Welcome to the revolution…
My godson once asked me why I don’t like the card game Old Maid. I explained that Old Maid is a negative stereotype created by a patriarchal society intent on shaming women about their age and marital status. Now, he was three at the time so he just gave me a look of confusion and dismissal.
Then, his mom (AKA “The Hater”), chimes in. “Girl, it’s just a game. On one hand, you’re boasting about your independence and on the other, you’re talking about finding a husband before your eggs turn to dust. Which one is it?”
Well, it’s both.
Black Womanhood is not one size fits all. It’s rich and complex. As I grow wiser, I am learning to embrace all aspects of who I am. The social justice advocate fighting in a world that has clearly lost its mind! The Pro-Choice Christian, who believes every woman has a right to make decisions concerning her body without government interference. The plus-sized diva who loves glitter, baking, boxing, and occasionally twerking in her living room.
Welcome to the revolution! The stiletto revolution. Comprised of unapologetic women who embrace the complexities of who they are and stand strong in a world that is determined to define us, with or without our permission.
Each episode, we explore women’s stories and social justice issues relevant to us and we always add a little sparkle. This isn’t your momma’s bra burning conversation.
So put on your most fabulous pair of shoes, shout your cause, and join me in the trenches for the Stiletto Revolution!
-Dawn
Definitions
Social Justice (noun): The equitable distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges in a society.
Racial Justice (noun): The conscious and proactive reinforcement of policies, practices, attitudes, and actions that produce equitable power, access, opportunities, treatment, impacts, and outcomes for all races.
Equity (noun): The fair distribution of opportunities. Everyone gets what they need to be successful.
Equality vs Equity: While similar, neither these words, nor their definitions are interchangeable. Equality is about ensuring that everyone has the same thing in order to be successful. The problem with equality is that it assumes that everyone is starting equally (i.e. from the same place and having the same quality of opportunities and privileges from the beginning). Equity takes into consideration the historical and systemic oppression of populations and aims to balance the scales of justice so everyone wins in the end. In an equitable society, everyone may not receive the exact same thing, but rather what they need in order to get to a place of equality.
Intersectionality (noun): The complex and cumulative way that the effects of different forms of discrimination (racism, sexism, homophobia, classism) overlap, specifically in the experiences of marginalized people or groups.
Inclusion (noun): The conscious and proactive action or state of including various races, genders, sexual orientations, and classes into a community or professional group with out the expectation of assimilation, but instead embracing and respecting the differences as well as the similarities. Diversity means nothing if conscious inclusion and equity are cohesively involved.
Implicit Bias (noun): (also known as Unconscious Bias) The underlying assumptions, attitudes and stereotypes people unconsciously attribute to another person or group that affect how they understand and/or engage with said person or group. These biases are typically based on race, gender, sexual orientation, and class.