Reddit reviews Feminism without Borders: Decolonizing Theory, Practicing Solidarity

Every single "person with similar views as nolimitsoldier" I have encountered has always fallen into 1 of the following groups.

1. "12-24 Naive" This is the age where people tend to dismiss feminism without taking any initiative to learn about new and old feminist theories. I understand why so many people in this group so readily believe misconceptions about feminism. It is due to lack of knowledge or background regarding the new and old feminist theories. Also why nolimitsoldier believes all feminists think they are artists / photographers is beyond me. I blame the countless people who don't take the time to learn about the concepts and definitions regarding feminism and much of the media. Isn't until people mature and take the initiative to learn about feminism and realize that modern societies are still patriarchal, misogynist, and sexist.
   
   
2. "Man Eaters" This misconception is the standard among those who still disregard feminism. Most I have met lack any true knowledge on the feminist theory and believe the myth that all feminist are hairy man hating lesbians. Feminists come from all background and genders so this couldn't possibly true. This stereotype is false. Myth:Feminists are man hating lesbians
   
   
3. "Corporate" Again more misconceptions. People complain about feminism, woman, etc, while not understanding what feminism has to do with the plight of the woman. At the end of the day it'll depend on the person and the person they're respecting if they're a good leader or not. Because believe it or not people come from all different backgrounds and cultures! It just goes against our cultured societal beliefs that women can be good leaders. **A side example of this is the iron my shirt incident with Hillary Clinton
   
   
4. "more bullshit" The definition of feminist varies in each textbook but they all mean the same thing in the end: people seeking the equal treatment of women. Men already dominate the world. This hasn't allowed women to dominate or control men in any way. And feminists aren't seeking the domination of men, we are seeking the equality of genders.
   
   To learn more about feminism you can read or watch the following websites,books, or videos:
   
   Youtube Videos or Channels:
   
   

• Tony Porter:A Call to Men
  
• Feminism Survey:Men on the Street
  
• Missrepresentation Documentary Trailer
  
• Joss Whedon's Equality Now speech
  
• Feminist Frequency
  
• Trixie Films
  
  Websites/Blogs:
  
  
• Finally Feminism 101
  
• Feminist Frequency
  
• Geek Feminism
  
• The F-Word
  
• Feminist Peace Network
  
• Gender Across Borders
  
• Feministing
  
• Feministe
  
• Tiger Beatdown
  
• Feminist Teacher
  
• The Feminist Hub
  
• Lipstick Feminists
  
  Books:
  
  
• Feminist Theory: From Margin to Center by Bell Hooks
  
• Feminism: The Essential Historical Writings
  
• Delusions of Gender: How Our Minds, Society, and Neurosexism Create Difference by Cordelia Fine
  
• Gender Knot Revised Ed: Unraveling Our Patriarchal Legacy by Allan G. Johnson
  
• Feminist Theory: A Reader by Wendy Kolmar
  
• The Second Wave: A Reader in Feminist Theory
  
• Third Wave Feminism: Expanded
  
• Different Wavelengths: Studies of the Contemporary Women's Movement
  
• Feminism without Borders: Decolonizing Theory, Practicing Solidarity by Chandra Talpade Mohanty
  
• Defending Our Dreams: Global Feminist Voices for a New Generation
  
• Listen Up: Voices from the Next Feminist Generation
  
• Enlightened Sexism by Susan J. Douglas
  
• Yes Means Yes: Visions of Female Sexual Power and A World Without Rape
  
• The Equality Illusion: The Truth about Women and Men Today by Kat Banyard
  
• Reclaiming the F Word: The New Feminist Movement by Catherine Redfern and Kristin Aune
  
• Transforming a Rape Culture by Emilie Buchwald, Pamela Fletcher and Martha Roth
  
• Well-Behaved Women Seldom Make History by Laurel Ulrich
  
• Men Speak Out: Views on Gender, Sex, and Power

Here is one: https://www.mqup.ca/blog/secwepemc-people-land-laws/

Here is another one: https://www.amazon.ca/Unsettling-Canada-National-Wake-Up-Call-ebook/dp/B012XYFJHO

And another: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/1632460688/?coliid=I9PKGROBS5P88&colid=3VO89QG4XNLG3&psc=0&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

More: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/1632460688/?coliid=I9PKGROBS5P88&colid=3VO89QG4XNLG3&psc=0&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

Additional: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/1626566747/?coliid=I1BAWUWU32N6NC&colid=3VO89QG4XNLG3&psc=0&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

Another: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/1442614714/?coliid=I3P3FGFUIK7RFG&colid=3VO89QG4XNLG3&psc=0&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

One more: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/0888646402/?coliid=I2843W2GF6U9NS&colid=3VO89QG4XNLG3&psc=0&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

More: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/0814798535/?coliid=I30HZQ9D3V5O2W&colid=3VO89QG4XNLG3&psc=0&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

Here: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/1138585866/?coliid=I2UL77UTJ47BF0&colid=3VO89QG4XNLG3&psc=0&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

Another: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/1496201558/?coliid=I3BTQMC9LYCLHJ&colid=3VO89QG4XNLG3&psc=0&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

One: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/0822330210/?coliid=I1SEHQBGT2K6CT&colid=3VO89QG4XNLG3&psc=0&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

Another: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/0803282869/?coliid=IHTY3OT3VU8CZ&colid=3VO89QG4XNLG3&psc=0&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

Last one: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/0773547436/?coliid=ITIW0V5V1H7TR&colid=3VO89QG4XNLG3&psc=0&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

I am a white, feminist, woman artist/academic who does activist art in solidarity with social movements, including Black Lives Matter and immigration activists in my city. For me the key is solidarity. Solidarity is based on mutuality and accountability across difference, on disrupting the idea that you (as a white person) know best, challenging power dynamics that influence knowledge (and art) production and reception, and so on. As a primer, I'd recommend reading a little bit about how feminists of color think about solidarity. This body of writing has really important insights about the do's and don't's of white feminists when representing, or working with communities of color, and it'd likely be very relevant to your concerns about doing art that is meaningful and not appropriative (or worse, violent). One recommendation is Chandra Mohanty's writings on solidarity (e.g. her book "Feminism Beyond Borders"). \

Anyway, if I am doing art that is not speaking to political issues, or that isn't about racism/colonialism or that isn't borrowing stylistically from other cultural groups, I generally feel fairly free to do/make/sell what I want. However, if I am doing art that is about race, state violence, colonialism, etc, I feel there is a very different ethical imperative to avoid the harms you're concerned about. Here are a few key things I'd recommend thinking about when doing that work:

1. If you are trying to do anti-racist art work that supports anti-racist social movements, you should be in direct conversation with those movements. Ask what type of work would be useful to them. Build relationships. Listen to their own articulations of what they need and think about ways to amplify and center their voices. If they say they don't want you to do art about their lives/activism, respect that and don't do it. Having these relationships will make your work better, more impactful, and will provide an avenue for people to hold you accountable when you make mistakes. This is the mutuality/accountability side of doing work in solidarity.
   
   
2. Always ask yourself if your work will cause new pain to people you are trying to support. A good example of this is the recent debate about the painting of Emmitt Till's body, which was done by a white woman. As many feminists of color have written about, white people (including white feminists) ofter perpetuate the glorification and consumption of black death and pain. Doing art that depicts violence against black and brown bodies often reproduced trauma for people of color. Be very careful not to do this. Within my own art and scholarship, for example, I make an explicit choice not to write about graphic details of violence against black bodies, even though my work addresses state violence.
   
   
3. Develop your own style and be careful not to simply adopt art forms that are unique to particular cultural groups. Yes, artists take inspiration from all over, but there is a long history of white people taking the unique cultural crafts and art forms of other people's cultures and profiting off of them--even as people of color may be derided for those exact same forms of expression. If you start turning a profit by weaving kente cloth or painting Mexican sugar skulls, you are treading into appropriation. Don't do it. There are plenty of ways to be creative--even to pay homage--without stealing art forms that are distinctive to an already marginalized group.
   
   
4. If you are doing art that draws from the stories, experiences, or images of people of color, think critically and creatively about how you will do this without being purely extractive. Did you get permission to use someone's image or story? Did you talk to them about how the art will look and where it will be shared? Do you have any plans to redistribute profits you earn through the use of their image/experiences/ideas/etc? Who benefits, and how? I know that art is not a well-paying enterprise and the idea of sharing profits can be difficult for poor artists. Even so, these questions matter. If you turn a profit on art that depicts black experiences or pain, for example, you should be very, very thoughtful about how those profits are used. If sharing monetary proceeds from the sale of art is not possible, then at the very least think about other ways that you can give back--ideally though direct conversations with people impacted by the art work. Don't just assume that it's okay to take other people's stories/images because you want to "raise awareness", unless they have explicitly said this is what they want. For myself, in all the work that I do that addresses state violence, BLM, or immigration issues, a portion of the proceeds are donated to organizations/activists doing that work. Other techniques I use to address this include: giving free prints to the person who featured in the art work, offering time/skills to do art for protests or other events, and directly collaborating with people to create art that tells their stories (e.g. doing comic strips narrated by BLM activists).
   
   
5. Don't be afraid to turn the gaze onto whiteness, white supremacy, and the sources of the forms of violence people of color are experiencing. As a white person, you are in a unique position to do this work. It is important that our art (or writing, scholarship, etc) doesn't only focus on the pain caused by racism/colonialism, but that it also turns the gaze onto the systems and people that perpetrate this. Whiteness shouldn't be invisible in conversations about racism. This "A Syllabus for Making Work About Race as a White Artist in America" offers an excellent list of art activities and exercises for white artists to do that encourage them to think about race in relation to white supremacy.
   
   I know that was a long answer. The point is, there are ways to do this, but do your homework, be thoughtful, be careful, and do the work in solidarity with communities of color whose stories are implicated in your work. Feel free to PM me if you want to know more about the specific way I've navigated this--it's something I've written about, but I don't want to share the full article here.