Beyond the Pale

Pioneering study of how ideas about white women have shaped the history of racism

How have ideas about white women figured in the history of racism? Vron Ware argues that they have been central, and that feminism has largely developed as a political movement within racist societies. Dissecting the different meanings of femininity and womanhood, BeyondthePaleexamines the political connections between black and white women, both in contemporary society and in history, including the anti-slavery movement. A major contribution to anti-racist work, BeyondthePaleconfronts the historical meanings of whiteness as a way of overcoming the moralism that so often infuses anti-racist movements.