African American Women Between the Social Cracks
Kindred is set between the past and the future, where the protagonist Dana travels in time to the 1800s, meeting her ancestors and experiencing the atrocities of slavery. Dana, like the other female slaves, has a disadvantage as she was a woman. In essence, she faces a double layer of oppression, where she is less than the white person and less than the black man--falling into a crack in the social order. The intersectionality of her race and gender plays a big role in differentiating the experience of slavery between black men and black women. It also makes her experience more relatable to the modern reader.
Kimberle Crenshaw, an American civil rights advocate and scholar of critical race theory devised the concept of intersectionality. As presented in the video, she explains that race and gender are intertwined issues that are often discussed separately when they need to be discussed together. She examines intersectionality within the scope of American law, stating that judges do not have any way to deal with the wrongs committed to women of color because judges would often look at it either as a racial issue or a gender issue. She believes the issue with American law is that it does not recognize the intersection of exclusionary positions and identities which hinders the well-being of African American women (Smith 49). Linking Crenshaw’s concept to Kindred, it is very clear that the women in the novel are aware of it. For instance, when Dana feels the need to escape the oppression she faces under Master Rufus’ roof, she decides to do her best to dress as a boy stating,
This hope thus suggests that her movements as a black man would not be questioned as much as if she tried escaping as a black woman.“I had decided to become a boy. In the loose, shabby, but definitely male clothing I had chosen, my height and my contralto voice would get me by. I hoped” (Butler 170).
The text also discusses another form of abuse that female slaves had to endure: sexual violence. The novel sheds light on the enslaved Alice, Dana's ancestor and the victim of slaveowner Rufus' abuse. In essence, slave owners could coerce and assault enslaved women without any consequences. When Rufus attempts to enlist Dana's help to persuade Alice to willingly come to him, Dana refuses, saying “Rufe, nothing you say to me is going to ease your way to Alice” (Butler 163). Yet Dana knows that Rufus does not intend to respect Alice's refusal and when she tells Alice of Rufus’s plan, Alice asks for advice. Dana replies that she can not give advice, as it is Alice’s body. To which, Alice comments, “Not mine, his. He paid for it, didn’t he?” (Butler 167). This conversation showcases Alice’s awareness that her body will not be hers as long as she was a slave. Thus, both Alice’s race and gender are a burden.
The intersectionality of race and gender is still a prominent issue in the everyday lives of African American women. Centuries later after slavery, they still face structural and intersectional racism and misogyny, as well as an increased likelihood of being victims of violence. Therefore, the fact that Kindred became a bestseller could be attributed to the novel’s success in discussing the relationship between race and gender, where it is still a reality to many people living in America.
References
Butler, Octavia E. Kindred. Beacon, 2003.
Smith, Bonnie G. Women's Studies the Basics . Routledge, 2013.