Western feminist ideologies have long dominated mainstream media, perpetuating a narrative that fails to extend past Euro-America, disregarding the lived experiences of women across the globe. This article will be delving into the issues with centring white feminism that adopts a ‘one-size-fits-all' politics.
White feminism suffers from an issue with oversimplification, an oversight that is oftentimes evident in political discourse. Exploring our understanding of womanhood from a white feminist perspective that finds its roots entangled in imperialism, and a colonial past, makes it an unsuitable foundation for feminism to be applied universally. In an interview with JSTOR Daily, author Adichie highlights how historical contexts have meant feminism is experienced differently due to racial distinctions. [1] When first and second wave feminism centred middle/upper class white women, and their suffrage, it disregarded the oppressions faced by women of a different class, race, ethnicity, cultural background, etc. Failure to do so only amplified issues for women who did not fall into such rigid categories, leaving Euro-America's gain to be the Global South’s loss. At the forefront of this movement was a need to access work, however, for Black women, issues did not arise when accessing work, but from being overworked and exploited. It was this disconnect that ostracised many women, leaving them to feel excluded from white feminist ideologies.
Implementing an intersectional approach towards feminism was first introduced by Kimberlé Crenshaw [2] and is a way to explore feminism holistically. Intersectionality focuses on the interconnectedness between the public and private sphere, emphasising the personal is political. Discrimination is faced on many fronts, and so it must be regarded on a multi-axis framework. It cannot be explored in isolation, but in a broader conversation that connects people from across the world. Crenshaw follows the analogy of the intersection, delving into how multiple factors of identity interact. This avoids the exclusionary, narrow gaze implored by the West, and instead contextualises feminism, ultimately underlining the significance of grounding feminism in socio-political and cultural contexts.
Under the Colonial Legacy
The inadequacy of white feminism becomes evident in its attempt to be applied as a universal framework, falling short when introduced to cultures outside the West. It becomes increasingly difficult to impose a concept formed in one part of the world and expect it to be adopted in the daily life of people in another. Yet, this is a reality with historical weight; following Europe’s colonisation of Africa, concepts such as the gender binary and a reductive feminist framework have both interweaved themselves in the African continent, through the likes of missionaries during a period of neo-colonialism. These binaries have permeated Africa, leaving lasting traces that can be found in the depths of the legal world, e.g., colonial administration had often codified how they understood gender into legislation, aligning it closer to religion. The Aba Women’s War is an example of West African women’s pushback against restrictions placed on their involvement in the government. This retaliation remains a pivotal moment in Nigeria’s history regarding the agency of women.
To engage with feminism in Africa is to engage with everyday life, to dismantle and work around patriarchal standards imposed onto African women in and out of the home. It cannot be the West that dictates the livelihoods of people they have only read about in distorted media, which is why the term ‘feminism’, in the mainstream sense that is taught and internalised, cannot act as a baseline for equality. Extending past Europe, feminism looks entirely differently and oftentimes is not directly named or labelled. It is something that is embodied, something that has existed long before the term was coined, long before the West confined it to what it is today. Among many, the Two-Spirit people in Northern America exemplify this, in their non-conformance to the gender binary, viewing it more as an exploration of identity, choosing to embrace it.
Feminism Through Resistance
Feminism in Africa prioritised aspects that white feminism did not. It focused on their immediate surroundings, on how oppressive mundane life was; it considered the layered effects of economic disparities, the patriarchy, racism, imperialism, etc, instead of being curated for the middle-class white woman. As African culture is rooted in oral traditions it has meant that most African women have not preoccupied themselves with articulating or theorising their feminism. Instead, it is the way it is expressed that allows it to remain dynamic and ever-changing. Both strands of feminism are not in conflict, nor are they comparable. They should be allowed to exist respectively but have equal weight in discourse, without fear of being silenced or diluted. At the core of feminism is inclusion, meaning excluding any kind of woman from feminism would be failing to encompass its core values. It is not about accounting for a specific race or ethnicity, but about listening when people have stories to be told, and white feminism is a story that only accounts for Euro-America's history which should not be erased but should not speak for all.
Sources:
[1]https://daily.jstor.org/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie-i-became-black-in-america/
[2]https://www.jstor.org/stable/1229039