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Black Feminism

1346 Words6 Pages

The historical evolution of Black Feminism in the US not only developed out of Black women 's antagonistic and dialectical engagement with white women but also out of their own need to ameliorate conditions for empowerment on their own terms.

The history of feminism marked by two distinct waves. The first wave of black feminism connected to the abolitionist movement. Elizabeth Cady Stanton, a leading white feminist, willingly manipulated black womanhood to meet the needs of white women helped generate the unsisterly legacy between white and black women. The second wave of black feminism linked to the modern civil rights movement. Toni Cade Bambara, "Racism and chauvinism are anti-people. And a man cannot be politically correct and chauvinist …show more content…

The following comment by feminist, author, popular speaker, and social activist bell hooks, explains the nature of this control as well as the underlining hypocrisy: "Black men overemphasize[d] white male sexual exploitation of black womanhood as a way to explain their disapproval of inter-racial relationships." It was, however, no contradiction of their political views to have inter-racial relationships themselves. Again, part of "freedom" and "manhood" was the right of men to have indiscriminate access to and control over any woman 's body." The approach taken represented the desire to be an oppressor, and not truly bring about liberation and equality (Charleswell, Cherise). Black women were unable to separate racial issues from class and sexual oppression, because they were all experienced simultaneously. Black feminist attentiveness stimulates an essential paradigmatic shift the viewpoint of oppression. Patricia Hill Collins, in her book Black Feminist Thought, explains why the theory of Intersectionality is central to Black feminist thought: "By embracing a paradigm of race, class, and gender as interlocking systems of oppression, Black feminist thought reconceptualizes the social relations of domination and …show more content…

It is through black women, many as Black feminist, who will be guiding force in leading the Black community out of subjugation to greater educational, political and ideological self-empowerment. Black women 's source of political powerlessness was attributable to two factors -- their positionally in both the Black and female groups which resulted in them having to fight -- even in the 21st century -- for social, political and economic parity. Ultimate goal of Black feminism is to create a political movement combating the interlocking systems of racial, sexual, heterosexual, and class oppression, but also "seeks to develop institutions to protect what the dominate culture has little respect and value for -- Black women 's bodies and

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