Heather Frederick, USA, SSH Blog Correspondent
Race has always been an issue in the United States, and even now everyone from Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor to basketball legend LeBron James are talking about its impact. From how we speak to how we’re educated to what job opportunities are afforded to us (or not) our race is one of the most impactful pieces of our identity. Feminism has recently learned the importance of examining intersectionality–how the intersection of each facet of one’s identity comes together to create an individual who is simultaneously privileged and oppressed by life in America.
Much as it can be difficult for someone who is oppressed in many ways to see their privilege(s), when someone is harassed, or worse attacked, it can be difficult to recognize the humanity of the person being violent. While I believe in nonviolence, especially strategic nonviolent action in the form of civil resistance, to create change, I am not nonviolent on principle like Gandhi or King. I believe that I have the right to use violence to defend myself from physical harm, however, if the violence coming at me is not physically damaging but emotional, how do you defend against that?
One thing I make every effort to do is to see a street harasser as an individual. Period. This one person, or perhaps carload of people, is acting alone, not in cahoots with the Universe to make my day worse or make me feel unsafe. As a feminist I recognize that this one individual acting out sexism and misogyny is in cahoots with the Patriarchy to continue to oppress women/LGBTQ folk, but, this individual does not speak for all men, nor does he speak for all people of his race, or class, or education level. He speaks for himself alone.
Because America is still so segregated, it’s common for people to live in communities where they don’t often interact with people of other races. The fewer interactions one has with members of any given race, the more likely the negative interactions they do have will stand out. And because rape culture still encourages the idea that “real rape” is a black man jumping out of the bushes to rape a white woman, the reality that most sexual assaults are committed against someone of the same race as the perpetrator is ignored. While it can be difficult to be logical after being harassed, reminding yourself that not all people of the harasser’s race are “like that” can help you keep an open heart to the rest of your community.
The other tactic that has been therapeutic for me lately has been to remind myself, after I am harassed, of how many men, how many cars have passed me up until that point that have *not* harassed me. For those men are the example we want others to follow. We are surrounded by men all the time who treat us with respect, and we should remind ourselves of these men when we are harassed. We should point them out to the guy at the bus stop who won’t leave us alone. We should enlist their help in re-educating men about what masculinity and being a man mean. We should not let their sexism fuel our racism.
Heather Frederick works a Supervisor for The National Dating Abuse Helpline, www.loveisrespect.org. Her passions include intersectional feminism, reproductive justice, languages, travel, blogging at www.FeministActivism.com (@FeministSNVA) and bringing an end to human rights abuses.
