“Hidden Figures,” the critically acclaimed film based on the true story of three African-American women and their impact on NASA, brings up an important conversation about the true meaning of feminism.
The three women — Mary Jackson, Katherine Johnson and Dorothy Vaughan — were extraordinary individuals who operated as the brains of NASA. Johnson served as a “computer” before there were actual monitors, hard drives and software.
The film captures the reality that no matter the amount of intelligence a black woman may have, she’ll always have to work considerably harder than the average white man. As Rowan Pope told his exceptional black daughter, Olivia Pope, on an episode of “Scandal”, “You have to be twice as good as them to get half of what they have.”
The black women at NASA were confined to a building that was strictly for colored workers. Even though they were overqualified for many of the upper-level positions, they were still restricted to their space and given many of the agency’s simpler assignments. However, after defending their intelligence several times and fighting court cases, the women got in with the “big dogs”.
Ultimately, they were a few of the masterminds that made it possible for the first American to orbit Earth. Johnson later went on to ensure, among other NASA achievements, the victorious outcome of the Apollo moon landing.
According to Fox 2000, “Hidden Figures” has been topping box office charts and is estimated to have earned $84.1 million domestically. It is notable that people are seeing the work of these phenomenal, hard-working, intelligent black women, which often goes unnoticed.
The movie does a fantastic job of highlighting the struggles and discrimination of black people in the ’60s. However, if you look past the surface of the movie and truly analyze it, you’ll see signs of another debate worth having — white feminism versus feminism.
The majority of the film we see the problem of colorism. However, the black women aren’t only fighting to exceed in a white-dominated workplace but in a male-dominated one as well.
We see that the black women in the film stick together and uplift one another. Together, they try to ensure the one another’s success. Yet, the white women — who already held higher positions than their female counterparts — were only trying to achieve personal gain. They struggled with the fact that the men dominated the workplace. Although they didn’t work against black women, they certainly didn’t work in favor of them.
This is a clear display of some who call themselves feminist today.
Now, before we get into the true meaning of feminism, let me clarify something: I love being a woman — a black woman. I don’t want you to conclude from this column or any of my other columns that being black — and even more so a black woman — is unpleasant, because it’s not. It’s absolutely amazing.
I’ve developed a reputation as a “campus activist” to some and a “race-baiter” to others. Understand I’m not looking for problems — my goal is to spread awareness throughout a predominately white institution on issues minorities face, such as white feminism.
Feminism is the social, economic and political equality among the sexes.
Black women cannot be equal to white men if they’re not yet equal to white people. Hispanic women cannot be equal to white men if they’re not yet equal to white people. Native American women cannot be equal to white men if they’re not yet equal to white people. It is a process.
There are several fights to fight before we can be equal among the sexes.
Watching the plethora of Women’s Marches across the country last week, I’ve seen what it looks like when women get together — it’s beautiful. We have the power to really make something shake if we want to bad enough.
Just remember, this is an inclusive movement. You cannot call yourself a feminist if you’re not fighting for the advancement of all women — of all backgrounds. White feminism is not feminism.
Clarke Perkins is a 21-year-old political science junior from New Orleans, Louisiana.
