How We Get Free: Black Feminism and the Combahee River Collective
Gurinder Purewal
Introduction
Expressed by a group of Black feminists active in their advocacy since 1974, the Combahee River Collective Statement serves as a primary work for Black feminist thought. This work reflects an investment in both identifying and challenging deep-rooted systems of oppression, which involve racial, economic, and sexual injustice. The statement emphasizes the intermingling of both political and personal realities as an example of how Black feminist politics arose from the intersectional lived experiences and collective hardships of the community (Taylor 2017).
As you make your way through the reading, pay attention to some of the prominent themes:
- Genesis of Black feminism
- Core beliefs
- Challenges in organizing
- Black feminist thought: issues and practices
Reading
Access the reading on the Internet Archive: How We Get Free: Black Feminism and the Combahee River Collective (Taylor 2017)
Discussion Questions
Mobilization
The reading discusses key challenges that are faced by Black feminists and scholars in terms of terms of organizing and mobilizing themselves to be visible for advocacy.
- What are some of the issues mentioned in the text that create challenges for organizing?
Philosophical Influences
- What types of issues, types of philosophical thought, or influential thinkers are mentioned in the reading? Where were the origins of Black feminist thought?
Bibliography
Taylor, Keeanga-Yamahtta, ed. 2017. How We Get Free: Black Feminism and the Combahee River Collective. Chicago, IL: Haymarket Books. https://archive.org/embed/keeanga-yamahtta-taylor-ed.-how-we-get-free-black-feminism-and-the-combahee-rive.
How to Cite This Page
Purewal, Gurinder. 2024. “How We Get Free: Black Feminism and the Combahee River Collective.” In Great Thinkers, edited by Gurinder Purewal and Jenna Woodrow. Kamloops, BC: TRU Open Press. https://greatthinkers.pressbooks.tru.ca/chapter/black-feminism-and-the-combahee-river-collective/.
