Becoming the Third Wave (United States, 1992)

Rebecca Walker b. 1969

Background

While in college, Rebecca saw the dismissive manner in which the U.S. Senate Committee treated Anita Hill‘s testimony about being sexually harassed by Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas. Rebecca, the daughter of acclaimed African American feminist author Alice Walker, was enraged and inspired to catalyze ‘Third Wave Feminism’ for her generation. She went on to write and publish more and be an influential feminist.

Recap

‘I could not bring myself to watch the sensationalized assault of the human spirit’ during the U.S. Senate Committee hearings of Anita Hill’s testimony on being sexually harassed by Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas. ‘To me, the hearing were about […] checking and redefending the extent of women’s credibility and power.’

Men feared repercussions of Anita Hill’s testimony being effective in thwarting Thomas’ nomination, since most men are guilty of similar actions. It would have been ‘metaphoric castration.’

It had a sad ending- he, the male, was promoted, while she, the victim female, was silenced. The message to women is: ‘shut up! even if you speak, we will not listen.’

‘I will not be silenced.’

Not to ‘the man I am intimate with’, whose support I demand, nor to the men on the train who speak about women disrespectfully and objectify them. ‘My anger and awareness must translate into tangible action.’

‘To be a feminist is to integrate an ideology of equality and female empowerment into the very fiber of my life. It is to search for personal clarity in the midst of systemic destruction, to join in sisterhood with women when often we are divided, to understand power structures with the intention of challenging them.’

Thomas’ confirmation should remind us that ‘the fight is far from over.’

We must turn this outrage into political power. ‘Do not vote for them unless they work for us. Do not have sex with them, do not break bread with them do not nurture them if they don’t prioritize our freedom to control our bodies and our lives.’

‘I am not a postfeminism feminist. I am the Third Wave.’

 

Reflection

Third Wave feminism appears to be focused on political efforts for young people. For Walker, the dismissal of Anita Hill was jarring, and roused her to action. The #meToo movement did not exist then, and only began in 2018.