This leaves me heartbroken. I'm always stunned by just how vicious women can be to each other. This entire story speaks to the internalized misogyny of so many women which makes it exponentially more difficult to fight patriarchy. If women cannot support each other, and we cannot trust men either, our daughters are doomed to a truly nightmarish future.
"Identity politics is a considerable challenge for us, not just in feminist circles but actually within all social justice movements. Identity politics have taken root in a way that I feel is profoundly regressive. It is a focus on individual experiences of victimhood. It is a focus on difference rather than unity….I fear that all social movements are now tainted by a narrow form of identity politics…it has fragmented our struggles…..It is leading us down a political blind alley. (Interview on BBC, Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour January 5th 2022.)" I cite this from the intro to my book "Identity Politics: Where Did It All Go Wrong? (Phoenix 2022) The case of the sad Taylor highlights this divisive aspect of victimhood. Social media affords a norm of amorality alongside moral grandstanding in identity politics. Universalism is replaced by special pleading and spitefullness to outgroup members. As Patel noted this is a blind alley and the Taylor case is one amongst many around us today.
This leaves me heartbroken. I'm always stunned by just how vicious women can be to each other. This entire story speaks to the internalized misogyny of so many women which makes it exponentially more difficult to fight patriarchy. If women cannot support each other, and we cannot trust men either, our daughters are doomed to a truly nightmarish future.
"Identity politics is a considerable challenge for us, not just in feminist circles but actually within all social justice movements. Identity politics have taken root in a way that I feel is profoundly regressive. It is a focus on individual experiences of victimhood. It is a focus on difference rather than unity….I fear that all social movements are now tainted by a narrow form of identity politics…it has fragmented our struggles…..It is leading us down a political blind alley. (Interview on BBC, Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour January 5th 2022.)" I cite this from the intro to my book "Identity Politics: Where Did It All Go Wrong? (Phoenix 2022) The case of the sad Taylor highlights this divisive aspect of victimhood. Social media affords a norm of amorality alongside moral grandstanding in identity politics. Universalism is replaced by special pleading and spitefullness to outgroup members. As Patel noted this is a blind alley and the Taylor case is one amongst many around us today.
ps the citation is from Pragna Patel, founder of Southall Black Sisters