Gender, Race and
Migration: Black Feminist Thought
Black Feminist
Thought is situated in a global and transitional world. It looks to the future,
while paying homage and respect to the past. What is unique to Black Feminist
Thought, is that it is sustained through an unspoken spirituality that is not
prevalent in the white feminist movement. The memories of slavery, migration
and resilience offers another perspective of social transformation that is
needed to equalize the lives of Canadian Black Women in mainstream white
society.
Theorizing Empowerment: Canadian Perspectives on Black Feminist Thought
is a key collection of essays evaluating feminist theorizing in Canada.
Jazmine Zine, Assistant Professor in the department of Sociology at Wilfrid Laurier
University reviews ‘It is indeed empowering to read the new critical imaginings
of Canadian Black Feminist scholar/activists as they theorize the fractured and
shifting spaces of identity, community, and nation in a globalized post-modern
world.’ As mentioned, its focus on spirituality is endearing. Through Wane and
Neegan’s deeply engaging essays and research on spirituality between rural
women in Embu Kenya, and Burnt Ground, Jamaica, we come to see spiritualty as a
form of resistance. This reliance on spirituality is indicative when exploring
African resistance. This spirituality, not necessarily religious often connects
Black Canadian women, but it act as somewhat of unspoken kinship. African
ancestry connects the lives of many Black Canadian Women today. At the bottom
of this page there is YouTube clip, of three Black women who met each other 30
years ago in Russia, having been reunited after all this time, they express in
a conversational, colloquial manner why they felt so connected to each other
all those years ago, which I believe is a great example of placing Wane and
Neegan’s research into a ‘real world’ context and explaining this spirituality.
When looking at
Black Feminism, it is vital to acknowledge that Black women experience a very
different kind of oppression, one that is racist, sexists and classist. This is
referred to as Triple Jeopardy. Black
Canadian Feminists must then have an awareness of what ‘others’ they are not.
This brings us to the question, can sisterhood ever truly be an inclusive
movement? What feminism means to the white woman, is very different to what it
means to the women of colour. Black feminisms runs counter to the mainstream
view, whereas white feminism works within its realms. Canadian mainstream
feminists have repeatedly tried to address the particulars of women’s
oppression, however, what works for white women, doesn’t necessarily work for
women of colour, e.g. the issue of domestic violence. Thus Black Feminism is
necessary to empower black women, not just within the context of Canada, but
all around the world. Black Canadian Feminist theory holds the stories of many
Black women living in Canada which not only provides them with recognition but
provides them with a framework that shine light to other Black women who paved
the way.
Incorporating
spirituality into our everyday lives: what I like to call a ‘self-care checklist’
(Taken from Theorizing
Empowerment: Wane and Neegan, pg42)
- 1. Begin with nurturing the inner self.
- 2. Become aware of our weaknesses and strive.
- 3. Ritualize our lives through methods such as singing, storytelling, humour, ceremonies.
- 4. Constantly remind ourselves of who we are and where we come from and that the spirit that live in us lives in all of nature’s creations.
- 5. Constantly remind ourselves that spirituality evolves from exploring and coming to know and experience the nature of living energy moving in each of us, through us and around us.
- 6. Provide room for growth and learning from others.
- 7. Recognize the right for every individual to explore their spiritual identity whether it is religious or not
- 8. Understand the challenges of bringing spirituality into public spaces such as the academy
- 9. Acknowledge and accept there are multiple spiritual ways of knowing and that African women’s spirituality is just one of them
- 10. Aim for inner peace, including the understanding of multiple knowledge systems
- 11. Understanding the colonial context of what happened to spiritual knowledge and ways of knowing, how power permeates societal structures, and how this power is disseminated through pedagogical practices.
A cross-continental black sisterhood rekindled after 30
years: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qebAudvb1VU
Barbara Smith, ‘That’s
not going to work for us’: http://www.makers.com/moments/black-feminism-and-domestic-violence
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