Feminism as a Collective

I really enjoyed reading the Combahee River Collective statement. The Feminism that the authors' embrace is a Feminism which is all inclusive. This inclusivity breaksdown the barriers that holds up the walls of division which exist in many activist organizations. We are allowed to be who we really are and not who we think the organization thinks we should be. for this very reason the word "Collective" was added to the title of their statement.

The authors believed that a collective negated the institution of a hierarchy within their organization. They believed in the need to share in the fight against the interlocking oppressions faced by all. Their concept of Feminism would share in the fight against racial opression with African American males as well as fighting against sexual opression of women of all races.

Their "Identity Politics" helped incorporate their collective concept. Identity politics allowed the members to enter the organization without having to undress the layers of their identity. It also allowed a voice for each identity. Whether heterosexual, lesbian, homosexual, male female, atheist, or religious. everyone had a voice. The "Identity Politics" concept made it harder for the opposition to divide and conquer. "A house divided against itself can not stand."