#WhiteWomanPrivilege Highlights Intersectionality #F #WhitePrivilege
This post originally appeared on January 15, 2014 written by founder, Tara L. Conley.
This post originally appeared on January 15, 2014 written by founder, Tara L. Conley.
Yesterday #WhiteWomanPrivilege trended around the online feminist community. According to Topsy, #WhiteWomanPrivilege was tweeted over 15K times, just on Tuesday.
It may surprise followers that the hashtag originated from a white woman, @Auragasmic who started the day tweeting about the privilege white men experience:
#WhiteMalePrivilege is saying that because you don’t personally experience something, that it doesn’t exist. #Sexism #Racism
— Auragasmic (@Auragasmic) January 14, 2014
After several tweets about #WhiteMalePrivilege, she flipped the script and began commenting on her own privilege, which launched the conversation.
Can we talk about the privilege we white women have now?
— Auragasmic (@Auragasmic) January 14, 2014
#WhiteWomanPrivilege is being the idealized as the epitome of femininity and beauty.
— Auragasmic (@Auragasmic) January 14, 2014
#WhiteWomanPrivilege is being able to express your sexuality/relationship without judgement from MSM (see: the way Beyoncé was judged)
— Auragasmic (@Auragasmic) January 14, 2014
The conversation that followed @Auragasmic‘s original tweet sparked further discussions from white feminists who spoke about recognizing their own privilege, and from feminists of color illuminating on their experiences, which differed from the stories from white women.
#whitewomanprivilege means never having the talk w/ ur sons about appearing non-threatening and law abiding when you’ve done nothing wrong.
— Tasha L. Harrison (@dirtyscribbler) January 14, 2014
Unlike the #SolidarityIsForWhiteWomen trend, #WhiteWomanPrivilege focused more on the experiences and realities of women of color (WOC) as parents, consumers, and as viewers.
#WhiteWomanPrivilege is not having to celebrate the few times a character on tv looks like you and DOESN’T play a maid or a drug lord.
— Iris Estrada (@Iris_Estrada) January 15, 2014
#WhiteWomanPrivilege means that when you have 10 kids you don’t get called a welfare queen, you get a reality show (see Duggars fam)
— Lil Luna (@LunaGemme) January 14, 2014
Many of the tweets attached to #WhiteWomanPrivilege illustrated that white women are privileged because of things they don’t do while emphasizing issues WOC face daily.
1st grade: wanted to be a pilgrim in school play, teacher made me play an indian while white girls were able to choose #WhiteWomanPrivilege
— champagne mami (@nabeyakiqueen) January 14, 2014
Your race isn’t a Halloween costume. #WhiteWomanPrivilege
— Bougie Black Girl (@BougieBlackGurl) January 14, 2014
Several #WhiteWomanPrivilege tweets let pictures do the talking. Google Image searches of “beautiful women” and “smart women” turned up almost exclusively photos of white women.
#WhiteWomanPrivilege pic.twitter.com/D83WJBbpUG
— ् (@HabibahPerez) January 14, 2014
#WhiteWomanPrivilege this!!! pic.twitter.com/zTM0e4vCTK
— Seghen Abraham (@SeghenAbraham) January 14, 2014
The conversation of #WhiteWomanPrivilege joins the ranks of the #SolidarityIsForWhiteWomenand #NotYourAsianSidekick (and on the other side: #relcaimintersectionalityin2014 and #stopblamingwhitewomenweneedunity) debates.
Read more about #ReclaimingIntersectionality2014 and#stopblamingwhitewomenweneedunity
Though each hashtag has taken on a different tone and focus, the central message is clear: This generation of feminism has serious internal obstacles to overcome.
What these tweets have indicated about privilege in 140 characters or less, several skilled writers have expanded into well-articulated posts. Here is a round-up of the best pieces I’ve seen addressing #WhiteWomanPrivilege and how we as a feminist community can address it:
Zerlina Maxwell, RH Reality Check: Dylan Byers and the Scourge of Privileged Defensiveness
Gina Crosley-Corcoran, The Feminist Breeder: Explaining White Privilege to a Broke White Person…
Cate Young, BattyMamzelle: This Is What I Mean When I Say “White Feminism”
Mia McKenzie, Black Girl Dangerous: On Defending Beyoncé: Black Feminists, White Feminists, and the Line In the Sand
These articles express more fully what the conversations attached to the #WhiteWomanPrivilegehashtag were unable to express; that is, the deeper meaning and nuanced perspectives of privilege. We learn that defensiveness from white feminists is counterproductive to the feminist movement, and that expressions from WOC isn’t about blame or guilt, but rather, it’s about the need to address institutional privilege clearly, directly, and without apology.
I also wrote a piece about #WhiteWomanPrivilege and feminist infighting on my blog yesterday. Check it out: (I want to emphasize I am not including this on the “best” pieces list, but I would appreciate your feedback!)
Kelly Ehrenreich, Femillennial: Miss Understandings and Feminist Infighting
What are your feelings about the #WhiteWomanPrivilege trend? How do you think WW and WOC can work together in the coming year to reach feminist goals? What are the goals? Tweet me @kellybycoffee or all of us @hashtagfeminism.
#QueeringGender: Affirming Us, Loving Us #Gender #Transgender #F
This post originally appeared on January 6, 2014 written by Lynx. This was Lynx first post as a contributor to Hashtag Feminism.
This post originally appeared on January 6, 2014 written by Lynx. This was Lynx first post as a contributor to Hashtag Feminism.
On December 27th 2013, I tweeted about my gender. I wanted to talk about my gender identity especially since the character limit in the Twitter bio section doesn’t provide space for much detail. Using the hashtag, I spoke about how my gender isn’t as simple as checking off “male” or “female” on a form or online test. I talked about pronouns I used that include “she” and “they”, with “he” being reserved for special occasions.
#Queeringgender to me means bending it to your will. Making it yours. Stepping over it, tip-toeing under it…bouncing on it back and forth
— Lynx Sainte-Marie (@LynxSainteMarie) December 27, 2013
#QueeringGender to me means thinking beyond the boxes of traditional gender performance. I perform gender more than I AM a gender.
— Lynx Sainte-Marie (@LynxSainteMarie) December 27, 2013
#Queeringgender was born from these self-reflections online. As someone who identifies as a genderqueer person of color (POC), my gender cannot easily be described. My gender is part of my spirit; it is a complex entity that cannot be named by others.
I always say that I can’t tell what my gender really is, but if it could speak, it would name itself. My gender is unconventional and outside of the “norm”. My gender is messy. My gender is political. It serves to be a reminder to those who believe that gender can only be what society says it can be. Thus, I am #QueeringGender.
Photo: #queeringgender is going on on twitter right now, so I’ve mapped mine out in a handy graphic. http://t.co/3nVJEGIGoG
— Emperor von Bears (@halfabear) December 27, 2013
For most of us, the gender binary does a lot more harm than good. This current binary system that is created for cis gender heterosexual (or “cishet”) folks oftentimes renders many of us who don’t fit neatly into its confines as invisible. We become othered. We are shunned.
This binaric belief system purports that sex, gender, and gender expression should be the same, or match-up according to prescribed notions of traditional sex, gender stereotypes, and expressions of gender norms. For instance, if you were assigned female at birth (AFAB), then you are considered a woman and thus, it holds true, that you should act feminine.
This system also says that male and female are opposites; that these genders should rely on each other and compliment each other.
#Queeringgender is a hashtag that helps to eradicate a binaric gender belief system by affirming all genders and gender expressions, especially those outside of the male and female binary.#Queeringgender is a message of love. It is a celebration. The hashtag exists to let others know that whatever gender they are and whatever gender expression they have, these expressions are normal and natural, regardless of the journey that people take to arrive at their own conclusions.
#Queeringgender is also about building community with other folks who share similar experiences of being condemned and shunned because their gender/gender expression don’t match traditional norms.
We are what we say we are, and that’s okay.
Society makes those of us who swerve away from traditional gender ideals feel SO much shame “Put on a dress or get out of the world, woman!”
— Lynx Sainte-Marie (@LynxSainteMarie) December 27, 2013
My Story
Growing up in an old-school Jamaican household where Christianity and cornmeal porridge were served hot every morning, I was told that there were certain things that boys could do that girls should not do. My grandmother always told me that “a whistling woman and a crowing are an abomination unto the Lord”, and for awhile, I had no choice but to believe her. As I grew into adulthood and found feminism, I felt I would find a community of people that would be open to my gender experiences, even if it didn’t match their own.
In both circumstances, I felt like an outsider. My mum still cringes at the thought that I describe myself as “routinely androgynous”. The white, able-bodied, cishet feminists that I befriended during my university days still believe that sex and gender are synonymous with each other. To fight against your feminist sisters, who have time to read more books and reference more Gloria Steinem quotes than you, meant your feminist membership would be permanently revoked.
Though it took several years, I grew to learn that there were others like me in the world that didn’t and couldn’t ascribe to cishet-feminist experiences of gender. I would come to see the world as a place I should belong to because there were others like me who struggled against a confined gender system.
I support #queeringgender b/c rigid rules regarding gender help no one and hurt so many.
— Sophia Banks (@sophiaphotos) December 29, 2013
I support #queeringgender because I don’t want people to put me in a box labelled “woman” or “femme” or “queer” or “has a uterus”
— jay, token muslim (@jaythenerdkid) December 29, 2013
Trolling #QueeringGender
Because folks fear those who live outside traditional gender norms, queer/trans* individuals confront marginalization on a daily basis. It is no wonder, then, that the #QueeringGenderhashtag was trolled with violent reactions.
TERFs, get the f*ck out of my HT. This is about love and affirmation. Not your discomfort or trans*phobia. #queeringgender
— Lynx Sainte-Marie (@LynxSainteMarie) December 28, 2013
Trans-Exclusionary Radical Feminist (or TERFs) speak out against trans* folk, especially trans* women who they believe are not “real” women. Many of these attacks from trolls on the hashtag were dehumanizing and violent, especially those remarks directed towards trans* women. These attacks continued throughout the day and even now, some trolls continue to stalk the hashtag. Some attacks were thwarted by other trans* folk; others were silenced by trans* allies.
#queeringgender Because one day it will seem deplorable that folks choose not to acknowledge the identities of others. — J Mase III (@JMaseIII) December 28, 2013
In my opinion, anyone flying a feminist flag that endorses trans*phobia and trans*misogyny are NOT feminists. Cishet folks who consider themselves feminists, but who remain silent while others fight for equality should have their feminist cards revoked.
And so, #QueeringGender also serves to criticize some feminists who do not believe transgender folks exist or do not see the marginalization of transgender folks as a priority in their movements.
We are coming for you cis white feminism #FuckCisNorms #queeringgender#MyFeminismIsTransInclusive — Sophia Banks (@sophiaphotos) December 28, 2013
The reality, however, is that no one is safe from the gender binary, with its rigid rules of gender conduct by which not even the cis of cis folks can abide. I’ve witnessed self-identified tomboys (a girl or woman who exhibits certain masculine-of-center characteristics) chastised for not being quiet enough, or lady-like enough. I’ve seen femme-identified men who have routinely been targets of hate and violence at the hands of straight men who used violence to prove their masculinity and self worth. Femmephobia is perpetuated by binaries, patriarchy and misogyny.
Because doing the work and creating space for all people dismantles patriarchy and cissexism. #queeringgender — J Mase III (@JMaseIII) December 28, 2013
Since everyone’s lives and realities are complex, #QueeringGender is highly intersectional and filled with nuance. Not all of us who claim various gender identities and expressions come from the same lived experiences of oppression. An example of this is the way black trans* women deal with higher rates of violence than other races of trans* folk.
Race is always a factor in my gender perception. Racism is always a factor when I experience hate incidents and harassment. #queeringgender — Jun-Fung 闕 君 方 (@chuehjunfung) December 27, 2013
Proud trans latin@ here. My gender was not stolen by the Spanish Imperialists. It is my greatest rebellion #QueeringGender — satan (@bloodmages) December 27, 2013
Being gender ambiguous and a POC is a dangerous business. Shoutout to those who have no choice but to live under the radar! #queeringgender — Lynx Sainte-Marie (@LynxSainteMarie) December 28, 2013
Where my multi-issue allies at? Please signal boost #queeringgender. HT created by the amazing @LynxSainteMarie — Jun-Fung 闕 君 方 (@chuehjunfung) December 27, 2013
There are many of us who deal with visible and non-visible disabilities on top of trans*misogyny. Some of us, because of our inability to “pass”, cannot use gender segregated washrooms. Some of us do not want, or cannot afford gender affirmation surgery (which by the way, doesn’t make us any of us less trans*!). And some of us, because of white supremacy, have had our genders questioned because of our race, culture, or immigration status.
My ancestors had gods that existed outside the gender binary. I am just following in their footsteps #QueeringGender
— satan (@bloodmages) December 27, 2013
Finding Community in (Un)Safe Spaces
Having read through, retweeted, and favourited many experiences from all who used the hashtag, I can safely say that a great deal of us are finding solace and community. However, Twitter is far from perfect, and there are still many different sides of the story that need our full attention. We need accessible spaces, both online and offline, that celebrate and affirm queer/trans*, intersex, and non-binary gender experiences. For these reasons, I started the website Queer of Gender, a site for marginalized and multi-issue folks whose gender/gender expression aren’t “traditional”, “white-washed”, able-bodied, “thin” and so on.
Non-binary teenagers are brave and important. Our identities are just as valid as yours. #QueeringGender
— satan (@bloodmages) December 27, 2013
@sophiaphotos you’re incredible. Trans* people are warriors for being true to themselves despite heteronormative society. #queeringgender
— Catia A (@agcatia90) December 29, 2013
#queeringgender is being grateful for all of the amazing genders, bodies, sexualities and identities that exist in our beautiful community
— J Mase III (@JMaseIII) December 31, 2013
hashtags like #queeringgender help me remember that i’m not alone in my non-binary identity <3 so needed.
— cupid stunts (@catpennies) December 27, 2013
#queeringgender gave me the courage to admit that I am genderfluid. I feel like I can be honest in conversations now.
— Lilith (@GrimalkinRN) December 29, 2013
#queeringgender: That time you put on your first pair of #falsies and became #JunFungcé. (“Drunk In… http://t.co/wWdwpqxkBq
— Jun-Fung 闕 君 方 (@chuehjunfung) December 27, 2013
There are so many ways we negotiate and understand our genders and all are valid and should be recognized. And though this hashtag was accidentally put forth on Twitter, I’m glad we are having these conversations together. The conversations and ideas emerging by way of #QueeringGenderare not simply opinions, they are expressions about our lives. I can only speak for myself and encourage others to lift their voices. Each of us has a story to tell, and we need to listen to each other just as much as others should listen to us.
We exist, and we need to honour our many existences.
In response to #ReclaimIntersectionalityIn2014 and #StopBlamingWhiteWomenWeNeedUnity #F
This post originally appeared on January 3, 2014 written by founder, Tara L. Conley. This was Hashtag Feminism’s first post of 2014.
This post originally appeared on January 3, 2014 written by founder, Tara L. Conley. This was Hashtag Feminism’s first post of 2014.
My short response to #relcaimintersectionalityin2014 ? No, I will not be reclaiming intersectionality in 2014. Thanks though!
And from Adele Wilde-Blavatsky’s (@lionfaceddakini) Huff Post piece:
So I propose a new hashtag campaign for women (and men) tired of the misguided cultural relativism called #stopblamingwhitewomenweneedunity. It is not acceptable anymore to ignore white privilege and intersectionality in feminist discourse but at the same time let’s stop blaming white women for issues that clearly effect them too. Issues such as marriage, physical safety and autonomy, access to good family planning and health care, pregnancy, abortion, rape, domestic violence, slut shaming, denial of opportunities in work and education and so on still effect women across all cultures, races and nations (albeit in differing ways). If we allow race and ‘culture’ to divide rather than unite women then the patriarchs have won. On the other hand, women united can never be divided.
My short response to #stopblamingwhitewomenweneedunity ?
No, actually I’m over re-centering white women, or white liberal feminism via hashtags to understand what inclusion means because, at this point in my life, oppositional politics, no matter how you slice and dice it, or dress it up as critique or solidarity, hasn’t done much for me spiritually.
Longer response below.
A friend of mine recently reached out to me asking what I thought about Ani DiFranco’s re-apology, and to get my perspective on what might be the best plan of action that we, particularly allies can take towards healing.
Post by Ani DiFranco.
I admit that I really haven’t given Ani DiFranco or her multiple apologies much thought before my friend reached out.
But I’m glad my friend did reach out because in responding, I was able to think through how I feel about intersectionality and allyship currently emerging within mainstream and public critical discourse.
My response is below the jump (tweets added for emphasis).
###
Thanks for reaching out.
As I was reading your message, a few quotes and a movie reference came to mind.
The first quote comes from Jasbir Puar in her discussion about intersectionality and why assemblage as a concept is as, if not more, necessary than intersectionality to consider when theorizing difference and critiquing the status quo.
Puar writes,
“What does an intersectional critique look like—or more to the point, what does it do–in an age of neo-liberal pluralism, absorption and accommodation of difference, of all kinds of differences? If it is the case that intersectionality has been ‘mainstreamed’ in the last two decades—a way to manage difference that colludes with dominant forms of liberal multiculturalism–is the qualitative force of the interpellation of ‘difference itself’ altered or uncertain? […] Has intersectionality become, as Schueller argues[6], an alibi for the re-centering of white liberal feminists? What is a poststructuralist theory of intersectionality that might address multicultural and post-racial discourses of inclusion that destabilizes the WOC as a prosthetic capacity to white women?”
Then there is the line from the movie Malcolm X, when Malcolm X (played by Denzel Washington) was walking out of Columbia University, a white woman approached him and she asked: “What can I do to help?” Malcolm responds coldly, “Nothing.” Then he walks away.
To address your question about what will it take to heal the wound, I’m inclined to respond similarly to the way Malcolm responded, but for different reasons.
I think there comes a moment in critical discourse when some, like myself experience fatigue with critique, especially intersectional critique. While in the midst of the call outs and apologies, some of us with semi-public platforms prefer to reflect for a moment. Log off Twitter, don’t publish any critical or ally pieces for mainstream publications, or on Facebook.
Just pause.
Even though this makes us look like we’re not “producing” anything, or that we’re being “silenced”, what actually happens in these moments of reflection is that we stop participating in Otherizing discourses.
When Jasbir writes about the “mainstreaming” of intersectionality, and the subsequent critiques that are informed by well-intentioned allies, she’s saying that when we discuss inclusion and allyship, we end up, as always, re-centering white liberal feminism, only to render Women of Color as ‘subverted, resistant, and grieved’ bodies.
Intersectionality helps us to understand the multiple ways our bodies live, particularly within structures and systems but what it doesn’t do particularly well is de-privilege the body. The organic body isn’t all there is to our human circumstance. When we start from the position of the body, when we critique from the position of/against white woman (or white liberal feminism), we remain in a perpetual state of seeing difference as different. We’re unable to genuinely imagine what inclusion looks like, or what healing looks like because we reside is a stagnant state of resistance without ever really considering the alternatives. When doing this, we also fail to think about what might actually happen after the shift, after the healing, or after transformation takes place. We’re unable to envision, as Puar states, “what is prior to and beyond what gets established.” Our visions for inclusion therefore become shortsighted, if at all visible.
I recognize fully the unpopular perspective of my critique of critique. However, I’ve realized over the years that I can call out, resist, and write 1,000 amazing articles about status quo and allyship, but in the end, these critiques of the status quo do nothing for me spiritually, but to simply re-center the status quo.
What can/should Ani DiFranco and allies do to heal? Right now, nothing. Just reflect. If you must write something publicly, keep it short, and tell us that you’re going to do nothing, for now, because you need a moment. And while reflecting, be very thoughtful about every public and private action you take thereafter. Ask yourself: Who’s who am I aligned with? Is performing a public benefit concert or writing another public statement in the next month necessary for my personal well-being and for the spiritual healing of the collective?
You, we need to pause. We need time to re-imagine.
Also read the following books and essays at least twice:
Puar, Jasbir (2011). ‘I would rather be a cyborg than a goddess’ Intersectionality, Assemblage, and Affective Politics
Lorde, Audre: “Age, Race, Class, and Sex: Women Redefining Difference“, in: Sister Outsider: Essays and Speeches, Berkeley 1984, pp. 114–123.
Keating, AnaLouise (2013). Transformation Now! Toward a Post-Oppositional Politics of Change
Anzaldua, Gloria (2007). “now let us shift“
I hope this helps, if not challenges you more.
In solidarity,
Tara
2013: The Year of the Feminist Hashtag #FeminismMeans #F
This post originally appeared on December 30, 2013 written by founder, Tara L. Conley.
This post originally appeared on December 30, 2013 written by founder, Tara L. Conley.
On December 23, 2013 Hashtag Feminism released a comprehensive analysis of this year’s top feminist hashtags. Among the most widely cited hashtags of 2013 include, #TwitterFeminism,#NotYourAsianSidekick, #fem2, #femfuture, #BeyonceThinkPieces, #MyFeminismLooksLike,#SolidarityIsForWhiteWomen, and #FastTailedGirls. I explain more about the meanings and evolution of these hashtags HERE.
The list is in no way meant to represent a definitive statement about which feminist hashtags were considered “the best” of this year. Rather, the purpose of the analysis was to trace how the meaning of these hashtags evolved over time, along with celebrating the most widely used feminist hashtags that primarily functioned to gather information, share stories and wit, and talk back to the status quo.
Now that our stories are arguably more visible than before, I wonder, as does blogger and self-identified Generation Y-er, Jenn of @reappropriate wonders, how might hashtag-ing in this millennial moment impact broader social movements concerned with equality and justice?
#Feminism
It is often noted that the primary uses of hashtags are to build brands, campaigns, and follow trends. As we enter into a new(er) era of social activism and advocacy, what meta meanings do we attach to feminism by way of the hashtag?
When #BlackPowerAsianPeril debuted last week as a way to talk about “shared goals” and bridge-building between Black and Asian American communities, I wondered about how this hashtag, or rather critical conversations around the hashtag, might impact how we go about addressing racism (colonization and discrimination) poverty, and mental health issues (access and stigma) shared among both diverse communities.
I think #BlackPowerYellowPeril will REALLY scare the white supremacists tomorrow. I'm even reading up on historical divide.
— Suey (@suey_park) December 25, 2013
The archiving of feminist-leaning thought and practices didn’t begin in 2013, but this year marked a moment in history when nuanced critical conversations traveled outside of Twitter and into online and offline mainstream media contexts. That #NotYourAsianSidekick appeared in Time, Al Jazeera America, ABC, and BBC, and that #solidarityisforwhitewomen and #solidarityisforblackmenappeared on NPR, among other outlets, might indicate that broader audiences are paying more attention to our stories than ever before.
But this sort of online political and social activism isn’t without criticism. Often when we see critics come out against hashtags as a mark of new activism, we find arguments that set up what I believe to be a false binary between real vs. not-really-real change.
Kai Ma’s uninformed piece on #NotYourAsianSidekick in Time may be an example of a critique that presents a false binary without further exploration. Ma writes,
I’m all about not being your Asian sidekick — I support and applaud the platform — but can we please move from digital activism to social change?
I’m not sure what Ma mean’s when she asserts that we “move from digital activism to social change” Does she mean change as in legislative impact (see #StandWithWendy)? Community impact (see #RenishaMcBride)? Societal impact (see #Jan25, #Arabspring, #Egypt)?
Maureen O’Connor’s piece in NYMag.com asks can feminist hashtags dismantle the state? setting up a similarly polarizing argument. Sure enough, the Twitterverse responded:
#TheMediumIsTheMessage
Perhaps critics of the medium have a point about how meaning, particular associated with certain hashtags, gets lost in often contentious spaces of #Twitterfeminism. I’d argue, however, that heated exchanges about the lives and politics of individuals have always been contentious. If you sit two people in a room, face-to-face, with different life stories and political philosophies, chances are they’ll likely at some point disagree with one another. And if these same individuals enter into the room with their minds already set on how the other person thinks and experiences, then surely finding shared goals between the two will be difficult to accomplish. The absence of mediated channels doesn’t necessarily mean the absence of ego.
Twitter doesn’t make it more difficult for people to understand one another or build movements, people do.
In a moment of 140-character thoughts and context-driven hashtags with lack of context clues, the medium actually requires more from us. We have to sit with Twitter just as we would with an epic poem, yet we marinate on these texts for different reasons. I’m not as quick to blame Twitter as I am more thoughtful about the way I use Twitter to think through personal and political issues with complete strangers. At times, for me, some things are better left untweeted, and instead quietly reflected upon.
We’re all trying to situate our selves in this moment, always trying to carve out a digital space, sometimes at the cost of our sanity. Twitter isn’t for everyone, nor should it be, and that’s OK.
Because Twitter asks more of me as I grapple with meaning, I tend towards an observational and reflexive stance. And because the hashtag exists, I can better parse through the myriad of constantly updated conversations related to how others grapple. Now that we have the ability to search and archive these conversations with tools like Topsy, Keyhole, and others, it makes for an even more enriching observational experience. For the very first time since I joined Twitter in 2008, I can temporarily leave Twitter to sit with the feminist media of Twitter.
Parsing, observing, and curating is how I grapple with #Twitterfeminism.
#FeminismMeans
I have a pretty good working definition of what #FeminismMeans to me, which is largely informed by my experiences,
growing up in a Midwestern working class interracial family, taking care of an aging parent.
fighting for fair and equal treatment as an elementary, middle school, high school, and college female athlete.
studying Chicana feminism, Black feminist thought, and feminist spiritualities at a Texas state graduate institution.
Though I’m not so sure about how my working definition of feminism fits in with the 1,847+ other working definitions of feminism, informed by the 1,847,000+ other life experiences out there in the ether.
I readily admit that I don’t exactly know what #FeminismMeans to others with which I share a digital and social community. I suspect that how we understand and do feminism varies according to how we grew up and came of age.
I also suspect that my “brand” of feminism isn’t shared by others, which is why, at this point in my life I try very hard to first relate my life experiences to another individual rather than falling prey to policing someone else’s “brand” of feminism. It’s not easy, and I’m not always right.
#FeminismMeans different things to different people at different moments in their lives. And because language changes and evolves #FeminismIs, at times, a moving epistemological and ontological target. #FeminismIsNot, especially in 2013, an homogenous concept. The genre of feminist hashtags is proof that conceptually, feminism consists of many different, and often fluctuating parts. #Feminism, at times, amounts to an abstraction, a “thing” that many of us continue to grapple with because “it” isn’t something easily reflected in mainstream contexts.
Maybe #twitterfeminism hasn't built part of mvmnt you participate in but Feminism is not so flat that you can make that general statement.
— Jessica W. Luther (@scATX) December 23, 2013
"Allowing only women you agree or identify with to have a voice is not feminism or sisterhood, but something else. It's spite" @TanyaGold1
— Stephanie (@ArtfullyAdored) December 27, 2013
#HashtagFeminismIs
This is why Hashtag Feminism exists, so that as a collective, we zoom out and then parse through the conversations, debates, and dialog to build a picture of what feminism might look like during an Obama and millennial era. Hashtag Feminism is for the futurist feminist archivist who, in 100 years looks back at this digital moment and understands why the hashtag marked an important meta political stance in 2013.
Though someone like Maureen O’Connor might view Hashtag Feminism, a website primarily dedicated to archiving and exploring critical conversations, as greeting card folly, I think otherwise.
[T]rend-chasing websites that arrange The Best Tweets From #WhateverHashtag into listicles only seem to amplify the giant-stack-of-greeting-cards perception of Twitter activism. Even the most profound of one-liners start to seem vapid when you’re reading Bartlett’s Quotes cover-to-cover like a novel.
Hashtag Feminism isn’t so much about listing for the sake of listing, or calling out people for the sport of it, it is (as @BattyMamzelle so poignantly tweeted) about ‘collecting receipts’. We are a space that allows for more time to observe and reflect upon a wide range of personal and political issues that emerge by way of Twitter and other social media spaces.
Hashtag Feminism is my little digital space carved out.
If 2013 is the year of the feminist hashtag; the year that we grappled and reckoned with the Other’s lived experiences, then let 2014 be the year when #FeminismMeans actively and deliberately transforming so we can be better to ourselves and for our shared communities.
Top Feminist Hashtags of 2013 (Explained) #F
This post originally appeared on December 29, 2013 written by founder, Tara L. Conley.
This post originally appeared on December 29, 2013 written by founder, Tara L. Conley.
In case you need a quick reference guide about what some of your favorite feminist hasthags of 2013 mean and how they evolved over time, here ya go!
#TwitterFeminism – First appeared three years ago but it’s meaning has since evolved into an umbrella term that, depending on who you ask encompasses all that is right, or all that is wrong with feminist discourse on Twitter.
The #twitterfeminism backlash isn’t really about social media vs. “real feminism.” It’s a few white cis ladypundits fearful it’s working.
— Melissa Gira Grant (@melissagira) December 19, 2013
#NotYourAsianSidekick – First appeared on December 14, 2013 and was created by @suey_park as a way to engage in a critical conversation about Asian American feminism. To date,#NotYourAsianSidekick is one of the fastest growing feminist hashtags to spread globally.
I will never apologize for being angry about your racism. #NotYourAsianSidekick
— Alyssa Wong (@crashwong) December 16, 2013
#fem2 – First appeared on December 15, 2008 when @blogdiva responded to a tweet about what to call feminism on Twitter. Ever since, the hashtag has grown and continues to be the longest running, widely used, and consistently referenced feminist hashtag on Twitter.
Justice Sotomayor will trigger ball drop on #NYE! Love that an amazing woman will help ring in 2014. #Fem2 #NYE2014 http://t.co/ho0HGucdza
— Jaclyn Munson (@OnwardnFword) December 30, 2013
#femfuture – First appeared on December 18, 2009 when @shelbyknox tweeted a request for a hashtag that describes the work of young feminist activists. The hashtag is now widely associated with Femfuture.com.
Launch of something like femfuture once again reminds me how centered most of feminism is in a single location, even when talking online.
— Jessica W. Luther (@scATX) April 8, 2013
#BeyonceThinkPieces – First appeared on December 18, 2013 and was created by @adriananova_in response to the flood of articles, blog posts, and analyses published about Beyonce and her latest album. The hashtag is perhaps one of the most humorous and witty feminist-leaning hashtags to come out of 2013.
I Woke Up Like This: How Beyonce Is Erasing The Voice Of Women Who Wrap Their Hair At Night #beyoncethinkpieces
— Brokey McPoverty (@brokeymcpoverty) December 18, 2013
#MyFeminismLooksLike – First appeared on December 14, 2013 and was created by @prisonculture, again inspired by Beyonce’s record-breaking album. The hashtag celebrates the various ways feminism looks according self-identified feminists.
This evening, #myfeminismlookslike (I don't do photos so…) pic.twitter.com/dSsAwJDi9b
— Prison Culture (@prisonculture) December 15, 2013
#SolidarityIsForWhiteWomen – First appeared on August 12, 2013 and was created by @Karnythiain response to status quo feminism and Hugo Swytzher. The hashtag continues to evolve.
.@anidifranco holding a retreat on a plantation exemplifies #solidarityisforwhitewomen in the worst way possible.
— mj (@munachao) December 28, 2013
#FastTailedGirls – First appeared in 2010 but it’s meaning has since transformed from a commonly used pejorative to demean Black girls, to now cited as one of the fastest growing hashtags that explores the lifestories of Black women’s sexuality, thanks in large part to its primary purveyor @Karnythia.
At it's core, #FastTailedGirls is blaming children for the actions of grown men. Don't wear this, don 't move like this…just don't exist.
— Reagan Gomez (@ReaganGomez) November 30, 2013