The Issue with White Feminism

 The feminist movement has been dictated by this majority demographic for years: white women. During the first and second waves of feminism,  many organizations and movements only focused on wealthy white women.

This idea of ‘white feminism’ has been riddled with controversy.  The emotion stems and relates to white fragility and the idea of innocence. When confronted by the idea of racism and privilege, white people become uncomfortable and get defensive. Therefore, many other communities, like people of color, are excluded in order to keep middle-class white women comfortable. This type of feminism is exclusionary, ignoring intersectionality and making way for misogyny, racism, homophobia, ableism, and more. 

‘White feminism’ states that white women experience sexism the same as women of color, which is false. This type of feminism has deep connections to white supremacy. To assert some sort of dominance and remove voices that cause discomfort is an act of white supremacy. Koa Black, author of “White Feminism,”  states, ​​ “White feminism acts to homogenize feminism: to assert mainstream dominant feminism as The Feminism, which is not true; this is an act of white supremacy.” 

This type of ‘activism’ can be seen most recently in how the #MeToo movement was handled. The original movement began in 2006 by Black woman Tarana Burke, but the hashtag only gained traction after many famous white women began speaking up. While it is wonderful that the movement became much more widespread, it began to exclude and dismiss the women of color that started it. In the end ,‘white feminism’ negatively affects women of color.  

Oftentimes, white women will center themselves in conversation about misogyny. They will ignore topics like race because of how it makes them feel, and they will often police the tones of the women of color surrounding them. White feminism is the antithesis to true feminism; it hinders the true advancement of the movement.