Beginning with the historic 1848 Seneca Falls Convention, the feminist movement has been imperative to the development of multiple civil liberties, varying from those primarily regarding sex. Prior to the declared independence of the United States of America, female leaders have paved the way towards equality through their tireless advocacy in both the abolitionist and child labor movements, all in an effort to truly change the narrative of women portrayed by American society. Despite these valiant efforts, this narrative has been administered the burden of portraying majorly only one facet of feminism: the face of the white woman.

This issue can most noticeably be witnessed regarding arguments involving the validity of the gender wage gap. While the difference between a white woman’s and man’s earnings is quite significant, currently standing at 81.9% to a man’s dollar, according to the Institute of Women’s Policy Research, the analysis of minority women’s earnings compared to those of a Caucasian man is severely underemphasized. As of 2017, an African American woman will earn 67.7% of a man’s dollar, followed by Hispanic women receiving 62.1% to the dollar. As depicted, the severity of the United States wage gap is most noticeably expressed when analyzed within the context of Hispanic women. Though, the detrimental issue is optimized to predominantly represent the salary struggles combated by white women alone.

This same limited view of intersectionality is present when the scope of feminist impact is examined in the United States alone compared to the world. Most recently, the #MeToo movement has circled Hollywood, followed by the globe, increasingly amongst the twitter profiles of white celebrities and actresses. While the movement is a terrific platform for women across the globe to share their experiences and stories regarding sexual harassment, many forget its African- American founder, Tarana Burke, and the systemic bias held against African-American women. In advance of the 2017 Golden Globes, she stated, “We believe that women of color, and women who have faced generations of exclusion… should be at the center of our solutions. This moment in time calls for us to use the power of our collective voices to find solutions that leave no woman behind.” Tamara’s call to action, while often ignored, is all too horrifically justifiable. According to the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics, African- American women and girls age 12 and older experience severely increased rates of rape and sexual assault than white, Asian, and Latino women and girls. At the current national rate, over 60% of African American women have, or will be sexually assaulted within their lifetimes, yet the face of resistance threatening today’s rape culture is almost always depicted as a white one.

Why is this?

Unfamiliar to the vast majority of victims, perpetrators, and bystanders exists our solution. Intersectionality is defined as “The interconnected nature of social categorizations such as race, class, and gender as they apply to a given individual or group, regarded as creating overlapping and interdependent systems of discrimination or disadvantage.” The knowledge and education of far too common struggles, which perpetrate multiple intersecting minority groups, is the solution to understanding that behind each and every social dilemma lies a variety of narrators. There is never just one “face” to a movement.



Contrary to popular belief, the feminist movement is still paramount and should be supported across a global basis. While women have taken great strides towards equality in the United States, many throughout the world are still prohibited the same rights granted to their male peers. It is necessary to remember and address these women in particular when discussing the objectives of feminism and to consider the equally important fact that a female belonging to any number of other self-identified societal minorities, is no less of a woman.



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Elise Williamson Elise Williamson is a Junior at DuPont Manual High School in Louisville, Kentucky. Prior to writing for The New Voice, Elise worked extensively as a paid intern on Louisville Mayor Fischer’s Campaign and continues as an active member within DuPont Manual’s Student Government, Young Democrats, and Model United Nations Clubs while alternatively serving as one of the founders of Jefferson County’s first Intersectionality Board. Also serving as a representative on the Muhammad Ali Center Council of Students, Elise actively works to engage student voices in government through persistent action in student-led movements and volunteering namely with immigrant and refugee minors in the Louisville area. After completing high school, Elise hopes to major in political science and international relations in order to further her work of engaging ongoing political conversation.

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