Feminism

The Trouble with White Women: A Counterhistory of Feminism

The Trouble with White Women: A Counterhistory of Feminism

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  • Create Date：2021-10-29 17:21:11
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
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  • Author：Kyla Schuller
  • ISBN：B09F5M8QB2
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Summary

* Duration: 11 hours and 34 minutes *

An incisive history of self-serving White feminists and the inspiring women who've continually defied them。

Women including Elizabeth Cady Stanton， Margaret Sanger， and Sheryl Sandberg are commonly celebrated as leaders of feminism。 Yet they have fought for the few， and not the many。 As award-winning scholar Kyla Schuller argues， their White feminist politics dispossess the most marginalized to liberate themselves。

In 'THE TROUBLE WITH WHITE WOMEN， Schuller brings to life the 200-year counter-history of Black， Indigenous， Latina， poor， queer， and trans women pushing back against White feminists and unifying to dismantle systemic injustice。 These feminist heroes such as Frances Harper， Harriet Jacobs， and Pauli Murray have created an anti-racist feminism for all。 But we don't speak their names， and we don't know their legacies。 Unaware of these intersectional leaders， feminists have been led down the dead-end alleys generation after generation， often working within the structures of racism， capitalism， homophobia， and transphobia rather than against them。

Building a more just feminist politics for today requires a reawakening， a return to the movement's genuine vanguards and visionaries。 Their compelling stories， campaigns， and conflicts reveal the true potential of feminist liberation。 'THE TROUBLE WITH WHITE WOMEN' gives feminists today the tools to fight for the flourishing of all。


©2021 Kyla Schuller （P）2021 Bold Type Books

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Reviews

Lois ，

I quite liked this。I'd give this 4 starsI rounded it up to 5 to counteract the white supremacist reviews this seems to be causing。This gives a nice history of the problems with white feminism historically and today。Also gives you historical white feminist figures in all their problematic glory and introduces their less well known POC Feminist。I liked the format and it works。 I quite liked this。I'd give this 4 starsI rounded it up to 5 to counteract the white supremacist reviews this seems to be causing。This gives a nice history of the problems with white feminism historically and today。Also gives you historical white feminist figures in all their problematic glory and introduces their less well known POC Feminist。I liked the format and it works。 。。。more

Hannah ，

The irony of this harsh rhetoric is that it just radicalizes people in the opposite direction。 If you insult people for no reason， they're not going to give your agenda the time of day。 Which is fine if your goal is to just hurt people。 But if you're actually trying to persuade them， this is not a good tactic。 If a stranger approaches you in public， and just starts randomly insulting you， degrading your values， and slandering people who you admire for accomplishing great things in service to hum The irony of this harsh rhetoric is that it just radicalizes people in the opposite direction。 If you insult people for no reason， they're not going to give your agenda the time of day。 Which is fine if your goal is to just hurt people。 But if you're actually trying to persuade them， this is not a good tactic。 If a stranger approaches you in public， and just starts randomly insulting you， degrading your values， and slandering people who you admire for accomplishing great things in service to human rights， are you going to buy what they're selling？ 。。。more

Ashlen ，

Racist， counterproductive， and degrading。 Hard pass。

Olivia ，

Helping your sisters is not "self-serving。"The casual hatred for white women among progressives is disrespectful， racist， misogynistic， and not a good look。The suffragettes suffered greatly to help all women - at enormous cost to themselves。 Modern women owe them gratitude， not this degrading， dehumanizing rhetoric。 I can't believe that needs to be said， but the hatred of white women in the modern publishing industry and falsely-'progressive' culture apparently necessitates it。Books like this do Helping your sisters is not "self-serving。"The casual hatred for white women among progressives is disrespectful， racist， misogynistic， and not a good look。The suffragettes suffered greatly to help all women - at enormous cost to themselves。 Modern women owe them gratitude， not this degrading， dehumanizing rhetoric。 I can't believe that needs to be said， but the hatred of white women in the modern publishing industry and falsely-'progressive' culture apparently necessitates it。Books like this don't help anyone， they just cause more hatred and division。 I stand by my white sisters。 。。。more

Lauren ，

Thoughtful and informative。

Ben ，

Thanks to NetGalley and Bold Type Books for an ARC of this title。The core concept of this book， bringing to light intersectional and undersung examples of feminist thinkers who pushed things forward in a time when the more well-known figures they worked in the same time were actually holding things back， is great， and this is very clearly deeply researched。 It's a little drier than I wanted something about this topic to be， which made for some slow going at points， but its message is great， and Thanks to NetGalley and Bold Type Books for an ARC of this title。The core concept of this book， bringing to light intersectional and undersung examples of feminist thinkers who pushed things forward in a time when the more well-known figures they worked in the same time were actually holding things back， is great， and this is very clearly deeply researched。 It's a little drier than I wanted something about this topic to be， which made for some slow going at points， but its message is great， and it highlighted a bunch of historical figures we should be screaming from the rooftops about over their contemporaries who _did_ get rights for women， but often only white women， at the expense of others。 。。。more

Courtney ，

I received an ARC from the publisher and am voluntarily posting a review。 All opinions are my own。 This is a great book highlighting the history of feminism and its limitations in the core movement’s historical lack of intersectionality。 From the suffragettes onward， white feminists seem to stand for things that have created progress for white， relatively financially successful cishet women， but left BIPOC women， trans women， and women from other underrepresented groups behind。 I appreciate this I received an ARC from the publisher and am voluntarily posting a review。 All opinions are my own。 This is a great book highlighting the history of feminism and its limitations in the core movement’s historical lack of intersectionality。 From the suffragettes onward， white feminists seem to stand for things that have created progress for white， relatively financially successful cishet women， but left BIPOC women， trans women， and women from other underrepresented groups behind。 I appreciate this fairly comprehensive， yet concise history detailing the work of a white woman leader we know from each era， along with the work of a woman from an underrepresented group who is given much less credit， or in some cases gets flack， for the work she’s done。 。。。more

Megan ，

Thanks to Bold Type Books and NetGalley for the free e-ARC in exchange for an honest review。 The Trouble with White Women by Kyla Schuller focuses on the history and dangers of white feminism。 Schuller breaks down how white feminists like Elizabeth Cady Stanton， Harriet Beecher Stowe， Margaret Sanger， and Sheryl Sandberg were working toward their own gains， and not for collective good， unlike Frances E。 W。 Harper， Harriet Jacobs， Dr。 Dorothy Ferebee， and AOC。 By shining a light on the underappre Thanks to Bold Type Books and NetGalley for the free e-ARC in exchange for an honest review。 The Trouble with White Women by Kyla Schuller focuses on the history and dangers of white feminism。 Schuller breaks down how white feminists like Elizabeth Cady Stanton， Harriet Beecher Stowe， Margaret Sanger， and Sheryl Sandberg were working toward their own gains， and not for collective good， unlike Frances E。 W。 Harper， Harriet Jacobs， Dr。 Dorothy Ferebee， and AOC。 By shining a light on the underappreciated intersectional feminists/activists that worked at the same time as the respective white feminists， Schuller draws a direct line from the harmful effects white feminism has had on our society and how it's affected the most vulnerable， including women of color and trans women。 Schuller's conclusion， that white feminism must be let go in order for a more inclusive movement to rise， is one that holds true and that I'll be doing my part in making happen。There's one argument toward the end that put a bad taste in my mouth， but otherwise， this is a very solid book。I think this book works really well in step with some other books on similar topics， including White Tears/Brown Scars by Ruby Hamad。 。。。more

Sara ，

A very important and noteworthy book that addresses white historical figures in the feminist movement that we've all learned to admire。 But。。。 at what cost were their gains？ If you've never considered the potential toxicity of white feminism， you should pick up this book and learn just exactly what some of the costs were。 It should not be a surprise to us; after all though they be feminists， they were also products of their times。 Schuller presents her case by introducing a white feminist from h A very important and noteworthy book that addresses white historical figures in the feminist movement that we've all learned to admire。 But。。。 at what cost were their gains？ If you've never considered the potential toxicity of white feminism， you should pick up this book and learn just exactly what some of the costs were。 It should not be a surprise to us; after all though they be feminists， they were also products of their times。 Schuller presents her case by introducing a white feminist from history and describing her journey while contrasting her with a notable woman of color who left a legacy much less well known。 It's a clever and interesting format and allows the reader to absorb this counter-history in manageable chunks。 It lends itself to classroom discussion and would be appropriate in both a high school and college setting。 I hope this book becomes a classic in its genre。 Thank you to NetGalley for an advance copy of this book。 。。。more

Daniel ，

One of a number of books that have been written lately which address the issues of "white feminism"。 Contrary to those other titles， however， "The Trouble with White Women" has a creative touch that sets it apart from the others in that the author takes the time to accomplish two tasks through their writing: First， the author discusses the history of "white feminism" illustrates how white feminism has influenced the world we live in today。 Second， she compares historical white feminists to their One of a number of books that have been written lately which address the issues of "white feminism"。 Contrary to those other titles， however， "The Trouble with White Women" has a creative touch that sets it apart from the others in that the author takes the time to accomplish two tasks through their writing: First， the author discusses the history of "white feminism" illustrates how white feminism has influenced the world we live in today。 Second， she compares historical white feminists to their intersectional counterparts， many of whom have not had a strong voice in feminist literature。 Overall this is a fresh take on a quickly saturating topic。 。。。more

Alok Vaid-Menon ，

“White feminism” is a term to describe a political position， not an identity。 White feminists maintain that equality for women comes from accessing racist-patriarchal institutions， not dismantling them。 It’s not simply that white feminism has failed to include BIPOC women， it’s that “white feminism wins more opportunities for white women through further dispossessing the most marginalized” （9）。 In this way “the trouble with white feminist politics is not what it fails to address and whom it leav “White feminism” is a term to describe a political position， not an identity。 White feminists maintain that equality for women comes from accessing racist-patriarchal institutions， not dismantling them。 It’s not simply that white feminism has failed to include BIPOC women， it’s that “white feminism wins more opportunities for white women through further dispossessing the most marginalized” （9）。 In this way “the trouble with white feminist politics is not what it fails to address and whom it leaves out。 The trouble with white feminism is what it does and whom it suppresses” （4）。Accrording to historian Dr。 Kyla Schuller， US white feminism began in the mid-1800s with famed suffragist Cady Stanton。 Stanton’s family held three enslaved Black people captive until 1827 （who she called ‘servants’ in her autobiography） （28）。 She formally launched US white feminism in Seneca Falls （1848） defining women’s rights as access to the privileges of elite white men。 Central to her argument was that white civilization could only prosper through making room for white women’s leadership （19）。 Indeed， this idea that white women could join white men in the pursuit of white supremacy proved to be the rallying point for many white suffragists。 Susan B。 Anthony once remarked: “With the education and elevation of the woman we have a power to galvanize the Saxon race into higher and nobler life。”Despite the fact that Black leaders like Frederick Douglass continually “staked Black voting rights and women’s voting rights as necessary partners，” early white suffragists like Cady Stanton objected to enfranchising Black men because they felt like that universal male suffrage was as menace to “white women’s dignity and purity” （19）。 Instead of pursuing solidarity， Candy Stanton advanced a false choice between voting rights for Black men or for （white） women。 In 1869 she declared， “I do not believe in allowing ignorant Negroes and ignorant and debased Chinamen to make laws for me to obey” （20）。 Cady Stanton and Susan B。 Ahtony routinely teamed up with outright white supremacists like George Francis Train in the efforts。 Train paid all of the travel costs as they traveled with him on Kansas on a joint lecture tour。 He supported women’s suffrage because he believed that “elevating the social position of white women would strengthen white supremacy” （38）。 His motto was: “Woman first and negro last” （39）。 Black women were continually disappeared by this rhetoric that imagined all women as white and all Black people as male。 From the beginning Black feminists articulated a counterfeminism to white feminism that was far more liberatory。 For example: Frances Ellen Watkins Harper， one of the most read Black poets of the 19th century and a celebrated antislavery lecturer。 Harper critiqued the Stanton and Anthony for ignoring race: “the white women all go for sex， letting race occupy a minor position” “Will ‘working women’ be broad enough to take colored women？” （20）。 In 1866 at the National Woman’s Rights Convention she delivered her famous speech “We Are All Bound Up Together” urging for the recognition of Black women’s issues in the women’s movement。The next day the Convention had a meeting to work for suffrage for both Black people and white women。 However， the organization split over the decision to support the 15th Amendment granting Black men the right to vote。 Susan B Anthony was against it， arguing: “I’d sooner cut off my right hand than ask for the ballot for the Black man” （19）。 Harper supported it and helped form the American Woman Suffrage Association。 Harper also rejected the white feminist idea that “women， by virtuous nature， would exert a moral force on society，” and instead remarked， “I am not sure that women are naturally so much better than men that they will clear the stream by the virtue of their womanhood; it is not through sex but through character that the best influence of women upon the life on the nation must be exerted” （42）。The reason that most don’t know about Black feminists like Harper is because they have been written out of history。 When Stanton and Anthony published their six-volume History of Women’s Suffrage （1881-1922）， they deliberately left out Harper’s speeches。 What we can learn from this history is that there have always been several feminisms， not one。 White feminism seeks to disappear the traces of counterfeminisms like Harper， but we won’t forget。 。。。more

Jasmine ，

An important read for anyone interested in the history of feminism。 Kyla Schuller traces the beginnings of white feminism along with its counterhistory of intersectional feminism， something which has been around for as long as white feminism。 Each chapter examines a white feminist， as well as an intersectional feminist。 Schuller begins with the original white feminist Elizabeth Cady Stanton and goes all the way to Sheryl Sandberg。 Some intersectional feminists discussed are Frances Ellen Watkins An important read for anyone interested in the history of feminism。 Kyla Schuller traces the beginnings of white feminism along with its counterhistory of intersectional feminism， something which has been around for as long as white feminism。 Each chapter examines a white feminist， as well as an intersectional feminist。 Schuller begins with the original white feminist Elizabeth Cady Stanton and goes all the way to Sheryl Sandberg。 Some intersectional feminists discussed are Frances Ellen Watkins Harper， a leading abolitionist-feminist， and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez， politician and activist。 Schuller explains how white feminism tends to prioritize white women’s needs and concerns， while neglecting the struggles that women of colour face。 While white feminism is self-serving， intersectional feminism supports racial， economic， disability， and sexual justice， in addition to gender justice。White feminism is not something that needs to be made more inclusive， but rather it needs to be trashed and begun anew。I am a huge fan of AOC， but before reading this， I did not consider how much pressure she is under to represent her constituents around the clock， to fight for equality， and to look good while doing it all。 It’s a lot for just one person。 Thank you to Bold Type Books/ Perseus Books for providing me with an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review。Review on: https://booksandwheels。com 。。。more

Taylor Houser ，

Reviewed/Posted: July 16， 2021Pub Date: Oct 5， 2021I recieved a digital Advanced Readers Copy of 'The Trouble With White Women: A Counterhistory of Feminism' by Kyla Schuller from Netgalley and Bold Type Books。'The Trouble with White Women' is a concise history of feminism in the United States。 Schuller portrays white feminists such as Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Margaret Sanger， whose brand of feminism seeks to place white women， particularly middle and upper class white women， in positions trad Reviewed/Posted: July 16， 2021Pub Date: Oct 5， 2021I recieved a digital Advanced Readers Copy of 'The Trouble With White Women: A Counterhistory of Feminism' by Kyla Schuller from Netgalley and Bold Type Books。'The Trouble with White Women' is a concise history of feminism in the United States。 Schuller portrays white feminists such as Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Margaret Sanger， whose brand of feminism seeks to place white women， particularly middle and upper class white women， in positions traditionally belonging to white men within the structures of inequality that our society upholds。 However， she contrasts these white feminists with a counterhistory of feminism， using the histories of Zitkala-Sa， Pauli Murray， and Sandy Stone to give the reader a history of what many now recognize as intersectional feminism。Without resorting to a simple narrative of white guilt， Schuller uses well researched history to show that a patriarchal society can only be dismantled in favor of equality for all women if other systems， such as white supremacy， colonialism， and capitalism， are dismantled alongside it。Schuller expertly utilizes history to show us our options for the feminist movement going forward， and how we can make society a more equitable one for everyone。 。。。more

Critter ，

This is a fantastic book that follows the history of feminism and analyses the toxic history of white feminism all the way to the present。 It analyses the and covers how white feminism seeks to progress itself while harming and oppressing other groups in order to reach their goals。 This book has a great look at the lives of feminists throughout history and shines light on them and provides some new information for me。 I especially was interested in the lives of feminists who we do not see talked This is a fantastic book that follows the history of feminism and analyses the toxic history of white feminism all the way to the present。 It analyses the and covers how white feminism seeks to progress itself while harming and oppressing other groups in order to reach their goals。 This book has a great look at the lives of feminists throughout history and shines light on them and provides some new information for me。 I especially was interested in the lives of feminists who we do not see talked about as much or at all in history。 This book was an overall great look into the history the of white feminism and the women who have fought against it and the creation and development of intersectional feminismI would like to thank Bold Type Books for providing me with an ARC。 。。。more

Maddie Zgonc ，

The Trouble with White Women is an amazingly important book that reveals the toxicity of white feminism。 In each chapter， Schuller takes one white feminist and compares her to an intersectional feminist of the same generation。 Even though each chapter is packed with rich information about these women， I never felt overwhelmed with the density of it。 Honestly， I would have liked to have even more information about each woman。 I realized how lacking my public school education really was as I knew The Trouble with White Women is an amazingly important book that reveals the toxicity of white feminism。 In each chapter， Schuller takes one white feminist and compares her to an intersectional feminist of the same generation。 Even though each chapter is packed with rich information about these women， I never felt overwhelmed with the density of it。 Honestly， I would have liked to have even more information about each woman。 I realized how lacking my public school education really was as I knew every white feminist Schuller mentioned and only recognized the names of one or two intersectional feminists。 My favorite aspect of Schuller's book is the emphasis on preventing the "optimization" of non-white， specifically Black， women。 While reading a book such as Schuller's， it is easy to place the women on a pedestal， while saying things like "Black women will save America。" Schuller explains how， even though this might be said with the best of intentions， it places a significant burden on women of color。 It provides an out for everyone else to stay on the sidelines of change。 Dismantling the patriarchy requires the effort of many， and Black women should not shoulder the majority of the weight。 The Trouble with White Women is not an easy read by any stretch of the imagination。 Schuller pushes her readers to truly grapple with the existence of whiteness and the consequences of white feminism。 Readers are not， however， left feeling hopeless。 In her conclusion， Schuller presents different ways to embrace intersectional feminism and empowers women to shed themselves of the confines of toxic white feminist ideals。 。。。more

Janet ，

Date reviewed/posted: May 21， 2021Publication date: October 5， 2021When life for the entire galaxy and planet has turned on its end， you are continuing to #maskup and #lockdown to be in #COVID19 #socialisolation as the #thirdwave （#fourthwave #fifthwave？） is upon us， superspeed readers like me can read 300+ pages/hour， so yes， I have read the book … and many more today。I requested and received a temporary digital Advance Reader Copy of this book from #NetGalley， the publisher and the author in e Date reviewed/posted: May 21， 2021Publication date: October 5， 2021When life for the entire galaxy and planet has turned on its end， you are continuing to #maskup and #lockdown to be in #COVID19 #socialisolation as the #thirdwave （#fourthwave #fifthwave？） is upon us， superspeed readers like me can read 300+ pages/hour， so yes， I have read the book … and many more today。I requested and received a temporary digital Advance Reader Copy of this book from #NetGalley， the publisher and the author in exchange for an honest review。 From the publisher， as I do not repeat the contents or story of books in reviews， I let them do it as they do it better than I do 😸。An incisive history of self-serving white feminists and the inspiring women who’ve continually defied themWomen including Elizabeth Cady Stanton， Margaret Sanger， and Sheryl Sandberg are commonly celebrated as leaders of feminism。 Yet they have fought for the few， not the many。 As award-winning scholar Kyla Schuller argues， their white feminist politics dispossess the most marginalized to liberate themselves。In The Trouble with White Women， Schuller brings to life the two-hundred-year counter-history of Black， Indigenous， Latina， poor， queer， and trans women pushing back against white feminists and uniting to dismantle systemic injustice。 These feminist heroes such as Frances Harper， Harriet Jacobs， and Pauli Murray have created an anti-racist feminism for all。 But we don’t speak their names and we don’t know their legacies。 Unaware of these intersectional leaders， feminists have been led down the same dead-end alleys generation after generation， often working within the structures of racism， capitalism， homophobia， and transphobia rather than against them。 Building a more just feminist politics for today requires a reawakening， a return to the movement’s genuine vanguards and visionaries。 Their compelling stories， campaigns， and conflicts reveal the true potential of feminist liberation。 The Trouble with White Women gives feminists today the tools to fight for the flourishing of all。I have some rampant mad-dog white feminists in m family who go on and on about women of colour， LGBTQIA， etc。 and I look and them and wonder 。。。 why。 They are both highly educated white women who live in expensive housing and who have never had to worry where their next meal or PRIVILEDGE will drop in their lap --- they make my eyes roll back in my head every time they start on their rants。This book explains why white feminists have ruined it for the rest of the world。。。and I hope that they read this book without me explaining why I think that they are ass clowns。 It was well crafted and presented and it will appeal to many kinds of readers。 I may even recommend it to the family ass clowns as it is not like they ever read my reviews！ I will also highly recommend it to friends， patrons and book clubs that I know will devour and love it as much as I did。p。s。 is that Queen VIctoria on the cover？ talk about a COMPLICATED WHITE WOMAN！ 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Trouble with White Women: A Counterhistory of Feminism

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Trouble with White Women: A Counterhistory of Feminism&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Trouble with White Women: A Counterhistory of Feminism&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0