Rebecca Walker: If Feminism Were Wal-Mart It Would Be banckrupt..Needs to Die

Hat Tip to Jack and Jill Politics. Rebecca Walker has done a piece for the Huffington Post talking about "feminist infighting" that appears to have bubbled up during the whole Clinton Obama cage match. I've forsaken political posts for a minute, but her post discusses why feminism isn't the big tent is claims to be and why many Black women aren't drawn to using the label. Walker compares feminism to Wal-mart and says that if feminism were the chain store, it would have already gone bankrupt and maybe it should.

Here are some highlights:

Feminism, which is essentially comprised of the needs, views, and philosophies of straight white women with a certain degree of privilege. Now we can add "and of a certain age" to that list.

The complaints brought against Feminism include racism, classism, ageism, out of touchism, and a certain tendency toward First World arrogance. There has been an enduring wariness in communities of color specifically, about Feminism's mantra of independence rather than interdependence with male family members and the world at large. This would include Feminism's ambivalence about motherhood, marriage, and domestic life in general. This would include Feminism's divisive and ultimately unhelpful commentary that women need men like fish need bicycles (women need their grandfathers, fathers, sons, brothers, etc. for a host of reasons too lengthy and obvious to list here). This would include Feminism's dismissal of religion itself based on its patriarchal leadership. This would include Feminism's characterization of young women who don't fall in line with the Feminist status quo as naive and ungrateful.....

Based on the above, I am not entirely certain that the calls decrying Feminism's death are incorrect or even undesirable. Perhaps a Feminism that has not responded to the needs of its constituents needs to die. Huffington Post

Can you say OUCH?

Comments

[Rainy]

Black; feminist; proud. Feminism is for everyone. We can do this. Being a feminist is about being able to be who you are-man-woman-trans-asian-latino-black-white-gay-straight-pansexual-etc. You can vote for who you want because you have a mind, you can live as you choose because it's our basic right. The only thing you need to do to be a feminist is to demand equal rights for women and believe that women deserve this. Read "Fight Like A Girl" by Megan Seely. Great book!

[La ~ msviswan]

Rainy said: "Black; feminist; proud. Feminism is for everyone. We can do this....

The only thing you need to do to be a feminist is to demand equal rights for women and believe that women deserve this. "

I agree. We need to support each other as women, and even respectful of our difference in personal choices etc. Find ways for motivation instead of criticism. We need to stop dicing each other up for the simplest irrelevance. Get rid of any self serving ulterior motives. This only makes us weaker and taken less seriously.

Peace.

[g-e-m2001]

I guess my thing is... What is it about having to adopt the label? You are giving a definition of feminism, but isn't the point of the label to have it mean something?

I think the topic is worth exploring because it comes up pretty frequently. Does it matter if you are pursuing equal rights for women, if you don't adopt the label or all of the line items on the ideology check list?

[JJ]

@ Gem

I think you get too caught up in the ideology checklist. You're a feminist whether you like it or not. Most people on the outside looking in would call you one.

The predominate (read: the one that gets all the press) "ideology" was set by a certain race and class (and now age)of women.

The are many feminist ideologies and Walkers point was that these other feminisms are just as vibrant, viable and important as the one championed by (older) upper middle class white women.

[Ananda]

Great comments. Tyou for posting Walker's comments. The NAACP post was something else.

[Tami]

Gina,

The "feminist" label is jus an easy way to describe your beliefs, but adopting it doesn't mean you have accept all of the rhetoric.

I loved Walker's post. I am truly disturbed by the latent racism that is bubbling up during this campaign.

[Gunfighter]

"Latent" racism?