December 1, 2014 - 17:17
Nego-feminism, and non-western feminism in general, reminds me so much of the way that gender is performed in different culture. Because gender is a performance, it is important to remember that acts that may be considered anti-feminist in America or other western cultures can still be feminist. Like the ability for some women to stay home with their children while their husband works may affirm their gender. Or black women to be able to relax their hair or have a weave could be considered an affirmation of gender. Many peoplel see it as anti feminist, and think that all women should go natural to reclaim their bodies. A part of the reason why I went natural was to be able to say I loved my body just the was it is, and I don'y need to mold it to western or white ideals. But boys (at least not anymore) do not tend to relax their hair. And it is a lot harder to do different hairstyles when my hair is so short. So a lot of the time I have the same hairstyles as black men who don;t shave their heads. Someimes I look in the mirror and think I look like a "boy." So when I saw Laverne Cox with a weave, I didn't see it as her betraying anybody for succuming to white standards, I saw it as an affirmation of gender. The fact that she, as a black woman, can get a weave is important. Also, I see hair relaxing and getting weaves as a part of Nego-feminism. Ifemelu relaxed her hair before her job interview. Just this past weekend after Thanksgiving dinner my Aunt told me that I would have to straigten my hair before I ever went for an interview. If having straight hair is what we have to do to be able to get a job and sustain ourselves, that's just what we have to do. It is a way to temporarily work within the system, without changing it, which is my understanding of nego-feminism.