Why do (some) feminists call anti-feminists racists, when the suffragettes had their roots set in the WKKK?

Question

"I would not trust him [the colored man] with all my rights; degraded and oppressed himself, he would be more despotic with the governing power than even our Saxon rulers are." - Elizabeth Cady (Is she a hypocrite too or is she also saying women weren't oppressed and degraded themselves?)

Women of the Klan:
http://userwww.sfsu.edu/~epf/1998/carney.html

So, why do (some) feminists call anti-feminists and masculists racists, when (some of) the suffragettes had their roots set in the WKKK?

Teeleecee - you missed the whole point I was trying to make. I know society was racist and I don't blame first wave feminism (too much) for it, but WHY do some feminists call anti-feminists racist? WHY? THEY [feminists] were the ones with their roots set in the WKKK so it's hypocritical to call another group racist when you were racist yourself (not you personally but feminism as a whole).

OK you ALL missed the point. If your past sisters were racists, why are you calling those who are against you racist? It makes no sense. YOU are the ones with a history of racism.
Wendy, here's a source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WKKK
Yes, it's from Wikipedia - you can research it from here.

Wendy - ''Blee's extensive analysis of the WKKK concludes it converged into radical feminist agendas of the 1960's and simply excluded 'black' from the old WKKK'' from Wikipedia. And anti-feminism/masculism is not racist, unless you have proof.

http://www.google.ca/search?q=WKKK+feminism&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a
http://www.google.ca/search?hl=en&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla%3Aen-US%3Aofficial&hs=qSj&q=WKKK+suffragettes&btnG=Search&meta=

Here, I researched it FOR you.

wendy, are you saying anti-feminists ARE racist? Proof please.

Fine then. How about the fact that 98% of feminists say women are being paid less because of discrimination yet, have never shown me proof (even when I asked a question about it) and want me to believe it? I have proof the wage gap is a myth - they don't.

That was more of a rant than anything really so no reply is required.

Answer 1

Obviously some people had a problem when it came to differentiating between good and evil, right and wrong, truth and malice. The Gender/Race issue was used by both sides of the political forum {still is} for Their own self advantage.
White Women demanded equality with White Men, not with Black Men. Was that racism or ignorance as to the conditions of others? Most of the famous Feminists were a product of Their generation and social status. They were Racist, Bigoted and Misandric. They were after what They could get for "Their" people, i.e., Their class of Women, "Middle-Class" "White Anglo-Saxon Protestant", and those whom They were supporting as an eleemosynary cause.
Accusations of crimes against White Women by Black Men were made so as to promote the Feminist cause. The "KKK" supported and protected 'It's' Women from these assailants by violence and terror. This was then used by Women's organizations to show that Women needed the vote in order to change the ways of Men.
Things have changed now. Most of the accusations brought against Men are now no longer malicious.

Answer 2

I have never heard of The Suffragette movement having their roots set in the WKKK.
Maybe that is because I am from The UK.
Hence I can only speak of my knowledge of The Suffragette Movement over here.
My grandmother was a Suffragette.
She was an honest and upstanding woman who fought for equal rights in our country and had never to my knowledge had any contact with or let alone knew of the existence of WKKK.
Your quote by Elizabeth Cody is an interesting one.
What I take her premise to mean is that because the black community in Africa were so exploited by The British regarding the slave trade that she feared that if some of the black community hailing from Africa became powerful they would wish to address the wrongs they as a nation had been subjected to by The British.
At least that's what I think she is saying.

Answer 3

Logically, i could say the anti-feminists, because of the fact in case you're prepared to have faith that 0.5 the inhabitants is inherently properly worth below the different 0.5, what does it remember in case you're basing that on gender or race? And in case you think in equivalent rights for all, then all potential, you be attentive to, _all_. In actual existence, nonetheless, i do no longer think of there is plenty correlation. human beings do exactly no longer behave all that logically, and there are greater desirable than adequate bigoted feminists. it incredibly is to no longer even pass into the reality that merely approximately each American is a minimum of subconsciously racist merely from growing to be up in this manner of existence.

Answer 4

You cannot apply the morals of today to those of the 19th century or any other time in the past. That's re-writing history. Many of these women were indeed racist because the society was racist. They were also classist and many of them extremely hypocritical. They also worked militantly for prohibilition, were often complicit in slavery and most of them had their own servants. And so did the presidents of the time and the great men we worship as heroes from the past. They were not perfect, but they were not living the same way we live now. Most feminists are very aware of their own history, so it's kind of pointless to make this statement because it proves nothing. It may be new to you, but it's not new to me, and it really says nothing other than that the times were different. Are we to dismiss feminism now? I think not.

EDIT: I, personally, have never called anti-feminists racists. Many women and men are anti-feminist, and that's fine. If anything, they might be anti-female, but I'm not sure where the connection between racists and anti-feminists comes from. I think people are allowed to be anti-feminist...no one forces feminism down anyone's throat, but to then say they're also racist baffles me. Some are, some aren't, I suppose. I just don't see the connection (and, in fact, I'd also call some feminists anti-feminist...the movement is diverse and comprises a lot of different viewpoints--there are a lot I don't agree with...but no, I don't agree that all anti-feminists are racists, but I'm sure there are some that are).

Answer 5

racism is independant of sex

people from all types of groups were part of such movements back then. most groups were actually ran by men, so does that mean that all men have a history of racism? i'd say not. there were many christians in such groups, so should we say the same of all christians? no. there are some feminists that were in the groups, does that mean all feminists of today are racist? no. there were anti-feminists (though that term wasn't used) also in the groups, so do they ALL deserve to be called racist? no.

i have said before that someone who has allowed themselves to hate one group, won't find it too hard to hate another. (this isn't saying that all anti-feminists hate feminists & all feminists hate men or anything of the like, btw). that is true. regardless of which groups you're talking about.

Answer 6

In Intro to Women's Studies, we learned all about how (some) first wave feminists were totally racist. They were also essentialists, and subscribed to what is called "maternal feminism" - they claimed that because women were mothers, it made them responsible and capable of being "motherly" to the state. First-wave Canadian feminist Nellie McClung once compared the female vote to women cleaning up a dirty house.

A few years ago, the government wanted to create a statue of Nellie McClung as a "Canadian hero" in Ottawa - and guess who protested against this decision? That's right, feminists did.

Believe me, feminists are fully aware of the controversy surrounding first-wave feminism. They were a product of their time, to be sure, but that doesn't excuse their behaviour.... although, their racism *did* convince racist men to support their cause (e.g., racist men supported a white woman's vote more than they supported a black man's vote).

I hope that helped you understand that modern feminists, while we obviously agree with women having the right to vote, don't agree with the way the suffragettes made their case.

Oh, and we call anti-feminists racists because a lot of their arguments are, in fact, rooted in essentialism and racism.

Answer 7

That is why Harriet Tubman, Harriet Jacobs, Soujourner Truth, Lucretia Coffin Mott and others were all recognized for their contributions towards the emancipation of black during the 1800's. These women put the fight for equal rights for women aside to work towards ending slavery. Your quote is taken quite out of context for this era. Obviously you have never read, "Pedagogy of the Oppressed", by Paolo Freire.

Answer 8

It's amazing how many people run and hide behind statistics and sometimes dispute statistics,and on some cases refer to statistics whichever suits their purpose at the moment rather than look a self evident fact in the face.

Answer 9

I see your point, but you seem to forget that today's society is very different from the one that we had 150 years ago.

Back then, nearly 100% of Blacks were illiterate. They had just been released from slavery, during which time it was illegal to teach Blacks to read and write.

Elizabeth Cady Stanton came from a white family that encouraged girls (shocking!!!) to become educated.

She and her husband were ardent supporters of the right of Black men to vote. They attended meetings and rallies for the right of Black men to vote. Some of them would not admit her because she was female. After being turned away once too often, she turned her focus from fighting for Black men to fighting for women (of all races) to be able to vote.

The quote you mention is a retort to White men of the time who frequently argued that Black men should be able to vote, but women (of any race) should not be able to vote.

While Stanton's quote sounds racist in today's world, back then, she was simply stating a fact of illiteracy about Black men. Her point was that it made more sense for her, as an educated, literate woman to be able to vote, than for an uneducated, illiterate Black man to be able to vote.

If you really think about it, she is really saying that uneducated people should not be allowed to vote, run for office, and be in charge of her rights.

Answer 10

What are you talking about? Mercy. Everyone is a hypocrite, in one way or another. Me too. You must have recently finished a course in women's studies. Your statement seems to be constructed from data selectively chosen to support your hypothesis. Understand please, that women were given the right to vote only as recently as 1917. Women were still seen as chattel then, and when not "owned" by their father, were "given" in marriage to another male who then took over ownership of them. Males still hang on to their illusion, or delusion of mastery over females. If males were truly secure in their social responsibility, they would accept females as equals, just different. Their need for "dominion over" would be non existent, and they could just relax.