From “Scratching the Surface,” in Sister Outsider by Audre Lorde
I think this applies to lesbians as well as non-lesbian women. Let’s discuss.
(via sisteroutsider)
I find it hard to believe someone loves herself when she doesn’t love other Black women who are a reflection of herself. I am frustrated how some of my friends will constantly go back to men who repeatedly wrong them, yet will cut off a woman for minor infractions. And use the minor infractions as reason to confirm their suspicions of women and continue to paint other black women as the competition.
(via tabbythegreat)
I think the major challenges here are patriarchy and heteronormativity as systems of oppression. Regardless of our sexual orientation, women are encouraged to compete with each other for the attention of men (and women) and are taught that women are sneaky, haters, man (or woman) stealing, etc. We are also taught that without a partner, we are valueless. Which further encourages competition among women to obtain a mate, even at the expense of sisterhood.
Now, I’m not saying that we cannot resist these structures, most of us do it every day. But how can we become more compassionate towards each other and resist the characterizations that those who wish to oppress insist on binding us with? Every time we call a woman a “ho, skank, chickenhead” or something similar, we feed into these systems, thus perpetuating our own oppression. How do WE make it stop? Because we know that THEY never will.
(via sisteroutsider)
