S4E12: The Origins of White Feminism

Feminism is complex. Oxford dictionary defines feminism as, "The advocacy of women's rights on the basis of the equality of the sexes." But the trouble with this idea of feminism is, first and foremost, having to buy into a gender binary in which other oppressions, such as racism, are excluded. In their book review of White Women's Rights: The Racial Origins of Feminism in the United States, Alok Vaid-Menon concludes, "White women were more invested in privilege than equality, seeking the right to oppress others rather than imagining a more just world for everyone." In S4E12, we discuss the history of white feminism.