Understanding White Feminism
White Feminism is a political stance that universalizes white women's concerns as all feminists' concerns, reflecting a refusal to acknowledge racial privilege. This term has gained prominence in contemporary feminist discourse, highlighting the need for more inclusive approaches to gender equality.
Defining White Feminism
What It Is
A political position that centers white women's experiences while failing to consider racial privilege. It ignores intersectionality and excludes the struggles of women of color, trans women, and non-binary people.
What It Isn't
Not defined solely by a person's race but by their approach to feminism. White women can practice intersectional feminism, and non-white women can perpetuate white feminist ideologies.
Common Example
Focusing on closing the gender-based pay gap without examining how race compounds this inequality, overlooking that women of color face significantly wider wage disparities.
Historical Context
Suffragette Movement
Early feminist movements frequently marginalized Black women, with leaders like Susan B. Anthony stating she would rather "cut off her right arm" than advocate for Black suffrage alongside women's.
Colonial "Savior" Complex
White women participated in colonial missions of "saving" women of color, imposing Western values while ignoring local expertise and autonomy.
Appropriation of Movements
Recurring pattern of white feminists taking credit for and mainstreaming movements initiated by women of color, often removing radical elements.
Characteristics and Manifestations
Selective Focus
Centers gender oppression while minimizing or ignoring racial oppression, creating a hierarchy of concerns that privileges white women's experiences.
Symbolic Exclusion
Embraces symbols like pink pussy hats that have been criticized as trans-exclusionary and centered on cisgender white women's bodies and experiences.
Credit Appropriation
Takes credit for movements started by women of color, such as #metoo (founded by Tarana Burke), while white celebrities receive recognition.
Corporate Feminism
Embraces capitalistic, individualistic narratives that emphasize "breaking glass ceilings" rather than dismantling systems of oppression.
Contemporary Examples
#MeToo Attribution
Media spotlight on white celebrities while Tarana Burke, who founded the movement in 2006, was initially overlooked in mainstream coverage.
#MeToo Attribution
Media spotlight on white celebrities while Tarana Burke, who founded the movement in 2006, was initially overlooked in mainstream coverage.
Selective Outrage
Intense focus on Hollywood sexual assault cases while violence against Indigenous women and other women of color receives minimal attention.
Selective Outrage
Intense focus on Hollywood sexual assault cases while violence against Indigenous women and other women of color receives minimal attention.
Silencing Tactics
Using "women-empowerment" rhetoric to deflect or silence discussions about racism within feminist spaces.
Silencing Tactics
Using "women-empowerment" rhetoric to deflect or silence discussions about racism within feminist spaces.
Missing Justice
Lack of mainstream feminist attention to missing and murdered Indigenous women despite epidemic levels of violence.
Missing Justice
Lack of mainstream feminist attention to missing and murdered Indigenous women despite epidemic levels of violence.
Critiques and Alternatives
Intersectionality
Approaches that center marginalized perspectives and recognize how multiple forms of oppression interact.
Global Awareness
Addressing power discrepancies in international feminist organizing and avoiding Western savior narratives.
Critical Self-Reflection
Examining Western practices with the same critical lens applied to other cultures.
Complexity Recognition
Understanding that white women can simultaneously experience gender oppression while benefiting from racial privilege.
Confronting White Feminism

Self-reflection
Examining one's own privilege and complicity
Making connections
Understanding how white feminism supports white supremacy
Ongoing commitment
Recognizing that dismantling white feminism is continuous work
Building solidarity
Developing authentic connections across different identities
Confronting white feminism requires honest examination of how racial privilege operates within feminist spaces. This work isn't a one-time acknowledgment but an ongoing practice of listening, learning, and changing behaviors.
Moving Beyond White Feminism

True Liberation
Feminism that challenges all power structures
Interconnected Struggles
Linking feminist issues to broader systems of oppression
Amplifying Voices
Prioritizing marginalized perspectives in leadership
Universal Solidarity
Fighting for all women, not just those with privilege
Inclusive Foundation
Building movements on intersectional principles