From the redlining of school districts to keep Black neighborhoods in lower income areas or the ongoing disenfranchisement of minority voters, WOC have historically faced struggles unique in comparison to white women’s experiences. By dismissing their privilege, white feminists create an environment that gaslights and diminishes WOC who speak about their lived experiences. The image of a girlboss mirrors that of the American dream, the simple statement that hard work equals success. Under America’s supposed meritocracy, it is uncomfortable to point out how one might have inadvertently benefitted from others’ oppression. Often painted as attempts to be “logical” or “positive,” white women’s tendency to tell WOC to “calm down” when expressing their frustrations with girlboss feminism erases the historic and systematic nature of their disadvantages to blaming it on an individual’s personality. By nitpicking at the delivery to distract from the overall message, this tone policing shifts the focus of the conversation from systematic racism to a diluted “bad apple” perspective that fails to recognize the larger systemic barriers that WOC face. The prominence of self proclaimed girlbosses in the media can certainly encourage young girls to become confident entrepreneurs, rather than feeling confined to traditionally female jobs or powerless. However, to WOC, it is an empty promise that may lead to disillusionment. It is difficult to distinguish capitalism from
racism: minorities will be negatively affected by hiring practices due to the
pervasiveness of unconscious stereotypes and biases in larger culture, as employers continue to only seek who might help maximize profits, as shown in a United Nations report from 2016 that found that white people were most likely to be hired for skilled, non-manual jobs. Although white women reaped the most benefits from first and second wave feminism,, it is time for them to take a backseat to the voices of BIPOC women who can speak more personally to the intersectionality of issues such as racism and feminism. Rather than hijacking the feminist movement, white women must focus on using their privilege to continue to uplift minorities’ voices and contribute to meaningful change. True allyship results from acknowledging one’s privilege and contributing to movements of racial justice and equality without diminishing those that have experienced these injustices firsthand, and this starts with abolishing girlboss feminism.
