I started this account to celebrate women-owned businesses. Every time I post, my thought is that local businesses are still dominated by men; therefore, it is socially and economically responsible to support our female business owners.
Cut to the chase: I haven’t been holding myself to a high enough standard when it comes to diversity. It’s unfortunate that it took recent events for me to really reflect and confront myself about whitewashing this account.
The fact is, black female business owners are harder to come by. I’m not expressing that as an excuse, but a very honest statement. This is due to glass ceilings, barriers to entry, consumer prejudice, economic obstacles… could go on and on.
When I was an English major in college, we practiced applying feminist theory to different works of literature. Big words. Basically, we would look at different books and poems we read through the eyes of a feminist — how are women being talked about? Portrayed? What does the writing reveal about the author’s attitude toward women? Society’s attitude toward women at the time the book was written?
Thankfully, a central part of our discussion was intersectional feminism — basically how race needs to be part of any feminist discussion. If you’re going about things in a way that only benefits only white women, that’s not true feminism. Without a regard for women of all races and ethnicities, you command the same amount of respect as a white woman named Karen who wants to speak with the manager.
Historically, women of color are the most oppressed demographic. These women face obstacles in every country, every type of society, all around the world. They exist in a bubble of “lesser than” due to two constraints — race AND gender. Men of color and white women only have to deal with one.
I strongly believe that the more diverse you can make the people at your table, the better. Not only is the prevalence of white female business owners on SFB very uncool, but I’ve actually been doing myself a disservice by not addressing it. Operating an account that “celebrates” women in business… without the confetti cannons and popped bottles that diversity brings to the party.
I’m continuing to evaluate how I can use this account to make sure race and ethnicity are at the forefront of female empowerment.
One step I am taking is to highlight local, woman-owned businesses that are run by women of color and minorities. These organizations are more than deserving of our respect, awareness, and patronage. Businesses with an asterisk (*) on the “Where to Go” page are owned and operated by these women. My hope is not only for Western New Yorkers to understand why it’s important to support women in business, but to support different types of women in business as well.