The issues that matter to women also matter to communities... and these issues have a ripple effect all across the country. And the purist sense of the feminist tradition - feminism is not anti-man. It is pro-humanity.
Interpretation
The quote emphasizes that women's issues are crucial for society as a whole and promotes a positive view of feminism as supportive of all humanity.
Nina Turner's quote highlights the interconnectedness of women's issues with broader community concerns, suggesting that addressing these issues can lead to positive changes throughout society. Furthermore, it seeks to redefine feminism in a more inclusive manner, stressing that it is not about opposing men but rather advocating for the well-being of all people, thereby fostering unity and understanding.
In practice
In a speech about community development, I referenced this quote to emphasize the importance of addressing women's concerns.
If not for food stamps, Medicaid, and various job programs, I would never have gone on to be the first in my family to go to college, the first black woman to represent my ward on the Cleveland City Council, and, ultimately, a State Senator.
I am a black woman, last time I checked.
I don't want our white working class sisters and brothers to feel as though their pain is not important because it is. But at the same time, I want my white sisters and brothers to understand that when we talk about income and wealth inequality, that disproportionately African Americans suffer a little more.
Whether it is access to voting rights, representation in government, or the outsized influence of money in our political system, the opportunity to interact with and participate in democracy is available to some, but blocked for many.
All of the great social justice advances that we ever had in this country have come not from people with big titles and not from people at the top, but just from everyday people getting together saying 'Enough is enough. I'm going to change this, and I'm going to get involved, and I am going to be engaged.'
Any action a woman engages in from a spirit of joy, and within a similarly safe and joyous environment, falls within the city-walls of feminism. A girl has a right to dance how she wants, when her favourite record comes on.
Girls are taught to sing high and pretty, like Antony, not low and from the guts like Nina Simone. But we're slowly trying to change that. There are so many things we're not told growing up, and it's our true feminist responsibility to take the truth to the people who need to hear it.
I do not subscribe to a feminism that demands perfection or super heroic nobility of women. But I do insist that putting women at the service of patriarchy is no victory for us.
When women can support themselves, have entry to all the trades and professions, with a house of their own over their heads and a bank account, they will own their bodies and be dictators in the social realm.
I think the world is ambivalent about feminism. So I can't blame college students. I think they're reflecting the greater culture's attitude toward feminism. So what I can do is, in ways that are appropriate, advocate for feminism and help the students learn what feminism is about.
No self-respecting woman should wish or work for the success of a party who ignores her sex.
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