Steinem, Ferraro and Clinton: Why Black Women Must Not Link Too Closely With White Feminist
posted in Politics, Social Commentary, Racial Injustice | | EMail This Post | View blog reactions | Print This PostAlright, we must start with some precursor information as to who the perspective of this writing is coming from. I’m a 30 year old Black Man.
Now, to the issue:
My first point in backing my thesis that follow is that it’s not my refrain; but one that I’ve learned from Black womanist over the years, namely that the White Feminist Movement as a whole disregards the struggle against racism, disregards Black women’s specific identity as “Black” women, and are caught up in and blinded by their own white skin privilege; while fighting one ism, they often re-enforce another.
These factors have been well demonstrated by Hillary Clinton’s campaign and her feminist surrogates ever since Hillary’s late 2007 “inevitability” faded away, and a Black male became an equally likely contender to Clinton.
The gender baiting got started in earnest by Gloria Steinem once Hillary Clinton lost the first nomination vote. Just preceding the New Hampshire vote she unleashed her color arousal oped to move white women to vote for the white woman over the Black. The two latest examples of diminishing race simply to uplift white womanhood are Geraldine Ferraro’s lie that Obama is simply an affirmative action case who didn’t earn his way on the campaign trail, and is “lucky” to be Black; and loud mouth Roseanne Barr extolling Obama to Bow to the White Woman
The greater factor that builds on top of these factor goes to something Malcolm X pointed out in the Ballot or the Bullet speech. He prefaced the beginning of the speech by saying that we (black folk) should leave religion at home when we come out to discuss our agenda, because if we start talking about religion we’ll just end up fighting. He goes on to say, they don’t lynch you because you’re a Baptist; they lynch you because you’re Black. They don’t lynch me because I’m a Muslim; they lynch me because I’m Black.
When America socially, economically, and judicially lynches us still today, they don’t distinguish between our genders too much; and that includes white women and white female feminist in particular.
The white feminist judge will throw a Black mother’s ass in jail faster than you can say “hear me roar”, while giving a white woman probation for the same offense. When it comes down to the nitty gritty get down; they won’t see you as a woman, they’ll still see you as a nigger.
It’s like the old joke: “what do you call a Black Doctor? A nigger”. Well, those whites who are of that mind, including many feminist, they call Black men and women nigger alike.
It’s funny how it’s a gender loyalty litmus test for Black women to have to vote for Hillary, or you’re selling out womanhood according to many white feminist; but where was the vocalism for Carol Moseley-Braun in 2004? White feminist icons and groups gave the obligatory endorsement, and then white women proceed to vote for everybody but her. It’s funny how Moseley-Braun’s candidacy never got off the ground though women are the majority in the Democratic electorate; mostly white women. Why weren’t their loud pronouncements from white women that you must vote for Senator Moseley-Braun, and calls for Kerry to “bow to the woman”?
White feminist are quick to rant when white women ain’t being done right; but they were slow to get angry when a group predominately composed of African American women were called Nappy Head Hoes on national radio and t.v. Likewise, the white feminist world as a whole is practically silent on missing Black women and girl.
I’m not trying to speak at all to Black women’s agenda as far as fighting for gender equality, which I don’t think is my position; but I am saying that when push comes to shove white folks close ranks together, and white feminist are just that - white. They don’t forget it, and they don’t look at the Black race and say “well we have to stand with those Black people because they’re women.” In the end they take the same color-aroused perspective as white men.
This can be seen undeniably in both Gloria Steinem’s and Geraldine Ferraro’s efforts to diminish racism as a political strategic ploy to bolster a white politician.
They seem to me to only be concerned with Black women and other women of color when they want their support to bolster their own race-indifferent agenda.
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