bell hooks is coming for Beyoncé again. big surprise.
look. i ❤️ much of hooks’ work, but she’s contradicting herself big time. 👀 oh well.
— Kevin Allred (@KevinAllred) May 9, 2016
Feminist scholar bell hooks recently published a critique of Beyoncé’s latest album, Lemonade. Her latest essay is not the first time she has voiced disdain over Beyoncé’s feminism and artistry. In 2014, she declared much of her work to be “anti-feminist” and equated her to a “terrorist” because of her intense influence over young girls.
In her essay, hooks asserts that Bey repositions black women. However, this “radical repositioning of black female images does not truly overshadow or change conventional sexist constructions of black female identity.” In essence, hooks sees Lemonade as a way to work “within a conventional stereotypical framework” instead of exploding the patriarchy.
People were quick to respond…
Janet Mock, good friend of hooks and NYT bestselling author, quickly tweeted out her respectful opinion.
This echoes dismissal of femmes as less serious, colluding w patriarchy, merely using our bodies rather than our brains to sell. Lets stop.
— Janet Mock (@janetmock) May 10, 2016
Our “dressed up” bodies and “big hair” do not make us any less serious. Our presentations are not measurements of our credibility.
— Janet Mock (@janetmock) May 10, 2016
Others were quick to point out hooks’ quickness to label white feminist Emma Watson as a “girl crush” while fervently disavowing Beyoncé.
bell hooks would rather associate with Emma Watson, who centers men, than Beyoncé, who centers black women, in their approaches to feminism.
— Nichole (@tnwhiskeywoman) May 9, 2016
Some wondered if hooks simply dislikes Beyoncé and, by extension, the art she creates.
Is it petty of me to say bell hooks just doesn’t like Beyonce the person? Orrrr… am I not being fair?
— Awesomely Luvvie (@Luvvie) May 10, 2016
“Your fave will never be radical enough for me.” – bell hooks’ tombstone, one day, probably — if she even believes in tombstones
— Saeed Jones (@theferocity) May 10, 2016
Still, some praised hooks’ for her insight.
So glad bell hooks can serve up some REAL lemonade. That other shit tastes like Mike’s HARD Lemon-Aid.
— CatOptrics (@CatOptricsII) May 10, 2016
Please read that bell hooks piece on Beyonce! There’s a lot of great ideas there that really interrogate Lemonade in a great way.
— Deidrene’s Inferno (@deidrene) May 9, 2016
But one thing is for certain, hooks’ latest essay cannot be simplified to a petty feud.
Both represent the commodification of Black feminism and movement in some way. As we all do, to an extent, operating within capitalism.
— Ari C. (@lit_ari_ture) May 10, 2016
beyond bell hooks, this is a serious discussion. why erykah badu’s feminism is more valid than beyonce than cardi b.
— Bilphena (@GoldWomyn) May 10, 2016
