Audre Lorde seeks to redefine and reclaim power primarily through the embracing of differences – both within oneself, and within others. Rather than viewing these differences as being divisive, she encourages everybody in her speeches to instead see it as a creative force, and to learn from. Marginalized communities are taught to act against one another in order to keep them from uniting towards effective political and social change, and Lorde focuses on breaking down these teachings to create a community for all who face oppression. She also discusses the need to take action within all of our communities, to teach them these ideas of embracing differences as well, for example queer people of color addressing the homophobia within their racial communities, as well as the racism within the queer community. Lorde takes the idea of community being the most important aspect of fighting oppression from the gay liberation movement, but goes beyond it by including all communities and all ways they can be intersected, instead of focusing on within one community. The only true way to reclaim power is to fight all forms of oppression, not just the oppression that has a personal effect on one’s life, because nobody is truly equal until all people are equal.
May 3rd, 2015 at 07:15pm
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