Dear Dub: How Can I Be Better Than Taylor Swift?
As much as I love Taylor Swift, when I hear discussion surrounding white feminism, she is a name I often hear. This branch of feminism neglects to intentionally include voices of color in the conversation and, in doing so, leaves them behind in an already exhausting struggle for people of color. How can I be different from Swift?
For starters, I cannot pretend that I am not white because I am discriminated against in other ways. My gender/sex does not outweigh my whiteness. My sexuality does not outweigh my whiteness. My disabilities do not outweigh my whiteness. White feminists may lose sight of the fact that they are white because they are marginalized for other reasons.
Swift champions only white women because she neglects to include womxn of color in her narrative and content. Her collaboration with Ice Spice on the song “Karma” was the first time Swift publicly published content with a woman of color. To make matters worse, this was right after receiving backlash for dating Matty Healy, who made racist comments about Ice Spice. The timing makes the action less genuine and more likely a publicity stunt.
By not including people of color in her content, Swift also allowed fans to justify the racist actions of the people around her. People of color were called sensitive and ridiculous by ‘Swifties’ for their concerns about her affiliations with Healy. This is also not the first time Swift has surrounded herself with questionable people. As white feminists, we must be aware that if we don’t do our part of elevating, supporting, and listening to non-white feminists, we will be giving permission to the white people around us not to either.
Additionally, Swift’s continued silence on the issue- instead of her silence on racism in general- only perpetuated the idea that fans were behaving in alignment with her values by defending her choice to associate with Healy. While I doubt any of us white feminists at St. Lawrence University hold as much power as Swift, we can see how our silence may reflect in the level of comfort the people around us have in spreading hate and aggression.
Above all, make sure that, as white feminists, we listen and stay true to our word. Don’t try and talk over voices of color. If a conversation revolves around an experience different from ours, our opinion is not necessary or wanted. Take what new perspectives might be revealed to you and do your best to learn from them.
As a white person, I have made mistakes and will continue to make mistakes. It does not make me evil, but it does not mean I am void of consequence. I will continue to listen, learn and educate myself proactively to do what I can to use my whiteness to chip away at white supremacy. My hope is that other white feminists will do the same.