Essay Contest
The Right to Not Write
Incite Change Essay Contest #2: Racism in Feminism
This must’ve been a difficult essay topic. I was hopeful for a serious discussion on a serious topic. We are a Bad Influence because we incite change. It says so right under the #beingBad tab on our home page.
I guess I have been hopeful that the Incite Change Essay Contest would, well, incite. I also want to see all of our writers get some money for all of their hard work. We can’t offer much, but we can do $10 bucks a month. We might be able to do more as time goes by and donations come in.
So, I was pretty disappointed this month when few people took on the challenge to incite change by writing about racism in feminism and intersectionality.
Reuben Salsa pointed out to me that “Racism in Feminism” is a niche topic.
It never occurred to me. I assumed everybody would have an opinion on both racism and feminism and, by extension, racism within the feminist movement. It never occurred to me people might not have even heard the words intersectional and intersectionality.
I was wrong.
I would like to say I’m ok with that. I’m ok with being wrong. I’m ok with racism in feminism being a niche topic. I would like to say I’m ok with people living in ignorance of the fight for intersectionality in social justice.
I would like to but I can’t.
I’m not ok with people staying silent about gender and race equality. I’m not ok with people believing research on this subject is too much work or would be too tedious or they would not be able to sensibly put down in words their opinions.
I’m not ok with people remaining ignorant on a topic very important to me as a feminist, as a believer in equality, as someone who is anything but colorblind, as an ally, as a bisexual person, as a mother to two gay children.
I’m not ok with the silence because I believe it will lead to further oppression. I believe staying silent because a subject is too hard is pretty chickenshit. I believe staying ignorant is also chickenshit.
However. I also believe strongly in personal freedoms and rights. And just as I have the right to rail against the things with which I am not ok, everybody else has the right to stay silent. They have the right to stay ignorant.
People have the right to not write.
And I respect that. I might grumble and kvetch. I might shake my head in dismay. I might even go shout from the rooftops or just scream into the void.
I hope to come up with a more palatable and less “niche” subject for next month’s essay contest. Feel free to comment here. Let me know what you are passionate about. We all have our passions. Let’s share them and write about them and incite some change.
We have a winner!
Karen Traub asks, “If I am not a woman’s rights, what am I?”
Congratulate Karen on her efforts, please.
Photo credit Well Examined Life
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