I previously wrote that Brownfemipower have called it quits. However, it seems bfp decided to tie up some loose ends before she takes her undetermined hiatus. It is still unknown when she’ll be back. Maybe tomorrow, maybe next week, or maybe next year. The point is she needs a little space and is taking a break from the net.

To answer her critics, bfp writes:

This was NEVER ABOUT FUCKING BROWNFEMIPOWER except in the sense that I BELONG to immigrant communities and I BELONG to pro-immigration blogger community and I BELONG to the women of color community and I THOUGHT I belonged to a feminist community.

This was about women of color constantly being written out of feminism, being written out of our own communities BY feminism—then being beaten up by feminists with JUST DO IT, JUST DO IT, JUST FUCKING DO IT YOU LAZY SPICS.

(I want to pause here to note three things: 1. Do you realize how fucked up it is that for some reason it is “wrong” for a woman of color to want the same advantages that white women get for doing the same work? 2. Do you realize how much it sucks (worst thing possible) that I have written about media justice for two fucking years and there is STILL a whole group of assholes who claim to have been regular readers and can somehow manage to say with a straight face that I want to “own” ideas and/or steal ideas from others? and 3. Do you realize how much it sucks (worst thing possible) that even when I do my best to state my anger WITH THE FULL RECOGNITION that what I am saying may hurt somebody and thus ACTIVELY work to PROTECT that person while still expressing my anger–I am STILL berated for being angry, mean, judgemental, too harsh–and furthermore–I should EXPECT the attacks that I get? Do you recognize the problems with telling a woman of color that she can not even show anger at *anonymous*?)

The point of her last post before she took down her blog, was to address three points:

… just as with black amazon and her fateful “fuck seal press” comment—it’s interesting that I wrote a whole post in which I clearly stated:

1. there are clear racialized reasons why women of color are never and will never be the sought after by big companies, named as the leader of feminist movements, asked for interviews etc
2. that white feminists bear a responsibility (that they are NOT accepting and in fact are actively rejecting) to negotiate power and create spaces (while working alongside or a step behind marginalized communities) in which power is de-centralized
3. As a result I do NOT consider myself to be a part of any fucking “feminist movement” because to me, feminism requires diversity (We have a responsibility (especially in the undergraduate years) to demonstrate to ALL students, no matter what their identity is, how to interact with the critical thinking of people who think differently than they do. To bring this a step further, however, feminist academics who are actively aware of how power plays out in very negative ways in the classroom, have a very specific responsibility to those students who have little to no power. The very basis of feminist scholarship/academic training is to dismantle and/or redistribute the power structure within a classroom and the academy. Women’s studies is nothing more than an articulation of this demand–women WILL be studied. Men will NOT be the focus of all academic work. Thus, women’s studies professors (and all other ethnic studies, disability studies etc depts) have built the commitment to diversity within a classroom into their very existence–so I feel no qualms at all about insisting that women’s studies professors (and instructors, lecturers, adjuncts etc) are *required* to show diversity within the classroom through the texts that they teach.)

There are a lot of blogs (Mandolin at Alas, a blog; Belledame at Fetch me my axe; Sudy at A Womyn’s Ecdysis; and Zenobia at The Scary Door that are having interesting conversations regarding Brownfemipower’s latest blog post.

There is question bfp once again prompted a flurry of responses regarding her withdrawal from the “feminist movement” and her rejection of the “feminist” label. The responses have ranged from “hell yeah” to “not a chance.”

From what I have read and seen, viewed in a larger perspective, I can see why BFP is frustrated. We are currently living in a time of transition. The uncertainties and possibilities that go with this transition are spawning new social movements and networks. When it comes to movement building, it can be complex and can be full of land mines.

The struggles in the “feminist movement” are not any different from the other movements that currently exist; it is fragmented, which is limiting their power to change the status quo. These days it is far from fashionable to be a critical about societal norms. However, as BFP experienced, when one’s views are seen as being too critical, it can invite ridicule from all areas, including some on the left. Charges range from being a naive leftist, to giving into some utopianism fantasy.

How can one expect to be appreciated, when what you’re doing is criticizing the status quo? There seems to be a tendency to subjugate, dismiss, scorn, and ostracize any argument that deviates from rational to irrational. The only element of empowerment in such a scenario is endorsement of what is “right.”

Ostracism is one of the most radical forms of peer pressure; it is the exclusion of disapproved individuals from interaction with a social group.

While some criticism can be seen as productive, however, in today’s society, it is a desperate attempt to dismiss any challenger to the status quo. We have become a nation of self-fulfilling prophet, whether one is conscious of it or not.

We continually abandon those who closely align to us for someone with more star power. We continue to believe in the myths that are meant to keep the status quo. Sadly, a large majority of people today, see life through a zero-sum game lens, where winners are praised and losers are purged.

We have lost faith in ourselves, in the people, and true democracy. Most importantly, we are terrified of our own freedom.

We continually abandon those who closely align to us for someone with more star power. We continue to believe in the myths that are meant to keep the status quo. Sadly, a large majority of people today, see life through a zero-sum game lens, where winners are praised and losers are purged.

Change will never arise as long as we keep feeding the bonds that keep us down.

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