Irony of White Society
The whites claim to be civilized but they treat blacks worse than animals. They suppress their opinions but still there are black writers who are intellectually active. Black feminist writers have made their mark in the fields of music poetry and literature. These black women have continually contributed to feminist thought, but their voices have been suppressed. The author has grasped black women’s intellectual legacy in her book, and she has unveiled the ironical comments of whites regarding black writers.
She says, “Despite long-standing claims by elites that Blacks, women, Latinos, and other similarly derogated groups in the United States remain incapable of producing the type of interpretive, analytical thought that is labeled theory in the West, powerful knowledges of resistance that toppled former social structures of social inequality repudiate this view. Members of these groups do in fact theorize, and our critical social theory has been central to our political empowerment and search for justice.”
Collins has alluded towards black writers who have played a central role in telling the world about the problems of blacks, which were not highlighted before. She has provided an interpretation of the works of black female thinkers such as bell hooks, Angela Davis, Audre Lorde, and Alice Walker.
Irony of Feminism
Feminist movements revolve around the rights of females, but the irony is that feminism in American society excludes the horrendous experiences of black women. It does not include the problem and the oppression of black females. White feminism does not talk about the prejudice that the women of color face on daily basis.
The author says that if it does not encompass their tragedies, it does not mean that they do not exist. Just because we ignore a problem does not demonstrate that it has been eradicated. It is also ironical that the white women do not understand the situations of black women despite of propagating the ideals of feminism. Collins states that as the black women are marginalized so they can better propagate the feminist thought but they are not provided this opportunity by the feminist movement in US owing to their lack of whiteness
Irony of Civilization
Another irony in the book is that the whites have stopped talking about racism and they think that their society is free from racist attitudes. Collins says, “Racism didn't magically go away just because we refuse to talk about it. Rather, overt racial language is replaced by covert racial euphemisms that reference the same phenomena-talk of "niggers" and "ghettos" becomes replaced by phrases such as "urban," "welfare mothers," and "street crime." Everyone knows what these terms mean, and if they don't, they quickly figure it out.”
The terms have been changed to humiliate the blacks on daily basis. The whites project themselves as a civilized nation but they are just putting a pretense because their behaviors with the blacks are not civilized ones. The black females are exploited by white men under the cover of civilization. The people of color are subjugated in schools, working places, markets and everyday business by the so-called civilized people.
Irony of Jobs
The jobs which are offered to black women are also evocative of the hypocrisy of the Whites and their society. African American women are either appointed as governess or care taker of the houses of the whites. They clean their houses and look after their families but they were not allowed to participate actively in matters of public importance. They were relegated to periphery in the fields of politics. The whites couldn't see them prospering so they confined them to their houses. White women also halt them from taking eminent positions in society.
