In “Hashtag Feminism, #SolidarityIsForWhiteWomen, and the other #FemFuture,” Susana Loza describes feminisms on social media by exploring #SolidarityIsForWhiteWomen, #NotYourAsianSidekick, and #FemFuture. Loza focuses on critiques of mainstream feminism expressed by WOC feminists on Twitter and backlash from white feminists who call their tweets “toxic” and “bullying.” Her article argues against silencing WOC feminists with accusations of bullying. Loza’s goal is to improve the feminist movement by calling out white feminists. Loza is probably writing the article for other feminists, because her article tries to shape how we talk about each other’s feminisms.
One thing I enjoyed about Loza’s article was that it referenced and cited a lot of other works. I liked that because I can see it being really useful for feminists who want to learn more about intersectionality, and I know that there are a few books mentioned in the article that I want to learn more about because of reading it. I also liked that the citations showed how Loza was being extremely careful about explaining where different thoughts referenced in her piece came from, especially because the failure to do that was one thing she criticized about the #FemFuture report.
Loza’s article connected to my own experience by reminding me of other ways that mainstream feminism leaves out discussion of racism or is otherwise missing intersectionality. One example that I always think of is Meghan Trainor’s music, especially the song “All About That Bass,” because of how it gets body positivity wrong and is problematic in other ways as well.
While reading Loza’s article, I wondered whether mainstream and intersectional feminisms are really as divided as she envisions. From my point of view, they don’t seem to be, because the Women’s Studies classes I’ve taken have taught intersectionality and the feminist media I consume is intersectional (although a lot of it is coming from tumblr, which has a strong intersectional community), and some mainstream figures like Nicki Minaj include intersectional feminist messages in their work. Is mainstream feminism getting more intersectional?
I’m glad you enjoyed the essay – readers like you, who have been exploring intersectionality and feminism but haven’t yet had the chance to be educated about its longer histories, are probably a big part of who Loza hoped to reach when deciding to publish in an open access online journal.
Your last question is a really important one and speaks to the diversity within even “mainstream” feminisms. Intersectionality is taught in most Women’s Studies classes for sure (UMD also happens to be one of the institutions where black feminism has been most centered and nurtured in the academy!) yet the version of feminism that seems to get perpetuated in the most-consumed media still often misses out on it, or picks it up in only the most simplified way. It’s really difficult to navigate all these multiple conflicts, contradictions, and diversities – yet absolutely important and necessary to do so.