Get Your Life and Reclaim Your Space with Feminista Jones
2019
Non-fiction; Black feminism, social media, social justice
171 pages
Easy reading (goes best with a glass of red wine, a highlighter, a pen, and a pad — you’re going to want to take notes)
In Reclaiming Our Space: How Black Women are Changing the World, From the Tweets to the Streets, Feminista Jones reminds us that the space we take up — both online and off, was always ours.
Reclaiming Our Space begins by examining the relationship between Black women and Twitter in a way that can only be done by someone who’s been part of the change. Feminista Jones is a social worker, well-known Twitter personality, and freelance writer who’s written for Ebony and The New York Times. She understands the importance of acknowledging the power Black women have when we use our voices and express ourselves. Twitter was created to go in one direction, yet, gradually conformed and tweaked their structure to adhere to ways Black feminists were using the app. Black feminists used hashtags like #AreYouOkaySis, #SayHerName, and #BlackLivesMatter to effectively strategize, exchange information and create movements.
In the essay Thread!, Jones asserts that threading was a solution that solved a communication gap in Twitter, and remains a relevant practice on the social media site.
“Many of these threads are, in my opinion, as valuable as academic papers published in journals that relatively few people have access to, and the ways in which they influence and educate all those who engage and even participate in them cannot be understated.”
Reclaiming Our Space is written by a Black feminist, for Black feminists. However, there’s a variety of lessons that non-Black women should take advantage of. For white women, especially, it serves as a crash-course into what feminism looks like when it’s done right. For example, Jones shows that feminism is at its best when Black women are centered, proving this by including interviews that centered other Black women. Angela ‘The Kitchenista’ Davis, and founder of the Black Girl Magic movement Cushion Thompson, both provide features commentary that highlights their experiences using social media to amplify their voices and work. Jones also does a stellar job of noting other Black feminists who are creating change and promoting liberation.
For Black women who are all but exhausted of being reported, silenced, and shadowbanned on social media, Reclaiming Our Space is the affirmation we deserve. It’s also a guidepost for sisters who are interested in learning about using social media to market products and brands. There are also essays that capture the conflict of being caught in the crosshairs of Black feminists haters, or worse — hoteps.
As social media’s increasing restrictions and oppressive algorithms continue to perpetuate misogynoir, Reclaiming Our Space is the literary auntie who shows up to remind us that, we don’t need a seat at the table. We are the table. Periodt.
“My focus is on Black women and our contributions to forward progress, and I will repeatedly assert that our contribution to the painstaking work is essential to all liberation work”. — Feminista Jones
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