Black Intersectionality: Writting from Audre Lorder & Rachel Elizabeth Cargle

The two pieces of writing by Audre Lorde and Rachel Cargle, both targeted the perspective of black women against their own perceived allies. In Age, Race, Class and Sex: Women Redefining Difference, Audre Lorde speaks about the current state of black women in the world. She touches on how the perspective of a black woman is very different from others such as men, women, and even other feminists. She addresses points about how the current state of the world is directly related to a capitalist structure that leaves minorities, poor, or disadvantaged as a "surplus". Similarly in Cargle's article When Feminism Is White Supremacy in Heels, she touches on how black women seem to be alone in their battle because even their supposed allies are more concerned about their image rather than truly hearing out black women of all stretches of life. 

In both pieces of writing, the perspective is from someone who feels trapped, in the system, in their beliefs, and their lives. They are sick and tired of not being heard, often told to "speak nicely" or "phrase it differently. Cargle states that "In a crucial moment of showing up for our marginalized community, there was more concern about their feelings and ego as opposed to the fight forward for women as a whole (Cargle 2018)," speaking about when white feminists are confronted about their reaction on a young black girl being murdered. These articles both aim to inform readers about the tough position black women are in when it comes to speaking about this topic and how they often feel alone in this fight. 

The differences in the two articles regard the specific topics discussed. Cargle focuses her writing more on targeting white feminists and how she believes their efforts in anti-racism are in vain. She believes that these titles they like to put in their bios such as “social justice warrior” and “intersectional feminist”, are mere shields to protect them from being called out for not caring (Cargle 2018). Lorde on the other hand seems to target pretty much everyone including men and women of all races and backgrounds. She believes the system is corrupt and there are not enough allies in the battle for social justice. Lorde touches on topics such as, "the true focus of revolutionary change is never merely the oppressive situations which we seek to escape, but that piece of the oppressor which is planted deep within each of us, and which knows only the oppressors' tactics, the oppressors'relationships (Lorde 1980)." Lorde purses her writing targeting the "oppressor" rather than a particular group of people. 

In my personal opinion, I think Lorde's writing is better articulated and put together. She used analogies and references literature to provide substance to her argument. I believe this is a more effective form of writing as it seems well thought out and structured. Again I don't like the angle Cargle uses to pursue her writing, but that maybe her point. She writes anecdotally and from the perspective of someone angry, fed up, and tired. Maybe she wanted to write this way to prove her point that even people reading this feel the same way she is pointing out. However, If I wanted to inform or advise a group of people on this topic, I would show them Lorde's article because of its depth and structure. 

SOURCES

Lorde, A. (1980). Age, Race, Class and Sex: Women Redefining Difference. The Copeland Colloquium.

Cargle Rachel Elizabeth Cargle writes and lectures on things that exist at the intersection of race and womanhood., R. E. (2018, August 16). When Feminism Is White Supremacy in Heels. Retrieved from https://www.harpersbazaar.com/culture/politics/a22717725/what-is-toxic-white-feminism/