Abstract
The #MeToo movement signaled that women’s voices will no longer be silenced. Yet the very woman who coined the term ‘MeToo’ had herself been ignored. Tarana Burke, founder of the US-based movement, began her fight in 2006; however, at first she was unrecognized within the #MeToo campaign. This erasure speaks to broader issues regarding Black Women’s representation and power throughout the world. Similarly, Indigenous women have long been relegated to the back of the line when discussing women’s rights in Australia. This chapter examines Indigenous Australian women’s responses to, and inclusion within, the #MeToo movement. In particular, it questions the impact of #MeToo on Aboriginal women in Australia and how we are being recognized in this space. This chapter demonstrates Black Women’s strength in how they speak their truths, calling for a change in Black Women’s representation in Australia.
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Notes
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Native American women were regularly called ‘Squaw,’ which has been thought to refer to a Native woman’s vagina, although this appears a contentious point, as some references have been made to the term simply meaning ‘young native woman.’
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Ryan, T. (2019). This Black Body Is Not Yours for the Taking. In: Fileborn, B., Loney-Howes, R. (eds) #MeToo and the Politics of Social Change. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-15213-0_8
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