poco.lit.’s Top 5 books about Feminism
For Feminist Fight Day, we present some books in which feminism is a central theme and that have left a lasting impression on us.
Priya Basil – In the we and now: Becoming a Feminist
In the book’s two parts, “Fight” and “Subjects of Desire,” Basil talks about her own politicization and analyses feminist dilemmas in the context of #MeToo. She also reflects on her co-creation of an issue of a leading fashion magazine with numerous other women who form a feminist circle of allies and actually have nothing to do with the fashion world. In some ways, Basil’s book is a serious take on the often tongue-in-cheek statement “I am a feminist, but …” in Deborah Frances-White’s comedy show The Guilty Feminist.
Natasha A. Kelly – Schwarzer Feminismus: Grundlagentexte
In 2019, Natasha A. Kelly published Schwarzer Feminismus: Grundlagentexte, a collection of contributions by Black feminists with Unrast Verlag The book traces the development of the concept of intersectionality, which has increasingly become the focus of feminist debates in Germany in recent years. The majority of the selected essays were translated into German for the first time for this volume.
Rafia Zakaria – Against White Feminism
After the publication of Against White Feminism, Rafia Zakaria was accused of dividing the movement in English-speaking regions. With her book, however, she shakes the foundations of a movement that has always been divided. She wants to encourage people, but especially white women, to finally listen carefully to women of colour, and she outlines the necessary steps for the future of the feminist movement.
Lorde’s essays speak of the pain that racism and heterosexism cause her. She analyzes the society in which she lives and notices that “those who profit from our oppression call upon us to share our knowledge with them” (114). Yet Lorde, for all her anger, always remains constructive in her critiques and struggles. She proposes transforming anger into language and action, always insisting on self-definition. Her path is one of self-revelation – making visible not only unjust structures, but her own vulnerability within those structures.
Alexis Pauline Gumbs – Undrowned: Black Feminist Lessons from Marine Mammals
Undrowned: Black Feminist Lessons from Marine Mammals by Alexis Pauline Gumbs is a strange book– in an extremely positive way. The way she talks about dolphins, whales, seals and co. in connection with Black experiences might be unusual for readers at first, so it might take time to get into it. But it’s worth it! The chapters have titles like “Breathe”, “Be Vulnerable” and “End Capitalism”. Activist and spiritual threads run through the book, and it exercises critique – but its focus is on love and healing.