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Women, Race & Class
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A powerful study of the women's movement in the U.S. from abolitionist days to the present that demonstrates how it has always been hampered by the racist and classist biases of its leaders.
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Paperback, 288 pages
Published
February 12th 1983
by Vintage
(first published 1981)
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Start your review of Women, Race & Class
I really am glad I finally got around to reading this. The book examines the history of the feminist movement in the United States with an eye towards the ways in which the movement fell short on meeting the needs of women who had other marginalized identities. I personally knew some of this history but not all and as Davis mentions it's crucial to grapple with the historic actions of movements when trying to address why certain people choose not to engage in those movements. I also think most p
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Incisive and concise, Women, Race, and Class charts the history of racial and gender oppression in America. In lucid prose Angela Davis breaks down how misogyny, racism, and classism have shaped the character of the nation’s social life from the Antebellum Era to the Sixties. She pays special attention to how white-dominated middle-class social movements often have forgone solidarity with working people and Black people, ostensibly for the sake of political expediency, and highlights how the nar
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LJ user gingersomething:
I really think this should be required reading for middle class white feminists struggling to comprehend intersectionality. Although, judging from that first goodreads review, maybe some are just beyond reach. ...more
I really think this should be required reading for middle class white feminists struggling to comprehend intersectionality. Although, judging from that first goodreads review, maybe some are just beyond reach. ...more
A fantastic book that examines the history of the feminist movement with a keen attention to the intersections of gender, race, and class. The term intersectionality has become such a buzzword nowadays, often used to describe having various social identities; Kimberle Crenshaw created the term in reference to how multiple systems of oppression affect those with more than one marginalized identity. Angela Davis honors this original conception of intersectionality by examining how the feminist mov
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4.5**** rounded up.
If Black people had simply accepted a status of economic and political inferiority, the mob murders would probably have subsided. But because vast numbers of ex-slaves refused to discard their dreams of progress, more than ten thousand lynchings occurred during the three decades following the war.
Concise, informative and at times shocking, Angela Davis has analysed and documented how racism, sexism and classism has effected American social history. Before “intersectionality” w ...more
If Black people had simply accepted a status of economic and political inferiority, the mob murders would probably have subsided. But because vast numbers of ex-slaves refused to discard their dreams of progress, more than ten thousand lynchings occurred during the three decades following the war.
Concise, informative and at times shocking, Angela Davis has analysed and documented how racism, sexism and classism has effected American social history. Before “intersectionality” w ...more
I have been lied to about the Suffrage movement, Susan B Anthony and Elizabeth Stanton.
I think it’s pretty unsettling that words written in the late 70’s/ early 80’s ring true today and I’m left to wonder if we as a society learned anything in the almost forty years when the book was written.
This book is a lesson in the history in the fight to stop sexual violence and supporting reproductive rights and gender equality for women of color and the racism perpetrated at the hands of middle class w ...more
I think it’s pretty unsettling that words written in the late 70’s/ early 80’s ring true today and I’m left to wonder if we as a society learned anything in the almost forty years when the book was written.
This book is a lesson in the history in the fight to stop sexual violence and supporting reproductive rights and gender equality for women of color and the racism perpetrated at the hands of middle class w ...more
An important work marking the intersections of class, race and gender...and all the history behind people you've vaguely looked up to because no one ever talks about the way they really felt about Black people. So you can respect some of what they've done, but Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony and Margaret Sanger are forever debarred from my cannon of heroes.
In criticising the 14th and 15th amendments, Stanton and Anthony descended into a horrifying racism, and I believe Davis is right wh ...more
In criticising the 14th and 15th amendments, Stanton and Anthony descended into a horrifying racism, and I believe Davis is right wh ...more
I give this book 4.5 stars which rounds up to 5.
I read this book for my Women in Politics class.
This book's central focus is intersectional feminism. It highlights how gender, race, and class factor into inequality. This book started off incredibly strong, but lost its way a bit in the later chapters. However, still a fantastic and insightful book.
I read this book for my Women in Politics class.
This book's central focus is intersectional feminism. It highlights how gender, race, and class factor into inequality. This book started off incredibly strong, but lost its way a bit in the later chapters. However, still a fantastic and insightful book.
4.5 stars
There's so much that this book explores, and it provides so much context for current events, like the current state of feminism in the U.S., and some Audre Lorde's essays in Sister Outsider, as well as essays in This Bridge Called My Back. Although this book ended abruptly, it doesn't detract from the obvious comprehensive work and research conducted by Angela Davis. I liked the structure of the book. Sometimes it made for a confusing read as it wasn't necessarily a chronology detailing ...more
There's so much that this book explores, and it provides so much context for current events, like the current state of feminism in the U.S., and some Audre Lorde's essays in Sister Outsider, as well as essays in This Bridge Called My Back. Although this book ended abruptly, it doesn't detract from the obvious comprehensive work and research conducted by Angela Davis. I liked the structure of the book. Sometimes it made for a confusing read as it wasn't necessarily a chronology detailing ...more
A book like absolutely no other, Absolutely no other. Never there was and never there will ever be anyone like Angela Y. Davis. My personal hero, and everything I ever want to be.
I think these days most people who call themselves feminists understand, at least in a vague sense, what "intersectionality" is and accept that it's important. In case you don't, here's Merriam-Webster's definition:
Of course paying lip service to t ...more
intersectionality (n.): the complex, cumulative way in which the effects of multiple forms of discrimination (such as racism, sexism, and classism) combine, overlap, or intersect especially in the experiences of marginalized individuals or groups
Of course paying lip service to t ...more
I adore this book. It is one of those books that blew apart the white middle class way I was raised, and it made me a smarter and better person. Her ideas are so powerful that they deserve to be read and reread.
I may at some point take the time to write something better than this, but I also might not. If I do, it will do more justice to this book than what I am currently offering. If I do not, then this short little paragraph will have to do.
Women, Race, and Class is a classic work. It is old, but it is not dated. It is essential reading in a way that the works of Ta-Nehisi Coates' are not (though that is not to detract from how essential his works are as well). Angela Davis is a visionary, an attenti ...more
Women, Race, and Class is a classic work. It is old, but it is not dated. It is essential reading in a way that the works of Ta-Nehisi Coates' are not (though that is not to detract from how essential his works are as well). Angela Davis is a visionary, an attenti ...more
This is a thorough and fascinating read! I've never read US History through the lens Angel Davis offers in Women, Race, and Class. The fact that Elizabeth Cady Stanton was a suffragist but failed to include Black women in her movement reminds me of today's so-called-feminists who refuse to include trans women in their considerations. I never know how Margaret Sanger voiced eugenic ideology with obvious racist reasoning. I didn't realize the dimensions of consequences that result from the perils
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Angela Davis is a name that I often heard when we are talking about the inequality of America but I do not know much about her. However, I did knew that Angela Rye, a Political commentator was named after her dad who was an advocate of emancipation for Blacks. Now unto reviewing the book which I found very insightful and educational.
"Have not "black male citizens." been heard to say they doubted the wisdom of extending the right of the suffrage to women? Why should the African prove more just an ...more
"Have not "black male citizens." been heard to say they doubted the wisdom of extending the right of the suffrage to women? Why should the African prove more just an ...more
I remember borrowing this book from the public library on Fordham Road when I was 15....it was the first book I ever took out and I never returned it. I poured over its pages. This turned me on to feminist research and critical theory in a way I can't full express. At 15 I knew the life of the mind was for me....which is crazy...
I've since donated a new copy....but I didn't explain to the librarians the circumstances of my donation.
I've since donated a new copy....but I didn't explain to the librarians the circumstances of my donation.
I loved this book! I learned a lot from this book that I think I would not have learned otherwise. She details the roles of Black women in the black community from slavery up through the modern era. The role of black women as equals to their men in regards to work during the time of slavery which is contrasted with the role of free white women in society at the time. Details of how class & race lines affected black women are detailed as well, the things they endured & what they would do simply t
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Davis provides a sharp and succinct history of black, female and class oppression from the pre-1800s, to slaves working the fields, to liberation, segregation and the now. She lists out historical facts and statistics with a careful kind of power, sprinkling the very concrete reasons black people - specifically black women - have suffered at the hands of the overarchingly prejudiced / racist / sexist system. She demonstrates that feminism needs to be intersectional. You can't stand for equality
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Something revelatory in every chapter. Essential reading.
Aug 10, 2020
Raquel Baggins
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
everyone
Shelves:
non-fiction,
feminism
3.75 ★★★★☆
Review in English | Reseña en español (abajo)
Women, Race & Class by Angela Davis is nowadays a classic feminist essay that had been on my wish-list for some years, but I had always ended up prioritising other essays to read. A gripping and compelling essay that should be mandatory for understanding the importance of inters ...more
«’Woman’ was the test, but not every woman seemed to qualify. Black women, of course, were virtually invisible within the protracted campaign for woman suffrage.»
Review in English | Reseña en español (abajo)
Women, Race & Class by Angela Davis is nowadays a classic feminist essay that had been on my wish-list for some years, but I had always ended up prioritising other essays to read. A gripping and compelling essay that should be mandatory for understanding the importance of inters ...more
The strength of Women, Race & Class is somewhat dampened by the communism Kool-Aid Angela Davis clearly partook of at some point in her life. (That Lenin Peace Prize speech on youtube... Oh, the irony.) That said, to this day it's a solid pick for building a foundation to understanding intersectionality. So yeah, a warning and a recommendation in one.
...more
Oct 07, 2020
Noelia Alonso
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
read-in-2020,
non-fiction
(8/10)
Women, Race & Class is a good and informative essay collection. I found some to be more eye-opening than others, especially those that delve into issues I was not familiar with (an example is the sterilisation campaign during the fight for abortion rights which I had not idea about and was extremely difficult to read). Obviously some essays, in terms of the statistics she shares, are a bit outdated. Not the author’s problem though because this is just a compilation of her essays written ye ...more
Women, Race & Class is a good and informative essay collection. I found some to be more eye-opening than others, especially those that delve into issues I was not familiar with (an example is the sterilisation campaign during the fight for abortion rights which I had not idea about and was extremely difficult to read). Obviously some essays, in terms of the statistics she shares, are a bit outdated. Not the author’s problem though because this is just a compilation of her essays written ye ...more
A few months ago I started on a quest to educate myself about feminism, especially as it relates to black women. As a result, my GoodReads queue has become filled with books on beauty, books written by authors like Alice Walker and even couple books on hip-hop feminism. I've recently been introduced to authors like Bell Hooks, and I'm constantly learning of others to add to my list. As with my general fascination with learning, the more I read the more I realize I don't know and want to find out
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Why people should read Angela Davis...
What intersectionality is: recognizing the ways in which power is expressed through various dimensions, realizing how even avowed feminists can be racist, how antiracists can be homophobes, how gay rights activists can be classist, and so on and so forth, and how any attempt to split us into tribes ultimately serves power structures, when really we should all be fighting what they called The Man back in Angela Davis' heyday.
What intersectionality isn't: Buzz ...more
What intersectionality is: recognizing the ways in which power is expressed through various dimensions, realizing how even avowed feminists can be racist, how antiracists can be homophobes, how gay rights activists can be classist, and so on and so forth, and how any attempt to split us into tribes ultimately serves power structures, when really we should all be fighting what they called The Man back in Angela Davis' heyday.
What intersectionality isn't: Buzz ...more
I can't believe how readable this book is, considering how dense it also is in historical detail. The research that went into it must be astounding, but it flows in most places like a conversation with a (really well-informed) friend. Along with many subjects I am familiar with, I was absolutely fascinated by all the socialist ideas I've never heard before. I have paaaaaages of notes that I'll have to add later.
A must read, especially for white feminists. It's incredibly comprehensive and her writing is engaging and accessible. It's also frustratingly timely, as so many of the issues brought up within the book are still issues our social justice movements face today.
A brilliant analysis of the women's movement, beginning with its inception within the abolitionist movement, Women, Race & Class is a must read for anyone wanting to learn more about feminism and racism-within-the-feminist movement.
...more
Davis masterfully spells out the connectedness of racism, misogyny, and capitalism and dispels both identity and class reductionism. This is what a feminist text should look like, and it is sad that most readable feminist texts today cannot reach even close to what Davis accomplishes. Davis is a true champion and hero of socialism, feminism, and anti-racism and ought to be recognized as such.
Why I read this book:
Angela Davis is a pioneer in terms of black liberation and gender equality. I have always admired and appreciated her writing and her being.
Content: 1/1
It’s important for readers to understand that this is not just a book about women, race and class. It is actually a study (and the contents reflect this) that digs into the racism that continues to take place in movements associated with women, race and class. It’s a very valid, legitimate and important study. I would have a ...more
Angela Davis is a pioneer in terms of black liberation and gender equality. I have always admired and appreciated her writing and her being.
Content: 1/1
It’s important for readers to understand that this is not just a book about women, race and class. It is actually a study (and the contents reflect this) that digs into the racism that continues to take place in movements associated with women, race and class. It’s a very valid, legitimate and important study. I would have a ...more
"More than any other women in the campaign against slavery, [...] they argued that women could never achieve their freedom independently of Black people." However "a major weakness in the abolitionist campaign - its failure to promote a broad anti-racist consciousness - [...] was unfortunately carried over into the organized movement for women's rights." "That her race and her economic condition were different from theirs did not annul her womanhood. And as a Black woman, her claim to equal righ
...more
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| medusas (gajas da...: Mulheres, raça e classe | 2 | 5 | Sep 06, 2020 12:56AM | |
| The F-word: February NON-FICTION selection WOMEN, RACE, AND CLASS by Angela Davis | 6 | 56 | Feb 23, 2020 07:03AM | |
| Read Women: Women, Race, and Class by Angela Y. Davis | 8 | 55 | Aug 26, 2018 04:17PM | |
| Let's Read About ...: February's Theme: Black Feminist History | 2 | 32 | Feb 15, 2016 03:35PM |
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Angela Yvonne Davis is an American political activist, scholar, and author. She emerged as a nationally prominent activist and radical in the 1960s, as a leader of the Communist Party USA, and had close relations with the Black Panther Party through her involvement in the Civil Rights Movement despite never being an official member of the party. Prisoner rights have been among her continuing inter
...more
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“If Black people had simply accepted a status of economic and political inferiority, the mob murders would probably have subsided. But because vast numbers of ex-slaves refused to discard their dreams of progress, more than ten thousand lynchings occurred during the three decades following the war.”
—
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“Woman” was the test, but not every woman seemed to qualify. Black women, of course, were virtually invisible within the protracted campaign for woman suffrage. As for white working-class women, the suffrage leaders were probably impressed at first by the organizing efforts and militancy of their working-class sisters. But as it turned out, the working women themselves did not enthusiastically embrace the cause of woman suffrage.”
—
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