Nasty Women Talk Back! is a collection of feminist essays that tells stories of what it’s like to be a woman in today’s world. Each story utilize a poster associated with the global women’s marches and uses it as a platform to tell a personal story. The stories are beautifully written, they talk about ordinary women who have done extraordinary thing's.
The ‘Nasty Women’ collection of essays are personal reflections on the lived experiences of the writers. Edited by feminist author Joy Watson and political scientist Amanda Gouws. The 28 contributions in the collection are all told by "nasty women" who are making the personal political, who are seeking to live their lives in ways that resist and challenge patriarchy. These are stories that speak to the creation of a different kind of social order, one based on equity, the promotion of human rights and social justice. These are not for the fainthearted, yes it's a warning because these are thought provoking stories and they are very real.
The book opens up with Joy Watson Journey into feminism, titled - Pussies are not for grabbing. Joy speaks about her visit to a Doctor at age 9 when she was not feeling well, comparing it to what turned out to be a total different experience year's later when she visited a Gynecologist as a young woman. She refers to the experience as her first "pussy grabbing" experience.
Joy describe her feminism as quasi-spiritual as she had to question how we as people, communities and societies forge relationships; how we engage with each other and how the notion of power comes to play in all this. "I was re-conceptualising my experiences through the prism of a gendered social order" - she says. Through feminism, she was able to question the experiences she had as a child and as a young woman; to gain a deeper understanding of the world in which she was growing up – a world that was oppressive towards women and more so towards black women. Through this awakening, which she describes as being both “frightening and liberating”, she was able to find her own voice, to claim her own space and power in ways that she had never felt entitled to do.
These are very profound and compelling reads. The book takes you on a journey of growth as a person for the betterment of both, yourself and others.
Women across the world have been emboldened by the exposition of stories of sexual violence and harassment #GBV. The #metoo campaign has created a safe space for many women to come out and tell their stories of sexual violence in a world that treats women as objects of sexual desire. These stories have grabbed our collective attention. In the wake of the global women’s marches, spaces have opened up for talking about the everyday acts of sexism that women are subjected to on a daily basis.
Grab yourself a copy and awaken your spirit of sistahood with these beautifully written stories of beautiful women about their beautiful journey's of hope.