Emma Watson pens open letter after being accused of ‘white feminism’

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Feminism. It’s a difficult topic that divides people even when it should not. One of the primary examples of this is the way it divides white women from women of color. Intersectional feminism is something that many white women don’t seem interested in which is odd when you think about it. This leads to the continuation of “white feminism.”

Emma Watson, long seen as an example of feminism, good or bad, is finally realizing that exclusive feminism and white feminism are indeed real things. She shared an open letter to her book club, Our Shared Self, in which she discussed her role in feminism and when it began to be magnified.

“When I gave my UN speech in 2014, so much of what I said was about the idea that ‘being a feminist is simple!’ Easy! No problem.”

But that is when things took a turn for her.

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“I have since learned that being a feminist is more than a single choice or decision. It’s an interrogation of self. Every time I think I’ve peeled all the layers, there’s another layer to peel. But, I also understand that the most difficult journeys are often the most worthwhile. And that this process cannot be done at anyone else’s pace or speed.

“When I heard myself being called a ‘white feminist’ I didn’t understand (I suppose I proved their case in point). What was the need to define me—or anyone else for that matter—as a feminist by race? What did this mean? Was I being called racist? Was the feminist movement more fractured than I had understood? I began… panicking.”

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Emma Watson says she has now begun to purposefully work on connecting with feminists of color in order to get a handle on the unique challenges they face. She is also working towards learning how to use both her privilege and status to give them a boost.

She says that this personal work and partnership is leading her to grow in new ways beyond white feminism.

“As human beings, as friends, as family members, as partners, we all have blind spots; we need people that love us to call us out and then walk with us while we do the work.”

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