Ann Braude Faith Feminism And History Analysis

Ann Braude in “Faith, Feminism, and History,” discursively articulates and illuminates the ways in which religious narratives about feminist activism and consciousness have been diminished throughout American history. She particularly attends to the itemizing of feminist activist and religious women who worked from within their traditions to dismantle sexist nomenclatures. Notably, she writes, “On the one hand, some feminists depict religious women as apologists for patriarchy whose allegiance to religious communities conflicts with authentic advocacy on women’s behalf.” She highlights the dissemblance and difficulty associated with operating in traditional religious landscapes as a woman and identifying as a feminist. What is at stake for Braude is one’s commitment to the equality of women and jettisoning oppressive, hegemonic …show more content…
She observes, “One the other, social conservatives often portray feminism as an agent of secularism or as destructive of religious values. They assume those who work to enhance women’s status lack authentic faith.” To be a feminist was often conflated for being nihilistic, or devoid of religious, moral, and ethical principles. There was a particular way in which feminism was viewed as the antithesis of organized religion, namely Catholicism, because of its socially concentrated agenda, and commitment to disrupt hetero-patriarchy. This vantage point often bifurcated and relegated one’s identity to an antagonist of patriarchal mores and norms or an apologist for structural inequity. These polarizing identity markers often legitimated or delegitimized feminist activists. This approach, to me, falsely curated a binary that was corrosive to the larger narrative of feminism in American religious history and devalued the efforts of women who maintained their religious affiliations within a particular