Journal #4: The Epidemic of White Feminism and Whitewash in Today's Media

In Mann's "Doing Feminist Theory," she expresses the issue of people approaching feminism in a "do-it-yourself" or grab bag sort of way where "people can pick and choose what definition of feminism best applies to their own concerns and interests." This is exactly the problem with a subcategory of feminism that has gotten a lot of attention in the media lately known as White Feminism.

White feminism is feminism that ignores intersectionality. White feminism tends to ignore the issues of any person who is not white, cis, and straight. It shows no concern for the struggles and hardships people of color, trans people. people with disabilities, or members of the LGBT community face. White feminists do not realize that the way white women experience misogyny are not the same ways in which women of color and other types of women experience misogyny.

White feminism was a large topic of conversation when Nicki Minaj and Taylor Swift got into the now infamous twitter exchange. For the 2015 VMA's, MTV's nominees for Video of the Year included Taylor Swift's Bad Blood video. However, Nicki Minaj's Anaconda video was snubbed. Minaj made the statement on Twitter, "if your video celebrates women with very slim bodies, you will be nominated for vid of the year." To which, Taylor Swift felt the need to respond to because she felt personally attacked. Swift accused Nicki of pitting women against each other. However Swift failed to recognize, Minaj's discontent was not just because she wasn't nominated for video of the year. Minaj was discontented with how whitewash the VMA's, as well as other award show nominations, were. Bad Blood was chosen due to it's almost entirely white cast of women that fit societies beauty standard.

Minaj, who is an extremely good example of a modern feminist, received much backlash from the media surrounding this Twitter exchange. In almost all articles about the exchange, Nicki was portrayed as an angry, black woman. While Taylor was portrayed as the innocent victim. People largely seemed to miss Minaj's point that black artists are often snubbed for their work, while white artists are celebrated for doing the same thing.

White feminism is a dangerous and exclusive form of feminism that silences the voices of any woman who isn't straight, cis, and white. It is important that we have feminism that is all inclusive and celebrates all types of women.