for white women were designated “White Ladies,” while the signs for Black women read “Colored Women.” Morrison highlighted how the word ‘lady’ implied “a quality softness, helplessness and modesty” while ‘women’ implied that black women were: “unworthy of respect because they were tough, capable, independent and immodest.” Language matters, and this language really exemplifies how womanhood is seen differently according to race. 

White feminism fails to deal with this narrative or even buys into it to this day. This is particularly problematic because the stereotypical image of white women’s ‘purity’ is fundamental in the perpetuation of racist stereotypes that depict Black men as predators and dangerous. In this narrative, Black men are the ultimate threat to a supposed white lady’s victimhood, vulnerability and purity--and this discriminatory image has been used as a justification for racial profiling. 

An example of this happened this year on Memorial day in Central Park, when Amy Cooper tried to intimidate Christian Cooper, a bird watcher who requested her to leash her dog. She threatened to call the police saying that there was, in her own words, an African American man threatening her life. Basically, she was weaponizing the racial stereotype against Mr. Cooper. 

An intersectional feminist approach calls out this narrative and harmful behavior, while a white feminism approach ignores it and sees it as a race problem, one that is isolated from women’s issues.

White feminism fails to call-out white supremacy

It is vastly documented how women of color have historically called out racism in the mainstream feminist movement. And it is equally documented how a great number of white feminists were unwilling to call out white women when they supported exclusionary narratives in the movement and beyond (make sure to read the book This Bridge Called My Back or the The Combahee River Collective Statement to get a better taste of this). 

A white feminist approach ignores the historical relationship that white women have with white supremacy. For example, some leaders in white supremacist organizations were women (e.g., WKKK), many in the movement against school desegregation were women, confederate statues were often erected by women (most notably through the United Daughters of the Confederacy.) and even some feminist leaders supported eugenics. (Also, make sure to check our article about the 19th amendment to learn more about how white supremacy played out even in the suffrage movement.)

But this is not something we can only read in history books. More recently, in 2020, several female business founders step downstep down after being accused of supporting toxic workplaces for people of color they employed (oh, hi there corporate feminism). So, just because someone is a woman, it does not mean that they can’t perpetuate oppression. Again, white feminism ignores that.

This is by no means an exhaustive list. A few other examples of white feminism practices include: Carceral feminism (when feminists exclusively advocate for increased policing, prosecution, and imprisonment to create justice for women, as if the justice system worked equally for all of us and police violence wasn’t an issue), tone policing (when white feminists try to silence the voices of women of color by labeling them aggressive or angry), the white savior complex (when feminists think they are more rational and civilized than other women and should “free” other groups of women.), cultural appropriation, the whitewashing of the contributions of people of color in feminism among others.

It goes without saying that all of the practices described are anti-feminist. Let’s be vigilant to spot, avoid, and call out all of these exclusionary approaches.

And stay tuned. Next month, we will discuss intersectionality. See you soon to talk about solutions!

We Need to Talk About White Feminism—Part I

If you identify as feminist, you probably have come across the term “white feminism.” It’s all around social media, in women’s marches, protests and sometimes even in our (nowadays socially distanced, I hope) social life. But do you really know what white feminism means? Can you spot it when it’s in action? More importantly, can you see how it affects your own actions and views about issues of gender? To help you answer some of these questions, we are launching a 3-part series where we will break down this term. We believe that it is only by understanding the issues related to the exclusionary nature of white feminism that we can fully embrace a more inclusive and intersectional approach. This series is particularly important for white intersectional feminists, who should take the lead on fixing the problems we will be talking about--it is not the responsibility of women of color to do this work. 

Stay tuned and let’s dive in!

What Is White feminism?

Simply put, white feminism is a branch of feminism that exclusively looks at the experiences of white, straight, cisgender, able-bodied, middle- and upper-class women. In other words, it only cares about women who have most of the privileges that society can offer—besides, of course, being a woman. Because it exclusively focuses on this demographic, white feminism inaccurately universalizes womanhood, assuming that the white-normative aspirations particular to this group of women reflect all women’s aspirations. This is extremely harmful, because by making white, cis (insert the whole list here) the default, white feminism totally marginalizes everyone else’s concerns. But before we go into more detail, let’s first get some misconceptions out of the way:

Isn’t talking about white feminism divisive?

No, quite the opposite. The only way to actually unite all women is to acknowledge the vast diversity in our experiences and educate ourselves on how race, class, sexuality, nationality and other identities intersect with gender. But white feminism does not allow the space to do that. The main reason why some people feel that critiquing white feminism divides us is because they probably had a false sense of unity in the first place. 

If we don’t see how white feminism operates, chances are it is because we are currently operating within its lenses and are—inadvertently or not—overlooking a whole range of experiences within gender. The only way to solve this, is by acknowledging how white feminism influenced our perceptions on gender. We are already divided in many ways. Not talking about this division will not magically make us come together; it will just make privileged women more comfortable. 

Are all ‘feminists who are white’ white feminists?

Of course not. White feminism is an ideology, not a race. If you are white, there is no need to feel defensive when anyone calls out white feminism. They are not talking about the color of your skin; they are talking about a type of activism. Yes, most (but not all) white feminists are white. But that’s because it’s easier to assume—and be comfortable with—the idea that the experiences of white women are universal when you are one. But nobody is saying that there is some inherent quality to being “white” that makes white women bad feminists. Critiquing white feminism is never about silencing white women or rejecting white women’s experiences. It’s about supporting all voices in the movement.

Are all white feminists racist?

To answer this question, we need to understand the difference between impact and intent. Beverly Tatum brilliantly explained this difference in her book Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?. According to her, the ongoing cycle of racism is “like a moving walkway at the airport.” People walking on the conveyor belt, in this analogy, represent actively racist individuals, deliberately promoting and identifying with the direction of white supremacy.

Many others, however, are not actively trying to move in the direction of racism (or white feminism) and are simply standing in the moving walkway. Just by being bystanders, however, they are still moving towards the same destination as those who are actively racists. That is, their intent is different from their impact, because they are still reinforcing a lot of racist beliefs even if they are not actively being racists. A lot of white feminists fall into this group. They don’t consciously understand that they are complicit in the oppression of others by leaving white feminism unquestioned and merely standing still. 

There is a third type of person, however. The type of person every feminist should aim to become. They are those who recognize the motion of the conveyor belt and choose to walk in the opposite direction. As Tatum explains, this type of person: “see the active racists ahead of them, and choose to turn around, unwilling to go in the same destination as the White supremacists. But unless they are walking actively in the opposite direction at a speed faster than the conveyor belt—unless they are actively anti-racist—they will find themselves carried along with the others.” Doing this requires more work, but it is the only way to create an actually inclusive feminism.

To become this type of feminist, the first step we all need to take is to educate ourselves on how white supremacy operates in the women’s movement. It’s only by recognizing the direction of the conveyor belt, that we can turn around. That’s why conversations about white feminism are so important, it helps bystanders to recognize the impact of their inaction, and how white feminism is often the “default.” Remember, the impact of feminism comes from our actions, not our intentions. See you “in a couple of weeks,” when we will go into more detail about what white feminism looks like today. 

Celebrating the Centennial of Women’s Right to Vote: Three Facts to Keep in Mind

100 years ago tomorrow, Tennessee became the 36th and final state needed to ratify the 19th amendment as law, hence guaranteeing women's constitutional right to vote. As much as it is tempting to just focus on celebrating the suffragettes’ accomplishments and bravery, we also need to talk about some of the ugly truths behind this centennial milestone. That’s because ignoring the history that we don’t like should not be an option. To understand and address our current issues, we need to first acknowledge the full history of previous generations, which includes their shortcomings. As we kick off this anniversary, I gathered 3 uncomfortable—yet crucial—facts for all of us women (especially white) to reflect on.  

1.     The 19th Amendment Did Not, in Practice, Grant Access to The Ballot Box to All Women

The idea that after 1920 all women could vote in the U.S. is a myth. In practice, the 19th amendment protected mostly white, middle- and upper-class women. Yes, the 19th amendment blocked all states from denying voting rights based on gender, which—in theory—should have been enough to guarantee all women’s right to vote. But because the 19th did not say anything about race, it didn’t guarantee much for women of color.  

Millions of women — especially black women in the Jim Crow South— could not vote because of poll taxes and “literacy tests” that were used to purposely disenfranchise them. In Virginia, for example, a college-educated black woman named Susie W. Fountain was stopped from voting because she “failed” a sham literacy test that consisted of a blank piece of paper. Fountain is only one of the countless cases of voter suppression against black women post-19th amendment.

It took about 45 more years for women of color—through the Voting Rights Act, which outlawed discriminatory voting practices—to finally enjoy their constitutional right to vote. It’s vital to remember that to this day voting suppression persists, most notably through voter ID requirements and the placing of polling booths in areas that are difficult to access for marginalized communities. 

          2. Racism and White Feminism Influenced the Suffrage Movement in Many Ways

White suffragists often excluded people of color from the movement. In many suffrage marches, black women were forced to the back of the line –when they were included at all. No black women attended the famously celebrated Seneca Falls convention. Moreover, after the passage of the 15th amendment, which gave black men the right to vote, some well-known white suffragettes began using racist rhetoric to push for women’s right to vote. Although some suffragists like Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony opposed slavery before the civil war, their alliance with abolitionists deteriorated after black men got the vote before white women. Then, some white suffragettes began to argue that white women were more qualified to vote than Black men and at times even made alliances with opponents of Black suffrage. 

The mainstream suffrage movement, often deliberately, undermined or blatantly dismissed the voices of women of color. When the black suffragist Mary Church Terrell, for example, requested the movement to address women of color‘s concerns, some white feminists claimed that black women’s disenfranchisement was a race problem — not a gender problem. And to this day, a branch of feminism that centers on the experiences of privileged women and ignores intersecting issues of race persists. Stay tuned to our blog in the next few weeks to learn more about “white feminism,” and how it endures to this day. 

              3. History Books Focus on White Suffragists, But Women of Color Were Central in the Women’s Suffrage Movement

Most of us think of the names of Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony when we think about the 19th, but there is a vast list of suffragettes of color that were fundamental to the movement, from whom we unfortunately hear less about. We need to celebrate these women, who—despite the extra barriers that they faced—vigorously fought for our right to vote.  

For example, Frances Ellen Watkins Harper, who was a visionary intellectual in the fight for women’s rights and in a meeting of the American Equal Rights Association in 1866, she gave a groundbreaking speech on what we today call intersectionality. She was an acclaimed speaker and shared stages with activists such as Frederick Douglass and Lucretia Mo. Another widely respected women’s suffrage activist and abolitionist was Sarah Parker Remond, she was a member of the American Equal Rights Association, and voraciously toured the northeast to support and preach about women’s voting rights.

Other important figures were Ida B. Wells, co-founder of the NAACP, who used her journalism to highlight racist issues in the South. Adelina (Nina) Otero-Warren, a central figure that helped pass the 19th Amendment in New Mexico and helped spread the word about the suffrage movement in Spanish. Marie Louise Bottineau Baldwin, who focused her activism on the rights of Native American women. Dr. Mabel Ping-Hua Lee, an academic who relentlessly advocated for women’s right to vote, but probably never voted because of her status as a Chinese immigrant. The list goes on and on. 

As We Celebrate the Centennial of the 19th, Let’s Challenge Any Type of Exclusionary Narrative

Let’s fully acknowledge this history when we celebrate this centennial. The work of women of color, who highlighted how racism, sexism, and all forms of discriminations are bound together was vital and continues to be vital today. Intersectional feminism—a feminism that acknowledges the interconnected nature of these issues—is the only type of women’s movement that can truly benefit us all. But to achieve it, we need to face the imperfect parts of our history and appreciate the work of the women who came before us.

A feminism that ignores the role that white supremacy has historically played is, by definition, a white supremacist feminism. History isn’t over—we are all collectively still writing it—and it is up to us to make sure that the women’s movement becomes a fight for all women and by all women. These suffragists of color refused to accept a limited white-centered gaze on gender issues—and so should all of us. Happy 19th Amendment anniversary!

Author’s note: I’m a white-passing Brazilian woman living in the U.S., and the issues raised in this article are intended to be focused on non-white voices. Please, seek out more information from women of color. Here are some books suggestions: 

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/313110.This_Bridge_Called_My_Back

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32809732-daughters-of-a-nation

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/353598.Black_Feminist_Thought

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32951.Sister_Outsider

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/635635.Women_Race_Class

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/51378.Feminist_Theory 

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36687229-hood-feminism

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6792458-the-new-jim-crow

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35099718-so-you-want-to-talk-about-race