------ Forwarded Message
From: Jackie Anderson <[log in to unmask]>
Date: Mon, 07 Jul 2008 11:16:26 -0700 (PDT)
To: Jackie Anderson <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: Important info and petition..


 
"It is part of our task as revolutionary people, people who want
deep-rooted, radical change, to be as whole as it is possible for us to
be. This can only be done if we face the reality of what oppression
really means in our lives, not as abstract systems subject to analysis,
but as an avalanche of traumas leaving a wake of devastation in the
lives of real people who nevertheless remain human, unquenchable,
complex and full of possibility." Aurora Levins Morales, Medicine
Stories
Hello,
 
I wanted to share with you this "Call to Action", which Ann Russo & I
developed.  It is also attached as a PDF file.
 
We both hope that you will share it with your networks and friends, and
sign onto the letter at:
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/1/stop-the-false-race-gender-divide.  If you
do forward the email, please share
the email address associated with this Call to Action:
calltoaction2008@ gmail.com
 
Thanks!
 
Melissa Spatz
 
 
Stop the False Race/Gender Divide: A Call to Action
 
We are calling on white progressive women activists and feminists to
join us in challenging the onslaught of reactionary and racist
arguments being put forward in the name of feminism and in defense of
Hillary Clinton. We are saddened and frustrated by the abandonment of
feminist commitments to the freedom and liberation of all women from
all forms of oppression.  We stand with all the women who have stepped
up in the past several months to say no to this kind of feminism –
including Barbara Ransby, Melissa Harris-Lacewell, Kimberlé Crenshaw
and Eve Ensler, Zillah Eisenstein, Suzanne Pharr, among others. We are
adding our voices to this dialogue as white women grounded in the
feminist movement and actively engaged in issues impacting women and
girls.
 
We strongly disagree with this reactive critique of sexism that has
been grounded in a denial of the ongoing legacies of racism and white
supremacy.  The misogyny and sexism directed against Hillary Clinton
are real and must be called out and challenged.  However, a critique of
sexism must not be at the expense of addressing racism and other forms
of oppression.  The misogyny is deplorable to say the least, and yet it
must not be used as a reason to deny racism, to distance ourselves from
struggles against racism, and/or to perpetrate racism in defense of
"women." 
 
We need to resist and refuse this exclusive, defensive, and racist
politics if we are serious about coalitional, broad-based,
interconnected women's solidarity movements.  For white women, an
exclusive and defensive focus on sexism denies accountability for our
racial privilege. It erases our own complicity in the multiple systems
of oppression that shape our lives, perspectives, and allegiances.  We
believe these politics significantly undermine the efforts of many
women – especially women of color – to create feminisms that are
grounded in multiple identities and in struggles against multiple
oppressions.  They destroy the possibilities for coalition, alliance,
and solidarity across our differences and inequalities of race,
sexuality, immigration status, gender identity, age, and more.
 
Here in Chicago, we have dialogued with white women and women of color
as a way of challenging the racial divides being promoted by some white
feminists and the mainstream media.  We feel that as white feminists it
is imperative that we speak out publicly against the racism and
divisiveness that we are seeing.  We therefore offer the following
statement of our refusals and commitments.
 
We invite you to join us in our efforts.  We are calling on white
progressive women to take a stand by signing onto this letter and
distributing it far and wide.  We welcome all progressive activists,
including women of color and allies, to sign the letter as well.  Add
your signature to http://www.thepetit ionsite.com/ 1/stop-the-
false-race- gender-divide.  We will share this letter and signatures
with a variety of feminist, progressive, as well as mainstream media.
 
Signed,
Ann Russo & Melissa Spatz
calltoaction2008@ gmail.com


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