The article presented views regarding how people are defined by their religion, race, creed, culture amongst several factors. Society plays a role in determining the role that each of these various groups plays in influencing the activities of society itself. In certain cases, some groups can exert more influence than others while others continue to remain the suppressed and the “underdogs´, in a matter of speech.
The main focus was on women in particular who have had to face several discriminatory actions over time and hence, the struggle to assume equal rights has been long and persistent. The social conventions and norms have created an unappealing world for women to live and operate in. Gender and race are the defining aspects according to which the race to success can be achieved.
There is an underlying sense of resentment not only for the men’s oppressors but even for the “white” women who continue to play a vindictive role in this power-sharing process. Not only have they been presented as ignorant but they possess the ability to enhance the role of oppression within the society.
Society, therefore, is presented as a biased mixture of people who are bound by race more than anything else. Race precedes all differences and therefore, the struggle for equality is much greater for black women than for women.
The rule of divide and conquer is presented by the lack of unifying interests that take place within the black community. Black women view feminism as a weapon that would act against the interests of the black community. However, its view is presented in a rather harsh light as the fight for equality in all aspects has unified all women in several cases. And as the years go by, the differences have decreased and the situation has improved to a certain extent. The article does provide stark views due to the staunchness of the belief of the writer of the prevailing differences that have continued to dominate and will continue to do so thereon as well.
The article begins with a personal introduction of the author which is done to familiarize the readers with the personal biases that exist and the following essay outlines why they do. The essay centers on the negative forces that pertain to the way society continue to uphold racial differences and the bleakness of the situation is presented by the refusal of the black community itself to take corrective action.
The oppression has been dominant for so long, as the author points out, due to the inability of the black community to gather and act as a collective force. Somewhere the underlying tone presents the resentment that exists within the black community as a result of the above inability. The weaker sex; women are highlighted as the most oppressed as a result of the biases that pertain in society and which continue to exist.
Society is presented as a state of macabre where the people have been used for their benefits and purposes and continue to be used in this manner. Man has been pitted against man and history has several instances of wars having been fought for several reasons. These very divisions have threatened the structure of society and hence, the inequalities.
Women have continued to assert their rights but what this article places into question is the progress that has been made by them. Has this gender been able to achieve some level of equanimity or has the façade been just that-a a mere façade?
The reader is made to sit up and question these norms which bound us all to the present state of confusion and division that still exists and the various quotes and examples are portrayed to highlight the stark differences that these divisions have created. These instances are provided to certify the reason for the existence of feminists in the world of today.
The underlying irony that the author presents is the fact that these feminists are scorned as perpetrators and the cause of mayhem in an otherwise convention-bound society. The very fact that these feminists are the cause for some of the rights given to women today has been overlooked by men and hence, here lies the real matter. The questioning of those activities which seek to overtake social norms which themselves have created well-defined inequalities and discriminations.
The author questions the notion of sisterhood; the notion of all women being alike irrespective of their racial and cultural differences. This very notion is laughable due to the basic discriminations that exist within women today. Color has defined the rights the women have been granted and what has been overlooked is the abysmal role of history and precedents.
The “generation” gap is presented as one of the major causes behind this normative slavery. Slavery comes across each time a black woman goes to the grocery store. It is slavery that penetrates the existence of every black girl born today. The sad fact is that the older generation and the present generation refuse to align themselves to overcome these and hence, these differences are passed down generation by generation. Examples of art and literature are presented as the suffering occupancies which have had to face the brunt of a society that has been relentless in its pursuit of power and autonomy. The oppressed continue to be oppressed for the sake of maintaining the status quo and the power of the dominant ones.
The differences that exist between women even today have been overlooked by the fairer sex due to their fight for equality. For them, the fight is about obtaining their won rights and hence, the oppression of the black women, in particular, is somehow overlooked by them. The author outlines the basic weakness that exists even within women themselves.
The article highlights their failure to act as a collective force has allowed the men to dominate and subjugate them to even greater oppression. The feminists are even presented in an unfavorable light by the same men as it allows them to create differences and discord amongst women in general.
True awakening and realization, as outlined by the author, can never come across unless all are treated alike and meted the same way. What the article is insistent upon and the reader made aware of is the necessity to overcome these inherent divisions. As long as the black community women continue to hold each other with the eye of disfavor, progress is unquestionably limited.
What the reader realizes is that certain issues cannot be shared by all and hence, there lies the power of dominance. The violence and crimes that are experienced by black women on each walk of life cannot be shared by white women and hence, there lie the differences to which the black women are treated. The violence that is meted by black men to black women is seen as another measure of control which the women are subjected to each day of their lives and the very fact that feminism is scorned by them highlights the extremity of the situation.
These women have no source of escape as their gender refuses to accept these violent crimes, men subjugate them to the worst sort of human deprivation possible while society continues to threaten the fabric of their existence.
The reader might be horrified by the situation but what has to be hence, understood is the resilience and strength of character that these women have possessed for so many decades. They have continued to remain strong and the fight has been persistent. Despite all sorts of depraved activities and actions, their pursuit for a fairer and more equal world remains strong.
Lesbianism within the black community is akin to the existence of a sin-another prominent concern of the author. The underlying ironical tone is the fact these lesbians are scorned by those who themselves are the cause of much mayhem and evil activities. Due to this form of social control, the women have rejected their roles and are caught behind a shroud of fear of discovery of their actual existence.
This fear has penetrated the existence of many black lesbians and hence, the level of discrimination within the black community.
What this article has presented and made the reader aware of are several critical shortcomings of a society that has refused to allow equality to dominate and it is way past time that important changes culminated in order to resolve the above issues.