single-issue (white) feminism, which has as its primary goal equality with men, in terms of equal
access to jobs and equal pay for those labors. The
‘lean
-
in’
brand of white feminism exemplifies
this equality idea (Hess). However, as bell hooks in
Feminist Theory: From Margin to Center
(1984) argues, this goal begs the question to which men women want to be equal:
Since men are not equals in white supremacist, capitalist,
patriarchal class structure, which men do women want to be equal
to? Do women share a common vision of what equality means?
Implicit in this simplistic definition of
women’s
liberation is a
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7
dismissal of race and class as factors that, in conjunction with
sexism, determine the extent to which an individual will be
discriminated against, exploited, or oppressed. (18)
Often within mainstream feminism, race and class
are
dismissed as factors as white feminists try
to impose ideas about
“sisterhood”
and
women’s
liberation. For women with socioeconomic
privilege, it appears that as long as (some) women have opportunities to participate on equal
footing with men in the white, supremacist, patriarchal, capitalist economy, there is little more to
be achieved. Those left outside of this narrow definition of feminism, however, have created
their own feminisms that respond to their lived experiences.
The research and scholarship that forms the body of critical whiteness studies can be
helpful to the mainstream feminist movement. Privilege discourse is one of the most common
and powerful ways that people today are taught to understand the power dynamics behind
patriarchy and racism. Peggy McIntosh, who is the founder of the National SEED Project
(Seeking Educational Equity and Diversity) and former associate director of the Wellesley
Centers for Women, is well known for her essays on white privilege and male privilege.
Reflecting on the oppressiveness of privilege, McIntosh wrote:
“After
I realized the extent to
which men work from a base of unacknowledged privilege, I understood that much of their
oppressiveness was unconscious. Then I remembered the frequent charges from women of Color
that white women whom they encounter are
oppressive.”
The power dynamics and difficulty
forming alliances between white women and women of Color are shaped by this privilege.
Zeus Leonardo, who is a professor of education and critical social theorist at UC
Berkeley, explains that it is necessary to move beyond conversations about white privilege to
provide equal attention
to white supremacy.
He argues
that while white
supremacy is the
