The term "feminism" has become so popular in the late 2010s that I remember at one point it was becoming more mainstream, which lead to people getting annoyed of the word. Annoyed because they know that this word trumps their ideologies that are oh, so 20th century. However, as of lately white feminism has been more at the forefront than any other feminism, and it's scary how people can miss it.
White feminism focuses on struggles of white women ONLY and it doesn't include anyone else, and many people thinks it's what feminism is in a nutshell. To be more specific, many white women would think that's "feminism."
A number of white people seem to always advocate for equal rights and keeps preaching "All Lives Matter" and etc, but yet they fail to advocate those who don't have the same privileges as them.
Lana Del Rey, a popular singer made a complaint on her Instagram with a statement that she gets crap for "romanticizing abuse" and similar topics in comparison to well-known women of color like Beyonce, Nicki Minaj, Kehlani and Doja Cat for getting #1s with songs about being "sexy, wearing no clothes, fucking, cheating etc."
Some of you guys might have very mixed feelings with what she said, and that's very valid. If you don't see the problem, let me elaborate for you.
For starters, Lana mentioned these female artists because she genuinely admires them, which is no problem at all. The reason why many aren't happy with it is that her mentioning mostly women of color and comparing herself with them because they were able to address certain "taboo" topics in their songs and not hers, sounds very off. It doesn't sit right.
Of course, most women in the industry went through hell to get where they are today. No one wants to discredit her work and the hustle to make it this far but her being white gives her more of an advantage in the industry than women of color. The WOC Lana mentioned would not only have to face sexism, but also racism and/or xenophobia in the industry.
If you don't see it, I don't know how to break it to you but, you probably think like or, you're just a white feminist.
None of these women asked for these challenges, so why do you Ms. Karen Del Rey think you deserve better than these women?
Just as I thought the situation couldn't get any worst, she made another Instagram post (there was more before this post) addressing this issue but STILL dragging other WOC into her story which involved FKA Twigs this time.
She mentions that FKA Twigs was able to use pole dancing for her art but she couldn't.
“The difference is, when I get on the pole, people call me wh*re, but when [FKA] twigs gets on the pole, it’s art.”
This is the worst way of addressing your point, you just proved yourself that you are VERY privileged to see the real issue.
Lana Del Rey is a privileged white woman who doesn't seem to understand why people of color are mad, and chooses to stay ignorant and tells people to "f*ck off" for whoever is against her Karen agenda.
Lana, stop painting yourself as the victim and understand real-life issues WOC face. You're missing the point on why people are calling your post out, but of course you don't see it because of your white privilege. You could've addressed this issue WITHOUT dragging in WOC because there are a whole different level of hardships that you will never have to face as a white woman.
For those who still sides with her, I would like you to understand how your kind of ideologies hurt many black and brown communities. Ideologies like this are the reason why many WOC go through so much hardships in their careers, and that's just one part of the problem.
Especially with what's going on in the Black Lives Matter movement today including a whole pandemic while we're also about to approach elections season, white feminists will only make everything worst if they keep continuing this performative charade.
White feminism is a strong catalyst for more chaos than you can imagine.
This piece comes from the author's opinion that doesn't necessarily resonate to all, if you have questions or inquiries you can email at ainsarafina@gmail.com or contact her on Twitter @ainaateyou. She appreciates intellectual discussions about these issues!
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