Exploring The Relationship Between Black Feminist Thought and Decoloniality

Introduction

The current systems and power structures are from the hegemonic western and imperialist perspectives that have plundered, pillaged, and raped much of the modern world. These systems and structures were built on the understanding and necessity that the “other” is inherently inferior. Over the past century, several theories have arisen with the goal (either directly or indirectly) of fighting for liberation from the imperialist capitalist system that endangers so many. Two theories, in particular, are worthy of exploring and could be extremely beneficial when used in combination. Black Feminist Theory and Decoloniality both focus on disrupting the current system, uplifting marginalized voices, and demanding respect, equality, and equity. Scholars such as Kristie Dotson argue that Black Feminist Theory can be used on the way to decolonization. However, I believe that Black Feminist Theory and Decoloniality are so interconnected that one cannot exist without the other. This paper and accompanying giga-map will explore the ways in which Black Feminism and Decoloniality are related and conclude with ways in which we can make systemic change through utilizing both schools of thought.

What is Decoloniality?

This paper’s primary focus is connecting Black Feminist Theory with decoloniality based on the presumption that there is a basic understanding of decoloniality. However, it is still necessary to define the theory and give a short background overview for needed context. The term decoloniality was developed by scholar Walter Mignolo to be used a means to “delink from the overall structure of knowledge in order to engage in epistemic reconstitution.” More plainly put, by applying the framework of decoloniality one is able to engage in knowledge/theories/practices that have been pushed aside for colonial and modernist advancements. Most importantly, it gives credence to the “multiplicity of lives”, indigenous peoples, and their ways of thinking. The existence of decoloniality is meant to disrupt the western hegemonic power structure by attacking (and dismantling) colonialism and settler-colinalism. This theory is, unsurprisingly, one that is considered more radical by western scholars. Within the study of decoloniality there is still a vast spectrum of ideas and perspectives which show how nuanced the field is becoming. Tuck and Yang for example take a much more pragmatic approach to decoloniality in their article Decolonization is Not a Metaphor in which there is no concern for the perspectives of the settlers and claims decolonization can only happen bpatriation of land to indigenous people. This perspective, albeit important to understand, differs from Mignolo’s original premise of decolinality. The two converge, however, when discussing that there can be no future based in modernity (which Mignolo equates with coliniality) that also includes the liberation of indigenous people. Decoloniality at its core aims to increase our knowledge and acceptance of the “other” while working to deconstruct the colonial power matrix that has brought us to the present regime of racial capitalism, the genocide of indigenous people, and inequality.

Black Feminist Theory

Black feminist theory grew out of decades of activism, and racial and sexist violence towards Black women. The first wave of feminist thought came out of the abolitionist movement and helped white women pass the 19th amendment. Shirley Tee (1992) states that “between 1830 and 1860s black women abolitionists had developed a collective feminist consciousness that reflected their particular experiences as a Black woman as well as the aspects of sexism they shared with white women”. However, most Black women in the United States were enslaved and still considered the legal property of others. Black women, both free and enslaved, had virtually no rights and were often blamed for their own assault and abuse. Black female abolitionists like Ida B. Wells and Sojourner Truth began to work with white women activists to garner support for the right to vote but it soon became clear that while both white and Black women shared the same gender they did not share the same perspective on gaining equality for all women. Sojourner Truth’s seminal speech “Ar’nt I a Woman” was an important part in the foundation of Black feminist thought by calling attention to the intersection of race and gender.

The second wave of Black Feminism was centered around the civil rights and Black power movements of the 1950s and 60s. Black women were yet again activists and leaders within these movements but were still treated unfairly by their male counterparts. “In the streets, they [Black women] were still beaten and arrested but back at headquarters they stil did ‘womans work’.” The movements for Black equality made Black women choose between their race and their gender. Being both Black and Woman left Black women in “double jeopardy” or, in other words, double-othered. Black men and white women were both an in-group and an out-group depending on their race or gender and activists often put their in-group ahead of ensuring Black women were awarded the same freedoms they were fighting for. The transition to the more nationalist Black Power movement of the late 60s and early 70s saw more visible Black female activists yet they too experienced an immense amount of sexism from their male peer. The extra fight Black women had to endure alone is what led to the founding of groups like the Combahee River Collective and National Black Feminist Organization, which highlighted the need for Black feminist theory.

The Combahee River Collective ignited the formalized theory of Black Feminism that had been developing over the past century. The group, formed in 1983, brought together Black lesbians who were “actively committed to struggling against racial, sexual, heterosexual, and class oppression.” Sitting at the intersection of multiple marginalized identities (Black, woman, and lesbian) called for the attention to realities many Black women faced. The collective boldly stated that their politics come from the “shared belief that Black women are inherently valuable” and that their “liberation is a necessity not as an adjunct to someone else’s.” This notion that Black women deserve liberation in their own right, not as a secondary or tertiary act to other liberatory movements (ie- the Civil Rights and Women’s Rights movements) was a radical and isolating concept. Perhaps most importantly, the Collective realized that the liberation of all oppressed peoples requires the dismantling of capitalist, imperialist, and patriarchal systems.

Unlike the theory of decoloniality which originated from scholars, Black feminist theory came from activists who time and time again found themselves on the outskirts of the movements they were fighting for. Black feminist theory has developed into a formalized and respected form of thought but its roots will always be tied to the eternal struggle of liberation for Black women from abolition to gay rights.

How are Decoloniality and Black Feminist Theory Related?

Both schools of thought emerged from the necessity of acknowledging and centering marginalized peoples and both were borne from the genocide and subjugation of peoples by the western imperialist systems. At its most basic foundation, Decoloniality and Black Feminist Theory share the same belief that all people should be free from the oppression imposed by the western hegemony. This fundamental tenet that roots both theories creates a connection between the branches of each “tree” allowing seemingly unrelated topics to become interwoven. There is a vast number of connections between the two theories that extend much further than the scope of this paper and project. I will focus on what I believe to be the three most significant connections between Decoloniality and Black Feminist Theory.

Exclusion from other social movements

As discussed earlier, Black Feminist Theory arose — at least partially — because of the exclusion of Black women from other social movements like the abolitionist, women’s rights, and civil rights movements. The exclusion of Black women’s unique experience as being both Black and woman meant that Black women’s rights and freedoms were never thought of as a necessity for liberation, but an afterthought (at most). The lack of intersectional thought by other groups was almost always due to the need to be superior to another group. For white women, they relied on racism as a way to hold power over another group when they did not have the advantage of being both white and male. For Black men, they relied on sexism to retain their power as a man since they did not have the advantage of being both male and white. Both of these ways of thinking by Black women’s peers are rooted in a white supremacist and patriarchal way of thinking that was forced upon the masses during colonization and slavery. This reality left Black women isolated in their experiences and ultimately led to the formation of groups specifically for Black women and other intersectional marginalized communities.

Decoloniality, though formalized by scholars in Latin America (or those related to the continent), has a similar history. The rights of indigenous people, particularly in North America, have often been seen as too complex to be centered in other social justice movements. This notion — that it is “too complex” — is not necessarily incorrect but I believe that it is so complex because of the stark Black/white divide imparted on this country since the beginning of the slave trade. Those who fall somewhere in the middle of this spectrum are often overlooked, even if those people are indigenous to the land we now call America. Decoloniality calls for the same recognition and respect as Black Feminist Theory. It lets everyone know that indigenous people are here and that their voices will not be silenced. That after centuries of genocide, war, and racist policies indigenous people still have the power to demand their liberation, on their terms.

Confronting Western and Capitalist Perspectives

Both theories cite that colonialism and the resulting white and western power structure are the root of the current oppressive forces we all face. Decoloniality aims to disrupt “colonial and settler-colonial logic and the seeming “naturalness” of racial capitalism.”This practice of calling out the impact and egregiousness of racial capitalism and settler colonialism is shared by Black feminist theorists as well. Kristie Dotson believes, “[Black feminist identity politics] aids in retaining the possibility of decolonization in a settler-colonial state by resisting the historical unknowing that facilitates settler futurity.” Both practices see the need for the end of capitalism and the western hegemony but neither focus on directly working with (or under) other current alternative systems such as socialism or communism. This is not because there is no worth in working outside of capitalism but seemingly because both are aware of the perils of other systems that still work in relation to the capitalist system we have all come to know as the only way to live and work. For Black Feminists, several Black Power organizations in the 1960s and 70s supported socialism and communism, yet Black women still faced rampant sexism and misogynoir within those organizations. Similarly, I presume many decolonial theorists have studied or experienced the rise of socialist governments in Latin America. This certainly isn’t to say that they were all failures or worse than living under capitalism, but it does recognize that even within these alternative forms of government indigenous communities were still disenfranchised. I believe that theorists from both practices understand the importance of eradicating racial capitalism but also understand a new regime that does not center decoloniality and Black feminism will continue to oppress the most vulnerable in society.

Focus on creating a new system

Neither decoloniality nor black feminism aims to reimagine a new world that works within the current regime. In fact, both believe it would be impossible to have the liberation of indigenous people and Black women under racial capitalism because racial capitalism necessitates the oppression of those two groups. Instead, the two theories look beyond the current framework in order to create a completely new system. With decoloniality, Mignolo and other theorists aim to move towards a system that acknowledges the “multiplicity of lives and indigenous peoples” while finding a renewed power and respect in other ways of thinking and believing that had existed for thousands of years before western imperialism.

For Black Feminists, I believe, the creation of a new system is more complex as there is nowhere to reach back to. African-Americans do not have a history that extends much before slavery, the multitude of cultures brought by African slaves was quickly stripped from our ancestors; though we see the similarities and ties to the past in dances, foodways, music, and other cultural aspects. Our ancestral ties are strong but limited and thus reimagining a new system by looking to the past is not something Black Feminist Theory can do. I must, however, state that this is my personal opinion as someone who is a Black woman and identifies as a Black Feminist. Like with all other theories and practices there is a diversity of thought and my views likely are not shared with all Black Feminists or theorists. Still, my perspective does not mean a new system that rejects racial capitalism is not one that Black feminists seek to create, as stated in the Combahee River Collective, “the liberation of all oppressed peoples necessitates the destruction of the political-economic systems of capitalism and imperialism as well as patriarchy.”

Mapping Black Feminism and Decoloniality

The Gigamap below shows the links between Black Feminism and Decoloniality by exploring the foundations, reasons, and focus of bother theories.

Understanding the Maps:

The top of the map above visualizes and compares the current regime with a potential future one if theories and practices like Black Feminism and Decoloniality are utilized. The proceeding giga-map shows the relationship between the evolution of both theories (the connecting blue lines) and the relationship between both theories (the connecting dotted red lines). The simple map below highlights some of the more foundational similarities between Black Feminism and Decoloniality. To further explore this Gigamap click here.

Conclusion

This paper and project explored the history of Black Feminism and its connection to decoloniality. By way of a similar history of oppression, genocide, slavery, racism, and white supremacy Black women and Indigenous People have a multitude of similar experiences. While Black Feminism and Decoloniality center Black women and Indigenous thinking, they do not exclude others or feel as though the way for their liberation is at the expense of other groups. It is in this way that these two theories and practices differ dramatically from several other social movements and theories. The two theories are fundamentally the same but are unique in their histories and lived experiences of those who found it necessary to develop them. As seen in the Gigamap, Black Feminism and Decoloniality are more related than they are different. Further, as I claimed at the beginning of this paper, Black feminist thought is inherently decolonial. As we begin to experience the continual destruction of “late capitalism” more emphasis should be placed on these two theories both as separately powerful and informative practices and in combination as a way to inform what our society could look like if we centered some of the most vulnerable voices.

“Always ally yourself with those on the bottom, on the margins, and at the periphery of the centers of power. And in doing so, you will land yourself at the very center of some of the most important struggles of our society and our history.” ― Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor