Title: We Should All Be Feminists
Author: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Genre: Feminism/Social Justice
Trigger Warnings: Descriptions of misogyny, cissexist language
Back Cover:
What does “feminism” mean today? That is the question at the heart of We Should All Be Feminists, a personal, eloquently-argued essay—adapted from her much-viewed TEDx talk of the same name—by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, the award-winning author of Americanah and Half of a Yellow Sun.
With humor and levity, here Adichie offers readers a unique definition of feminism for the twenty-first century—one rooted in inclusion and awareness. She shines a light not only on blatant discrimination, but also the more insidious, institutional behaviors that marginalize women around the world, in order to help readers of all walks of life better understand the often masked realities of sexual politics. Throughout, she draws extensively on her own experiences—in the U.S., in her native Nigeria, and abroad—offering an artfully nuanced explanation of why the gender divide is harmful for women and men, alike.
Argued in the same observant, witty and clever prose that has made Adichie a bestselling novelist, here is one remarkable author’s exploration of what it means to be a woman today—and an of-the-moment rallying cry for why we should all be feminists.
Review:
Turns out my library has an app for borrowing digital audiobooks, and I found this one available immediately. It’s short – only 45 minutes long (I think the print version is something like 60 pages), but it’s a solid introduction to the reasons for feminism.
The book is adapted from the author’s TED talk, and is mostly focused on the reasons why feminism is important, why it’s called “feminism” and not “human rights,” and other basics. It’s definitely good, but it’s a better fit for someone who isn’t quite sure women have it all that bad or why we need feminism in the first place (as opposed to me, who has been a staunch feminist for years and does not need convincing). It’s an engaging and conversational read, making it a great introduction for someone new to feminism.
What I really got out of it, though, was confronting some of my own racism. There is some cissexist language in the book, and I was talking to my husband about how I expected a black feminist to be more intersectional than that when I realized it’s pretty racist of me to hold a black feminist to a higher standard simply because she’s black. That’s not to say all feminists shouldn’t be held to a higher intersectional standard, but I was judging her differently because she was black. If it were a white feminist who wrote this book, I likely would have rationalized the cissexism as, “she’s only a feminist, she’s not educated about trans issues,” but because the author is a black feminist, my response was “I expected her to be more intersectional than that.” So I had to confront some racism in myself, which was the main thing I got out of the book.
Overall: A solid book that didn’t teach me personally anything about feminism but definitely made me confront some racism. And if you have that one friend who just doesn’t seem to understand why feminism is important, this is a quick and accessible read you can send their way to (hopefully) help them get it.