Third World Feminism
In Chandra Talpade Mohanty’s “Feminism without Borders” it analyzes the omnipresent concept of “white feminism” and the difference of “third world feminism.” The quote, “Unlike the history of Western (white, middle-class) feminisms, which has been explored in great detail over the last few decades, histories of Third World women’s engagement with feminism are in short supply” (Mohanty) is such a true statement. Most people who think of feminism picture the white, privileged, heterosexual woman wearing her “the future is female” sweat factory made shirt while protesting her first world problems. Feminism should be intersectional and inclusive to all.
Third World women face the brunt of blame as described in the quote: “scholars often locate ‘Third World women’ in terms of the underdevelopment, oppressive traditions, high illiteracy, rural and urban poverty, religious fanaticism, and ‘overpopulation’ of particular Asian, African, Middle Eastern, and Latin American countries” (Mohanty). I’ve read a lot of overpopulation analysis papers, and most argue that it’s due to the fault of women in those third world countries who don’t have the access to contraception or education. Instead of blaming the women, maybe we should think about the system. As most problems we face as a society, the system is what is at fault.
These double standards “freeze Third World women in time, space, and history” (Mohanty) and this is why we still face the same problems and make the same mistakes. We don’t listen to each other and look to our past to create effective solutions. We can use “feminism” to our advantage and stand together under that term, but we can’t if it is exclusive to only one demographic.
