Black Women at War: Striking at Enemies, Taking Names, and Planning Political Strategies

I find myself immersed in a fascinating discussion with fellow black women bloggers over at Black Women Vote! We have started the new year with the realization that there is a full-fledged war against black women and the resolve that we must strategically position ourselves to win. Of course, this has meant getting into some debates with each other, for curiously, many of us have identified the Media as one of our main enemies and, naturally, there is much dissension about whether or not to include "lost women" (read: the infamous "video ho" and others of her ilk) as we rally a critical mass on our side. I have included here an excerpt of my rather long post, which I figured I should include here on my own blog. It's my response to someone who felt that we have been "weakening" our position by engaging in dialogue with such "traitors" and "sellouts," and it's high time we withdraw the communication lines in order to be more like those in power who don't waste their time engaging in dialogue since they're more concerned about maintaining their power. The argument suggests that we should thus emulate some of their own strategies to access power. This is what I had to say:

When you say we need to borrow the same tactics, I think we need to have a vision about which of the "master's tools" we wish to use for our own gains and which will simply set us back. And how, exactly, are we in a position to be "exclusive" when we're not nearly at the same level of power for others to FEEL the power of our exclusion of others? I think we should also realize that, for those of us committed to a Revolution (long-term goal) that the short-term goals of borrowing their strategies will only be one way of beating them at their own game (temporarily) but not really changing the "terrain," to use one of Shecodes' lessons.

As the late poet Audre Lorde once wrote: "The master's tools will never dismantle the master's house. It may allow us to temporarily defeat him at his own game, but it will never bring about real change." And that's the real issue, isn't it? What exactly is our long term goal here? Is it simply to ensure that black women have a seat at the table of power? One of us is already there (always looking at you, Condi!) yet here we are, pretty much in agreement that black women collectively are in a sad state when it comes to our political power. So, what has such tokenism done for us? Should our goal be to include as many of us at that table (which is why I'm all about how we can increase our numbers to begin with and why I would even bother with meaningful dialogue to raise the consciousness of those whose consciousness needs raising)? Or do we need to set up a different kind of table?

Let's remember: part of Shecodes' first lesson was to "know your foes," and when I think what that means, I find myself looking at the bigger picture (rather than focus on the personal level in which certain individuals fit the bill). In a global context, I would say that, as a black woman, my enemies include Blackwater (a secretive private army made of some of the scariest international rebel forces who've done their damage in Iraq and establishing themselves in cities like New Orleans in the interests of Homeland Security), Halliburton (need I say more?), Viacom (we've already documented the ways), certain members of higher education (who continue to see my existence as a black female professor as a viable threat in the Ivory Tower), and a various assortment of racists and misogynists, all of whom are either working diligently or remaining indifferent to my annihilation and/or subjugation as a woman of color.

Out of that list of "enemies," I have no room to put the black woman who shakes her booty in a rap music video on BET. Is she helping my situation as a black woman? No, she is not. However, to define her as an enemy is much like someone who is against the war in Iraq identifying as her enemy, not the leaders and merchants of war, but the soldiers (many of whom are young men and women of color, I might add) enlisted to carry out the warfare.

Like the soldier, the "video ho" is enlisted to carry out the symbolic warfare against black women. Like the body of the soldier, the body of the video vixen is crucial in securing victories and conquests for those in power. Moreover, those who are enlisted to carry out these warfares have various motives for participating. But should the antiwar activist be strategizing against the U.S. soldier or against the policies and corporate interests that have created the NEED for that soldier in the first place? Likewise, should we be strategizing against some video dancer or model or against the policies and corporate interests that have created the NEED for that video girl in the first place?

In the grand scheme of things, if you were to ask me to identify which black woman has done far more damage to black women collectively - the "video ho" or Condoleeza Rice, who once famously shopped for shoes when a great number of black women and children were drowning in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina - I'm not sure I'd be quick to point my finger at Buffie the Body (who quite frankly is representing the sexy for the big-butted among us).